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STASIS - Release 31 August 2015

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Sooo, how’s this done? I really hope this has done well for the few who worked on it. Seems like a tremendous achievement for them.

     

Recently completed: Game of Thrones (decent), Tales from the borderlands (great!), Life is Strange (great!), Stasis (good), Annas Quest (great!); Broken Age (poor)

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Just finished it and here’s my impressions:

It’s good. A lot of time, care and effort went into this and it really shows. The story isn’t a straight line and does require you to think of everything you’ve read and everything you see. The puzzles are solid with only one or two which felt a bit directionless, but beyond that, its a great game.

I’m glad they went with the isometric view as due to the themes mentioned in the game, I’m pretty confident I’d not be able to handle it as a first person or even side on game. It would be too graphic and…disturbing I suspect.

Well done Brotherhood. Look forward to seeing your next project.

     

Recently completed: Game of Thrones (decent), Tales from the borderlands (great!), Life is Strange (great!), Stasis (good), Annas Quest (great!); Broken Age (poor)

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Haven’t gotten all that far yet (just passed a motion detector), but I’m absolutely loving it!

A few very minor glitches I’ve encountered so far:
- the word ‘maintenance’ on the second line of a character description in the first screen displays too high and is seen partly over the text of the first line
- one description in one of the first screens had a word cut off by the right screen edge (bug due to the font enlarging in 1.0.6?)
- path finding is still shoddy with Maracheck often running around a desk or other obstacle to get to something he could have reached in a straight line instead
- tampering with the radio in the first section happens wherever Maracheck is standing when you click the radio (even if he’s on the other side of the room)

It’s a bit odd that I encountered most of these in the Alpha section as that should have gotten the most work done…

Anyway, none of these are overly important, and they’re not hurting the game at all. The graphics, music and atmosphere are FAR too good for that.
In fact, this game has me more on edge than should be possible in a game where dying only returns you to the previous screen.

The very first time I died in the game (the undrained acid shower) had me panicking for a second because I hadn’t saved. Seeing Maracheck return to the last action before entering the “death room” was a great relief.

So far I’ve died several times (drilling the undrained acid tank, staying in the open furnace too long - I had to reload to deliberately try this one -, getting too close to the vat, opening the door with the acid cloud, standing near the methane explosion, possibly more times even) and most were done on purpose (and were very avoidable). A couple of times I *thought* Maracheck would drown (but he managed to resurface), and a lot of times the game has made me jump with very clever use of scares. It’s above all a very EFFECTIVE horror game, knowing how to use its assets to get the most out of it. Top notch so far!

I also love reading the PDAs, lots of good side stories to be discovered there, with a lot of attention to detail. They’re also making me suspect that the creature killing everybody is the escaped ‘Samantha’ abomination.

The puzzles so far are all very good. Several are straightforward, some make you think. Obtaining the drill (the best puzzle in the Alpha) is still THE puzzle, though. Very devious stuff!
And I love that some inventory items have multiple uses (and that Maracheck even comments on the usefulness of one of them).

Graphics are absolutely wonderful, coupled with great cutscenes. Chris is a very talented artist.
Mark Morgan’s music is top notch as well, and that recurring lullaby effortlessly walks the thin line between dreams and nightmares.

I’m loving this game so far. It’s a perfect blend of and tribute to all the games and movies that influenced it, while still maintaining its own identity. And there are more than enough jump scares to have me constantly unsettled when playing, which only enhances the already thick atmosphere.

So far the game is more than living up to the hype, which is not an easy feat given how much I’ve been hyping this. I’m very impressed so far! Thumbs Up

     

The truth can’t hurt you, it’s just like the dark: it scares you witless but in time you see things clear and stark. - Elvis Costello
Maybe this time I can be strong, but since I know who I am, I’m probably wrong. Maybe this time I can go far, but thinking about where I’ve been ain’t helping me start. - Michael Kiwanuka

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wilco - 09 August 2015 10:02 PM

Well, I’ve played the beta, probaly shouldn’t have because maybe I’ll have to start over in the final game but I kept wanting to see what happened next.
Still lasted 4 hours and that final scene…

Now I want the full game Frown

Out of curiosity, what’s the final scene of the beta?
Is it the monster jumping through that glass door near the DNA lab? