The Void

This seemed to have slipped under the radar (at least I haven't seen anyone mention it) so I just thought it worth pointing out that the second game from Ice Pick Lodge - The people that brought you the insanity of 'Pathologic' released the English language version of their second game 'The Void', which is now available on Steam.

Information mercilessly nicked from Rock Paper Shotgun...

IMAGE(http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/thevoid1.jpg)

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2009/09/29/wot-i-think-the-void/
http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2009/10/01/nude-descending-a-star-the-naked-void/
http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2009/11/02/eurogamer-the-void-review/

There is a Legitimate Torrent of (free) bonus material for the game (pics, video, music, pdfs...poetry?) 4Gb in size (you can find it in the third RPS link above)

There were changes in the move to English (as noted in this forum thread:
http://forum.ice-pick.com/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=9043 and the biggest one is that apparently the game is MUCH harder than the original Russian version. To the point where they are releasing cheat codes soon to let people enjoy the story and not worry too much about the game

Anyway, downloading it now so I'll try it out in a bit. I was very interested in Pathologic but the barrier caused by bad translation stopped me getting very far in it. Sounds like they've improved on it this time round though.

This and Tale of Tales' Fatale have been high on my list of games to play since they came out, if only I could find the time. Now that there's a thread about it, I think I have no choice but to cut back on Left 4 Dead this weekend and finally grab this from Steam and give it a go.

It looks like a fantastic Clive Barker novel of a game, but I'm very interested in not being relentlessly pulverized by obtuse, unforgiving gameplay. On the other hand, tits! So I dunno. For $20 I'll probably take a stab at it. I'll be interested to hear your impressions, stevenmack!

Switchbreak wrote:

This and Tale of Tales' Fatale have been high on my list of games to play since they came out, if only I could find the time.

Same here. I actually ordered a copy of the Void at launch from the UK, before it was announced that it would be on Steam, but haven't had a chance to put it in. I'm gonna dig in in January.

The Eurogamer review is phenominal. Made me want to play it very much, though a lot of what he said was negative.

I love it when reviewers are just honest like this, lay it all out, and don't try to be some shaft of illustrative light from on high - they're just a guy telling you about a game.

Minarchist wrote:

6. It is not "fun". It is a very interesting experience, and I plan on completing it, but the scarcity of resources; brooding, oppressive environment; and somewhat clunky controls create a somewhat panicky feeling when playing. I certainly think it's worth picking up, but it's not quite the same feeling as Super Monkey Ball, that's for sure.

You basically just described their previous game, Pathologic, so I'm not surprised. I was hoping they would tighten the controls, though. This is also one of the reasons I was stalling on this - I don't want this game to bring down my Christmas cheer. It will be a perfect complement to my January doldrums, though.

I played a bit of Pathologic. I think the controls are better in this, actually, but some of the interface choices are weird. For instance, I can draw the donor glyph while standing right next to a barren tree, but if I do that I'll just be wasting color. In order to activate "glyph mode", I have to rub it with just a bit of color first, wasting a few, then step back and draw the rune. Why? Why is this not explained? But I misspoke, actual controls are significantly better. This is tolerable.

As to to experience, I think the RPS guys mentioned it in their review, if I remember. It is really, really bleak and oppressive; but it works very well for the story. You're right, it's a perfect mid-winter game.

I bought this a few weeks ago and have played it some to this point (even recommended it for Fringe Busters, as it certainly fits that role, but Pyro doesn't love me ). Initial impressions:

1. This game is hard. Managing your color correctly the first time through is, in my opinion, damn near impossible. I'm somewhat stuck at a point that I'm trying to get through without whipping out the cheat console, but I will likely fail again and start cheating. The developer has admitted that this game is hard and encourages people to cheat, even; official cheats are listed on their forums. (And as re-read the OP I see he has mentioned that; go go Gadget Reading Comprehension!)

2. The special effects are pretty. I've been taking lots of screenshots. They work particularly well to contrast the extremely barren environment.

3. This game consumes far more resources than you would expect, due probably to #2 and poor code optimization. I found this out when, having all my graphics settings maxed (again, see #2), I encountered 2 enemies in a group for the first time. Machine slows to a crawl, slideshow, slow pecking to death over a period of 30 seconds. Careful.

