Dead Letter Dept. — Everything We Know

I can’t say I’ve ever had the displeasure of spooling through letter after letter in a mundane admin role, but if I absolutely had to, then I’d like to imagine that the nine-to-five wouldn’t be quite as depressing as it’s made out to be. Saying that, if such a duty is anything even remotely like Belief Engine’s upcoming story-driven horror game, Dead Letter Dept., then hey, consider me eligible for the job. Cryptic letters? Check. Ominous signs left out by unknown sources? Check. An alluring sense of dread looming in the airways of an office environment? Check, check, and check.

It’s fair to say that, as far as jam-packed years go, 2024 is shaping up to be one of the best — especially in the horror department. Aside from all of the obvious contenders that are in line to make an appearance at some point over the next twelve months, however, there is another that has caught our interest, and it’s Dead Letter Dept., clear as day. If that’s also made your list, then be sure to read on for a few more details. Here’s everything we currently know about the upcoming horror title.

What Is Dead Letter Dept.?

Dead Letter Dept. is an upcoming horror game in which players take on the role of a Data Conversion Operator, whose job it is to unravel dead letters and transcribe them in a timely manner. The game, which will divide its time between having players manually type out said letters, and exploring a network of seemingly vacant office corridors, will feature an unsettling array of puzzles, as well as a series of lo-fi scares. Just as well, because the thought of spending several hours sitting at a computer doesn’t exactly sound like a major thrill fest, to be fair.

Story

It goes like this: you’ve taken up a short-term posting as a data entry clerk—a job that just so happens to feed you infinite waves of indescribable letters and other forms of unreadable documentation. Your job, really, is to decipher the wording laid out before you, and enter it into your trusty terminal. However, after so many documents, you will eventually come to realize that there’s something else funneling into the pages, and from the sounds of it, it won’t be written in the most friendly of languages.

“After moving to the big city, you got yourself an apartment, and secured a temp data entry job- just to keep you afloat till something better comes along,” the blurb reads in part. “Your official title is a Data Conversion Operator, but you're really more like a warm body who types up all the junk computers still can't read.”

The story will, of course, follow the day-to-day operations of said company, and more importantly, your duties as the newly elected Data Conversion Operator. Sounds all rather harmless on paper, for sure. But then, that isn’t to say that your computer will be on the same wavelength, as it goes.

Gameplay

Prepare to have your work cut out for you in Dead Letter Dept., folks. Aside from the fact that you’ll be spending a lot of time eyeballing certain forms of documentation and what have you, you will also be dealing with other, more intrusive events, which will not only test your eye for detail, but your state of mind, too. However, for the most part, it seems that the bulk of the gameplay will revolve around scanning documents and transcribing them for a system. As it is, of course, a horror game, though, you can expect to see a few death threats, too. Fun times.

According to the devs, “you go to work & process the images displayed on your terminal, and type up whatever text is in front of you. Whatever can be made out, that is. Letters and lost mail, some mangled and twisted, that have travelled from place to place with nowhere else to go. Sometimes the mail you receive is a little strange. Sometimes, it feels like it's talking to you directly through the screen.” Eerie.

Development

Dead Letter Dept. is a product of Belief Engine, an independent firm comprised of two creators — Mike Monroe, and Scott McKie. Announced back in 2021, Belief Engine lifted the veil on its atmospheric typing horror project by posting a series of screenshots and a short but somewhat insightful gameplay trailer. According to the team, the game will be shaping up for a release on PC at some point in 2024.

The good news is, you can, in fact, follow the developer’s progress by submitting your email over on their site here. For more news on the project, you can also follow their official social handle here.

Trailer

Yes, there is a trailer of Dead Letter Dept., and it just so happens to showcase some of the core features that’ll make up the game. You can check out the initial announcement trailer for yourself in the embed above.

Release Date, Platforms & Editions

Dead Letter Dept. will be launching on PC via Steam at some stage in 2024. As for whether or not it’ll be porting its way over to Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, and Switch remains to be heard, but if it does receive an emulation, then Belief Engine is likely to post an update on the matter at some stage in the near future.

Interested in staying up to date with Dead Letter Dept.? If so, then be sure to check in with the folks over at Belief Engine for all the latest updates here. If anything does change ahead of its 2024 release, then we’ll be sure to fill you in on all the key details right here on gaming.net.

So, what’s your take? Will you be picking up a copy of Dead Letter Dept. when it arrives on PC? Let us know your thoughts over on our socials here.