Creepy summer camp the scares you and follows you home.
Key Takeaways:
A horror camp that breathes dread — Camp Hollow turns an abandoned summer camp into a living nightmare, where silence feels heavier than whatever’s stalking you.
Stylized terror with bite — Its cartoon-tilted visuals look friendly until they don’t, twisting light and shadow into something that stares back.
A studio that knows how to haunt — TNP Games leans hard into psychological tension, evolving their mascot-horror roots into something slower, meaner, and smarter.
Survival wrapped in mystery — Exploration, stealth, and puzzle-driven discovery push you to uncover why the camp feels alive—while a monstrous rat creature makes sure you don’t linger.
A Summer Camp You’ll Wish You Never Visited
If you’ve ever looked at an abandoned summer camp and thought, “Yeah, something awful definitely happened there,” then congratulations, Camp Hollow is exactly your kind of nightmare vacation.
Developed by That Nerd Punk Games (TNP Games), this upcoming mystery horror adventure takes the classic summer camp vibe and throws it straight into the foggy woods/
It douses the whole thing in tension, atmosphere, and that mascot horror indie style terror.
For gamers chasing that perfect blend of unsettling mystery and late-night exploration, Camp Hollow is shaping up to be one of the memorable indie horror releases heading into 2026.
And trust me, the quiet moments are just as eerie as the enemy lurking nearby.
What Exactly Is Camp Hollow?
At its evil little core, Camp Hollow looks to be a first-person, story-driven horror experience. Set in a shuttered summer camp with a questionable past, you will play as the camp’s night guard.
The poor soul hired to “just keep watch” at a place that definitely should’ve been demolished decades ago. One night, the sound of shattering glass around the main hall boots our character awake.
From that moment on, nothing will feel right. The silence is too thick, and something starts moving out there.
The main antagonist stalks the camp. Not a cute cartoon mascot. Not a fuzzy friend. This thing is big, fast, and very aware of your presence.
Your job is to survive it, piece together the mystery behind Camp Hollow, and figure out why this place feels alive in the worst possible way.
The gameplay mixes exploration, environmental storytelling, puzzle-solving, and high-tension survival. Think of it as an evening walk through hell with a flashlight and terrible job security.
A Cartoony Yet Disturbing Art Style
One of the most striking things about Camp Hollow is its art direction. What TNP Games describes as “creepy yet stylized.”
It’s got that slight cartoon edge that makes the surroundings seem approachable at first glance, but there’s something off. The visuals give the impression that the world wants to tell you a story but keeps it secret instead.
Lighting plays a major role as well. Unreal Engine 4.27 gives the game a polished cinematic look, letting the environment breathe and suffocate the gamer depending on how deep into the camp you wander.
The animations, too, lean into a kind of smooth vibe. Movements feel realistic as though everything in Camp Hollow is a snapshot of real life.
This game is psychological discomfort, the kind that crawls under your skin and sits there.
A Developer With Horror Roots
Camp Hollow comes from TNP Games, an indie studio with a growing reputation in the horror space.
If you’ve come across their previous work, the Playtown series, you already know their specialty, which is mascot horror with personality and a surprising amount of heart behind the dread.
Playtown reached hundreds of thousands of gamers, garnering a majority of positive reviews on Steam. This shows that this team knows exactly how to tap into modern horror expectations while still doing their own thing.
Their games tend to mix personable character design with deeply unnerving behavior, and Camp Hollow looks like the next evolution of that formula.
What sets TNP Games apart is their commitment to psychological tension. They let the environment simmer, letting your imagination bite at the edges of darkness.
Camp Hollow seems designed to keep your shoulders tense from the second you wake up until the moment the credits roll.
Gameplay, Tension, and Survival
Don’t mistake Camp Hollow as a walk-and-scream experience. Your exploration will unearth information that ties into the larger picture. But the real threat is the rat creature that stalks the campground.
Key gameplay elements include:
- Environmental puzzles that force you to navigate the camp strategically
- Stealth and evasion mechanics to avoid being caught
- Clues and story fragments hidden throughout the campgrounds
- A constantly shifting sense of safety, where any noise might be the noise
Release Info & Where to Follow the Development
Camp Hollow is currently planned for a 2026 release on PC (Steam).
The game is being built in Unreal Engine 4.27 and TNP Games has already released a trailer showing glimpses of the camp and the horror lying in wait.
If you want to keep an eye on this project (or if you enjoy seeing what the developers are up to) the studio is very active online:
- Twitter (X): https://x.com/thatnerdpunkdev
- Discord Community: https://discord.gg/4Nzn5qnvQC
- YouTube Dev Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thatnerdpunkdev
So, lookout for updates on their socials for more details and probably more creepy summer camp nightmares over the next year.
Why Camp Hollow Deserves Your Attention
In a horror landscape overflowing with clones, jumpscare-spam titles, and “mascot horror” that doesn’t understand why the genre works, Camp Hollow feels refreshingly deliberate.
It’s insidious instead of loud. It’s stylized instead of gory. And above all, it’s mystery-first, which is a plus for me.
What’s promising is how TNP Games pair their established style with a darker, more grounded environment.
A whole camp with memories soaked into its wooden walls creates a good, isolating experience that has emotional weight.
Closing Thoughts
Camp Hollow is shaping up to be one of those indie horror games 2026 will thrive on. It’s one of the creepy PC horror games Steam has that’s stylized without losing its uniqueness.
If you’re into late-night, mystery-driven storytelling, and the kind of tension that makes you reconsider walking into dark rooms… keep this one on your radar.
Camp Hollow may just be the campfire tale the horror community won’t stop talking about.
Nero is a writer and lore researcher known for reviewing games on Steam. With years of experience playing horror games, uncovering hidden narrative patterns across indie and AAA titles, and publishing museum catalogs on ancient objects, he blends commentary with psychological horror theory. When he’s not unraveling storylines, he’s enjoying rock music, drawing, working in analytics or obviously playing video games. Check out his latest post to explore the furtive patterns hidden in game lore.