4. Save every time you're in the void (the overworld map screen). Stay in the void for as little time as possible. Cross into the void as few times as possible.

5. The game is really picky about how you draw your glyphs, particularly the first and most important one (the "donor" glyph). Make sure to draw the tails longer than you think you need to, or you'll just be needlessly wasting color.

6. It is not "fun". It is a very interesting experience, and I plan on completing it, but the scarcity of resources; brooding, oppressive environment; and somewhat clunky controls create a somewhat panicky feeling when playing. I certainly think it's worth picking up, but it's not quite the same feeling as Super Monkey Ball, that's for sure.

7. There is supposedly quite a bit of oogaba, although I haven't gotten to that point in the story yet. Just a word of warning.

8. Loading screens for every room. Feh. Hope for it to become less of an issue later in the game. We'll see.

I bought this a few weeks ago and have played it some to this point (even recommended it for Fringe Busters, as it certainly fits that role, but Pyro doesn't love me ). Initial impressions:

Honestly I have been a little intimidated by it so I haven't put the time into it for me to actually make it a Fringe Buster article. Definitely want to check it out though.

'twas merely a joke.

Minarchist wrote:

'twas merely a joke. :)

Heh it's fine, I'm just trying to provide myself a little extra motivation to click on that icon that's been sitting on my desktop for a month

ARG! wtf? I'd downloaded about 50% through steam then my router disconnects. When I get back on I seem to be starting again at 1%....that's not supposed to happen on Steam right?

Gamasutra had really positive review of the game. I`m still in my turn-based strategy mode though, so it`ll have to wait.

PyromanFO wrote:
I bought this a few weeks ago and have played it some to this point (even recommended it for Fringe Busters, as it certainly fits that role, but Pyro doesn't love me ). Initial impressions:

Honestly I have been a little intimidated by it so I haven't put the time into it for me to actually make it a Fringe Buster article. Definitely want to check it out though.

Lets do a January play through of it, all together!

Dysplastic wrote:

Lets do a January play through of it, all together!

I'm up for that. But I can't promise not to cheat my ass off if the going gets too tough!

Switchbreak wrote:

This and Tale of Tales' Fatale have been high on my list of games to play since they came out, if only I could find the time. Now that there's a thread about it, I think I have no choice but to cut back on Left 4 Dead this weekend and finally grab this from Steam and give it a go.

This looks amazing, but it'd kill my machine.

Regarding Fatale: I picked it up, but I couldn't get very far into it. Unless they've patched it out since it was released, there's no way to invert the control axes. The struggle to stay oriented was enough that I put it down, then my computer crapped out on me, and I haven't made it back.

I had read that the devs promised a difficulty patch, but the projected release is "sometime" and they didn't sound too terribly rushed...but who knows, maybe a bunch of sales will motivate them.

I reread my original post and it sounds pretty harsh, but I didn't mean to come off that way. It's really quite an interesting game and I recommend anyone who cares for this type of thing check it out. It is certainly not without its problems, but it has that je ne sais quoi about it that makes it so, um, viscerally compelling . And presumably once you get near the end game and are running around with 20 hearts and a few thousand lympha (don't ask...) you start to feel a bit more in control of things.

I think I'm a wuss gamer. I'm not sure I'm willing to put long, long delayed feedback into my limited gaming schedule. I guess that means I'll never play this, which I do think is a shame. I hope it's related to how little time I have right now-- because being a wuss gamer isn't something I'm happy about. Looking forward to continuing to read others' experiences though.

Had a chance now to play a little (just part way through the opening areas which form the tutorial I think).

It's got an incredible creepy atmosphere to it, and as is mentioned above controls WAY better than Pathologic did. I'm still fumbling around trying to figure out what I'm supposed to be doing (so far I've coloured in a few trees,harvested them and killed a couple of bat(ish) things and nearly died traversing the void 'cause I wasn't watching my colour levels...I think....).

Also - remarkably good voice acting and translation, considering their last attempt at both.

If your going to play through it in January I may hold off on going much further for now and wait till then (and clear out some of my lighter fare in the meantime :D) .

