Last weekend at New York Comic Con, 505 Games granted me the opportunity to sample four of their upcoming publications. Here are a few peeks at some things we have to look forward to!
By Ed Giza
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In ADR1FT, developed by Three One Zero, you are the sole survivor in a severely damaged space station. You must make the necessary repairs to your ship in zero gravity while seeking audio logs that detail the events leading to the crash. There are no enemies beyond the threat of suffocation as you explore the station – inside and out – looking for oxygen tanks and answers.
Full disclosure, I had never gotten a chance to play with the Oculus Rift before this demo. As such, I was too overwhelmed by the experience to properly work through the established goals. Instead of searching for the computer that would initiate repair procedures, I floated outside the station to peek at the Earth from above. I found myself wiggling my head just to see the corners of my helmet in my peripheral vision. I barrel rolled through zero gravity until I made myself dizzy. I got distracted looking out a window and managed to suffocate. Whoops.
I never got around to checking up on that computer, but wandering the corridors of the station and poking through floating debris kept me well engaged. I spent more time than I should have trying to figure out which way was up, and even more time than that wondering if “up” even mattered anyways.
ADR1FT is a wonderful reintroduction to the immersive power of virtual reality. Every version of the game will provide a lonely, floating experience, but cutting out the real world truly lets you get lost in space.
ADR1FT is set for release in Q1 2016 for the Oculus Rift, Microsoft Windows, Playstation 4, and Xbox One.
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How to Survive 2, the sequel to EKO Software’s 2013 How to Survive, is an isometric zombie survival game. Up to sixteen players work cooperatively towards building a survival camp, and up to four concurrent players can scavenge for materials, track down NPCs, or just clear zombies from the ruins of New Orleans. Also there are zombie pelicans crawling out of the bayou, if that happens to be your thing. They seemed intent on covering me in toxic goop, so I chose to keep my distance.
The final game will also feature a complete crafting system to construct weapons, armor, and base camp supplies. I managed to wrap some barbed wire around a baseball bat for better zombie bashing, and I suspect things get a bit more intricate beyond the demo.
Look for How to Survive 2 on Steam Early Access on October 29th.
The Guest from Team Gotham is a first-person exploration game. The player awakens in a bedroom and slowly pieces together who their character is and why they are stuck in the room. The player must solve puzzles to work their way out of the bedroom and, assumedly, out of the building.
Having grown up on Sierra adventure games, my first inclination was to wander the space and pick up everything that wasn’t nailed down. I even brute-forced a number puzzle because I didn’t take the time to search out the second clue. The developers got a chuckle out of that, but it was the nudge I needed to relax and take my time. There are no enemies and there is no timer, so there’s no sense in rushing.
Once I slowed down enough to simply enjoy the setting, The Guest offered a delightfully creepy environment to explore. There isn’t far to wander – the demo showcased the first two rooms of the five that will be featured in the full game – which really lets the player focus on the smaller details of the surrounding weirdness. My only complaint about the demo is that it had to end just as things begin to get even stranger.
The Guest is going to be a fantastic game to play late at night in a quiet, empty house. Between the two rooms, I found my share of jumps as I stumbled puzzle to puzzle. I’m looking forward to seeing more once the game is complete!
The Guest will be coming to Steam in 2016.
Indivisible, in development from Lab Zero Games, offers a combination of Metroid-style platforming and RPG-style combat. The early prototype introduces the protagonist Ajna, a young martial artist. You also get to pick up some additional party members along the way, including an archer, a shaman, and some sort of turban-whipping fighterman. Stylistically, the game has a lot to offer; I found myself almost losing a party member more than once because I was admiring the animation.
Combat is frantic; each character has an ATB bar and special moves mapped to directional buttons. A special bar loads as you land hits and block incoming attacks, allowing your characters to heal, revive fallen comrades, and unleash more powerful attacks. My timing was not so hot with the special attacks (let’s just say I did not quite have a full party by the time I finished the demo), but I suspect they will be the key to success in the finished game.
You can download the playable prototype here and check out the Indiegogo campaign to finalize funding here.
