Perhaps the strangest (that’s a compliment) game revealed during this year’s Xbox Games Showcase was There Are No Ghosts at the Grand, a first-person hotel-decorating shooter that also happens to be a musical with some Lovecraftian-lite influence.
That’s a mouthful, but it also doesn’t quite do justice to the strange combination that U.K. developer Friday Sundae is currently cooking up.
During Gamescom 2025, I had the opportunity to see a hands-off gameplay demonstration, with creative director Anil Glendinning sharing a slice of what players get up to as they step into the shoes of protagonist Chris David to focus on restoring the Grand hotel, solving puzzles, and trying to stay alive when pursued by a horde of monsters.
Oh, and Chris only has 30 days and 30 nights to get his work done, so.. no pressure.
Overall, I’m excited, and I’m looking forward to There Are No Ghosts at the Grand’s debut next year (when, I should note, it’ll launch on Xbox Game Pass).
Cleaning up and setting the stage
That aforementioned weird mixture is something Glendinning is quite proud of, listing off the music of the ’80s and ’90s scenes as a huge inspiration. Other fonts include classic Hammer Horror films, as well as British science-fiction shows like Doctor Who and Red Dwarf.
The gameplay demo I’m shown opens up with protagonist Chris David getting started on renovating the old Grand hotel. Using his helpful AI-powered tools (no, not that kind of AI), Chris is able to rapidly blast away old wallpaper and give the room a new paint job.
It’s reminiscent of games like PowerWash Simulator, though without requiring quite as much precision, with Glendinning explaining that the team didn’t want the process to be too frustrating.
Chris is also able to hang portraits and rearrange furniture, so players are free to detail and style the rooms as they see fit, to an extent. Shortly into this renovation, Chris receives numerous calls for assistance from the mayor, necessitating a drive down to the docks to hop on a boat.
While this drive is guided by frequent yellow objective markers, I’m told that these can be disabled if players prefer to explore without being funneled toward their goal.
To get the boat running, there’s a simple puzzle that involves finding the right code, and this puzzle type shows up later in the demonstration as well. Glendinning notes that it was distilled for the purposes of this gameplay and will be a bit harder in the full game.
Along the trip, I see the musical side of the game come into focus, as Chris and the Mayor sing back and forth while disagreeing over what he’s really there for. Notably, Chris has different dialogue options that result in different lines being sung; upon finishing the duet, I notice that he’s gained approval with the mayor.
When I asked Glendinning for more details about the approval system, he shared that players can view their standing with all the different characters they’ve met at any time through the menu. He adds that it’s obviously a good idea to gain good graces with the locals, but it may not always be possible to please everyone.
Unfortunately, there’s no encore just yet, as the boat ends up crashing up against an island, with Chris stranded for the night. As he explores a desolate bunker, Chris discovers so-called “memory bubbles” which contain echoes of the past, shedding just a bit of light on some strange happenings.
I don’t want to spoil the story threads of what he finds, but it’s here that the game’s survival-horror aspects become apparent, with the handy tools transforming into weapons that are needed for fighting off a horde of dark creatures. Eventually, it becomes too much, and Chris is forced to make a run for it..
Hopefully not too long of a wait
The completely wild reveal trailer already had me interested, but now, after seeing the game in action (and leaving off on a cliffhanger), I’m outright excited to see what’s next.
There Are No Ghosts at the Grand seems to be a refreshingly creative melting pot, mixing mystery, terror, and whimsy all together. That’s a combination I didn’t know I needed.
I still have a few questions about how it’ll all come together, but I’m looking forward to seeing it all come together and actually getting to go hands-on.
I hope the developers take their time, but I’ll also eagerly be awaiting a release date.
There Are No Ghosts at the Grand is currently slated to launch at some point in 2026 on Xbox Series X|S and Windows PC (Steam and Xbox PC). It’ll also be available at launch in Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass. You can wishlist it on Xbox and Steam right now.
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