Maid of Sker () is a 2020 first-person survival horror game developed and published by Wales Interactive. The game is set in 1898 in the Sker Hotel, on an imaginary island called Sker Island. The protagonist, Thomas Evans, is invited by his lover, Elisabeth Williams, to uncover the mysteries of the hotel after she notices her family's strange behavior. While exploring the hotel, Thomas learns cult followers called "The Quiet Ones" control the place. He finds notes and gramophone records scattered around the hotel that reveal the history of Elisabeth's family.
Several Welsh and British folklore tales provided inspiration for the story. One particular source was Sker House — a historic place situated just outside the town of Porthcawl, near Bridgend, Wales — made famous by The Maid of Sker, the three-volume novel written by R. D. Blackmore. The folklore story of the same name titled Y Ferch o'r Sger in Welsh also influenced the game. The game has been compared to Outlast, The Evil Within 2, and Silent Hill. Its saving system was compared to that of Resident Evil, with the typewriter switched to a gramophone in the saving rooms.
The game was released on 28 July 2020 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, and on 26 November 2020 for Nintendo Switch. Critical reception to Maid of Sker was mixed, with reviewers praising the visuals and plot while criticising the gameplay mechanics. A spiritual successor, titled Sker Ritual, is scheduled to launch in 2023 for Windows, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
Gameplay
In Maid of Sker, players take on the role of Thomas Evans, as he navigates through the eerie and abandoned Sker Hotel in 1898. Using a first-person perspective, players must outsmart the hotel's blind enemies known as "The Quiet Ones," who have the ability to track Thomas down by the noise he makes.
Since Thomas is unable to fight back, players must utilize stealth and distraction tactics to sneak past the enemies and safely explore the hotel grounds. This means avoiding noise at all costs, holding one's breath when near a Quiet One, and carefully navigating through environments to avoid coughing or rustling objects.
Mid-game, players are given a temporary weapon called the Phonic Modulator, which uses shock waves to temporarily damage the enemies' hearing and stun them. However, players must use this weapon sparingly as ammunition is limited.
The game features a manual save style; there is no autosave. To save the game, the player has to find "safe rooms". These rooms have green-tinted patterned doors, and inside the rooms are gramophones the player has to play to save the game. This saving system has been compared to that in the Resident Evil games. The game has also been compared to Outlast in terms of its gameplay style, and The Evil Within 2 and Silent Hill for its atmosphere.
The game includes puzzles and missions to unlock special keys that grant access to different areas of the map, as well as collecting brass cylinders and optional collectible doll figures that act as music boxes. As the game progresses, the difficulty increases, making it harder to save, find ammunition and healing items, and survive against the more aggressive enemies.
Plot
The game is set in 1898, in the remote Sker Hotel located on the fictional Sker Island. The protagonist, Thomas Evans, receives a letter from Elisabeth Williams, the hotel owner's daughter, in which she tells him she is trapped and in danger. Along with the letter, Elisabeth sends a locket that belonged to her mother, which plays a tune. She asks Thomas to write a counter-song to the tune and bring it with him when he comes to the hotel, saying it will make sense later.
Upon arriving at the hotel, Thomas is greeted by a gloomy atmosphere and finds the front gate locked. Guided by a dog, he finds a way into the hotel and soon discovers that the people inside are abnormal and cannot see. Elisabeth, who has locked herself in the attic, warns him that the place is no longer safe and tasks him with finding four brass cylinders her father hid on the hotel grounds. She tells Thomas that if they are played on a harmonium, things will return to normal.
As Thomas explores the hotel, he learns about a cult called "The Quiet Ones" that the family belonged to and that Elisabeth's mother served as a priestess. The cult had planned to control the powers of a Siren they found in a sunken ship near the hotel. Elisabeth was trying to write a counter-song to reverse the effects of the Siren, and asked Thomas and three other composers to help her.