VERY interesting so far though...

stevenmack wrote:

Also - remarkably good voice acting and translation, considering their last attempt at both.

Agreed. Thank goodness.

I've only played a bit of it, but so far I love it. The art actually reminds me a lot of some of the better demoscene productions (which makes sense, since those all seem to come from eastern Europe too), and I love the feel of the place. I've messed around a bit with growing color in the garden, from what I've heard about the game getting really hard I'm probably already screwing up beyond redemption, but so far I'm just loving the environment.

$10 on Steam right now. Sold!

Podunk wrote:

$10 on Steam right now. Sold!

I saw that. It wasn't even on steam when I bought it.

stevenmack wrote:

ARG! wtf? I'd downloaded about 50% through steam then my router disconnects. When I get back on I seem to be starting again at 1%....that's not supposed to happen on Steam right?

I've had that happen to me. I think the number shown resets but you still have what was previously downloaded, just no way to know how much is left. :p

General Crespin wrote:
stevenmack wrote:

ARG! wtf? I'd downloaded about 50% through steam then my router disconnects. When I get back on I seem to be starting again at 1%....that's not supposed to happen on Steam right?

I've had that happen to me. I think the number shown resets but you still have what was previously downloaded, just no way to know how much is left. :p

Yeah, it sped through the stuff I'd downloaded previously much faster than it did the first time thankfully.

So I've started playing this game this week. I am HOOKED. Some comments/tips:

1) It's actually a surprisingly deep strategy game in terms of resource management. This game is the true definition of Survival Horror - they've basically taken your health points and made it your ammo - how punishing is THAT? I'm at the point now where I've unlocked two more sisters and started mining, and have things figred out pretty well, but I have tons of options.

2) The strategic decision between just HOW much color to put in trees vs. how much to keep for sisters etc is just gut wrenching. There is no clear winner, because you have no idea how the next few turns will play out. These kinds of decisions are really hard - especially as you also have to balance how much colour to convert (So as to have enough lympha without being wasteful) and how much to keep (So you have enough to put in your hearts and survive the void).

3) Drawing is really finnicky, as stated above. I've got the donor glyph down pretty much pat, but the mining glyphs were really tricky. A hint about mining glyphs - they always use the same amonut of color no matter how much you use when drawing them, so take your time and draw them well. Also, aim your glyph ABOVE the color node - they seem to be affected by gravity.

4) Save often, and don't be afraid to cheat. It's a tough, punishing game, and you shouldn't be ashamed if you need some help.

5) Avoid enemies rather than fight them - there are no negative consequences if you leave them there, and since your character can wall-walk pretty well, its not hard to avoid. (Plus, there are of course negative consequences for drawing TOO much - as if the game isn't punishing enough).

6) Always keep 75-100 Gold colour in reserve, as having some in your hearts multiplies your color donations to sisters by up to 1.5x !!!! That's FREE COLOR, people!

7) Ultimately, a perfect January game. Dark, creepy, freaky, depressing, beautiful, atmospheric, and scary without the "jump in your face" scaryness....this game is a treat. (And definitely deserves a spot on Fringe Busters).

Podunk wrote:
Dysplastic wrote:

Lets do a January play through of it, all together!

I'm up for that. But I can't promise not to cheat my ass off if the going gets too tough! :D

Oh yeah, this sounds like a great idea. I'm game!

Any chance of a demo on this one?

Doesn't look like it. Russian Devs don't really feel the same pressure for Demos. Honestly, just torrent it if you want to check it out. I know you won't steal it if you like it

So, anyone still playing this? I had to take about a week off - it's that exhausting - but now I'm back into it firmly hooked. I can say that in the second set of 10 days, you get a LOT more colour to play with, so you're freaking out a lot less about dying in the void and are able to think a bit more about how to maximize it. Right now I'm still focusing on filling Sister's hearts, Day 17.

As an aside, I've gotten more flak about this game (Naked chicks floating around, kneeling in front of you, etc) from my girlfriend than I did from Bayonetta. Cries of "It's a Russian Art game!" didn't go very far.

I've been meaning to get back to this game ever since I tried it out a bit last month and liked it, but I haven't yet. Procrastinators, the leaders of tomorrow!