This might be the darkest visual novel we've ever seen

Everyone knows how fairy tales are supposed to go: The princess is kidnapped and locked away in a dungeon, and a brave hero comes along to save her and defeat whatever great evil was keeping her captive. Except what if it wasn't that simple? What if it was the princess herself that was the great evil?

That's the question being asked by Slay the Princess, the upcoming visual novel from developer Black Tabby Games. In this game, you play as the brave hero, of course, but as the title suggests, you've actually been sent to kill the princess in order to prevent the end of the world. But can you really go through with it, even as the princess tries to convince you otherwise?

The story sounds great and the branching paths sound even better, but maybe the best thing about Slay the Princess is its lovely sketchbook art style. Every frame of the game was hand-penciled by award-winning graphic novelist Abby Howard, one of the cofounders of Black Tabby Games. If screenshots and the trailer above are anything to go off of, that attention to detail is going to pay off with some unforgettably grim artwork.

So how far are you willing to go to prevent the end of the world? Slay the Princess launches on PC on October 20, 2023. We'll be jumping in for ourselves to see just how messed up this scenario gets, so watch for a quick review from a TapTap editor soon.