Do Not Play Wants You to Break the Rules (and You Definitely Will)

Red Candle Games—the team that delivered Detention and Devotion, two of the most quietly devastating horror games in recent memory—is back with a new title that already gives me chills: Do Not Play. And true to its name, the game dares you right from the title screen to do exactly what you shouldn’t.

Slated for a 2026 release, Do Not Play is a point-and-click psychological horror adventure that plays with memory, digital hauntings, and the temptation to uncover what should stay buried. You’ll piece together the past through cursed videos and hidden files on an old PC—a mechanic that already reminds me of Simulacra and Her Story, but with the extra tension that only Red Candle seems to master.

The trailer feels glitchy, grainy, and cursed in the best way. There’s something deeply nostalgic about the interface, yet totally unnerving. A girl’s voice cuts through static with cryptic warnings. You know what that means: we're in for something personal, poetic, and extremely not okay (but in a good way).

If you’re the kind of person who loved decoding VHS static or spent hours reading haunted forum threads in the early 2000s, this one is for you. And if you're like me—cozy under a blanket, headphones in, pretending you won’t get freaked out—Do Not Play is already on your must-play list for 2026.

No firm release date yet, but it’s officially coming to PC. Wishlist it on Steam if you're brave (or just really stubborn).