Slay the Princess developers Black Tabby Games announced today during the DreadXP Indie Horror Showcase that their ongoing Appalachian Horror game Scarlet Hollow will receive its fifth chapter come Valentine’s Eve in 2026.
Scarlet Hollow, a game that was originally released in 2021, has announced its fifth chapter will release on Friday, February 13th, as a free update from the developer. If you’ve played Slay the Princess, you’re familiar with the narrative prowess of Black Tabby Games and their ability to take a small or simple concept and expand it to explore all facets. Boasting over 870,000 words of branching storytelling, the critically acclaimed Black Tabby Games offers a choices-matter approach to storytelling.
Superstitions are easy to dismiss, but here in the Hollow they mean something else entirely. Step but a single foot into Scarlet Hollow, North Carolina, and learn why residents never seem to leave. The town’s Scarlet Mine is mired in familial roots — yours, in particular — and the reality of the surrounding townsfolk pay dearly for it. Such a fate is better than disappearing in the woods, however. Have you seen what lurks in the darkness?
Come into town for your aunt’s funeral and help your cousin Tabitha manage the mine’s burdens her mother left behind. Unweave the town’s history, intertwined with otherworldly happenings, and learn the truth behind your arrival in the Hollow.
Black Tabby Games Tony Howard-Arias doesn’t want you to think this is the end of Scarlet Hollow and had this to say about the release:
This is far from the end, but that doesn’t mean Scarlet Hollow is ‘unfinished’ necessarily. Each chapter has its own self-contained story, even as each of them slot into a bigger overarching narrative. For us, Scarlet Hollow has always felt like a seven-game series where you get to carry your choices forward into each new installment. And if you don’t believe me, Episode 1 is free. You can always see where it takes you.
Scarlet Hollow Key Features
- A heavily branching narrative where your decisions (actually) matter. The relationships you forge and the decisions you make will dramatically alter your journey.
- A complex paranormal mystery. Investigate haunted houses, strange sightings in the woods, a deteriorating mine, and more as you try and piece together what happened in Scarlet Hollow.
- Trait-based dialogue and role-playing. Scarlet Hollow’s dialogue system is driven by role-playing elements that let you choose who you want to be. Are you quiet and observant? Hot and clueless? Can you talk to animals? 21 different character builds change how you interact with the world and how your story unfolds.
- A dynamic relationship system that reacts to your every choice and changes how your story unfolds. People won’t just like or dislike you. Become friendly rivals, bitter adversaries, best friends, or mild acquaintances with everyone in town based on how you approach the story.
- Original monster designs inspired by Appalachian myths and cryptids.
- No jumpscares. All of the horror in Scarlet Hollow comes from dread, tension, and a sprinkle of disturbing imagery.
- A touch of romance. Whether you’re into goths, dads, moms, paranormal investigators, mysterious recluses, or actual monsters, you’ll find something waiting for you here. And if you’d rather avoid that entirely, your story won’t be any less for it.
- Hundreds of meticulously hand-drawn and traditionally inked backgrounds. Every background in the game is hand drawn and inked by Ignatz-winning graphic novelist Abby Howard.
- Fully immersive art. Each major character has dozens—and often hundreds—of hand-drawn sprites that interact with backgrounds and capture a full range of lighting, emotion, environment, and outfit changes.
Scarlet Hollow is currently available on PC via Steam in early access. Episode 5 will release on Friday, February 13th, 2026. Episodes 1 – 4 are currently available for purchase, and Episode 1 is free to own on Steam. Keep an eye on the front page of MonsterVine for more news on Black Tabby Games, visual novels, and Scarlet Hollow.
