Fresh off the floor at the recently wrapped UK Games Expo 2026, British indie studio Parable Games showcased a busy upcoming slate. While the team is currently gearing up to release their highly anticipated dark fantasy setting, Sisterhood, at London’s Dragonmeet convention later this year, the biggest surprise from the Birmingham show floor was the detailed look at their next major horror expansion: SHIVER: Cryptids.
Clocking in at 196 beautifully illustrated pages, SHIVER: Cryptids shifts the award-winning horror system away from traditional cinematic survival and directly into the world of active monster hunting. The upcoming book focuses heavily on legendary North American folklore, offering full mechanical write-ups and scenarios for icons like the Mothman, the Chupacabra, and Bigfoot. According to the development team, Bigfoot remains the single most requested creature by the SHIVER community since the core game launched.
Hunting the Unknown
The original SHIVER system built its reputation by emulating classic horror movies, in which ordinary people desperately try to outlast slashers, aliens, and ancient entities. This expansion introduces a deliberate tonal and mechanical pivot, providing the structured rules and statistical backing required for player characters to actively track down, corner, and confront things that go bump in the night.
In-game, this hunting initiative is driven by a fictional, hyper-local publication called CREEPS (Cryptid Research and Esoteric Experiments in the Paranormal Society). Strongly inspired by Britain’s real-world Fortean Times magazine, the CREEPS setup gives players a clear operational framework. Characters mount up in heavily modified SUVs and “Bigfoot buses” to travel into deep wilderness spaces, attempting to photograph, document, or neutralise legendary monsters for the next monthly issue.
International Waves for British Indie Talent
The quiet buzz surrounding the announcement at UKGE points to a continuing trend of homegrown UK roleplaying game design capturing global attention. Notably, Jason Bulmahn, the Director of Game Design at Pathfinder publisher Paizo, was spotted picking up a copy of the SHIVER core system in his post-convention loot summaries, a significant nod of professional interest from one of the industry’s most prominent figures.
The formal crowdfunding pre-launch page for SHIVER: Cryptids is already live on BackerKit. Potential players should note that a copy of the original SHIVER Core Rulebook is required to make use of this supplement when it officially launches this summer.
Quick Links
Independently covering Jason Bulmahn since 2013. Our archive includes 10 entries connected to this topic.
Latest entry: June 2026
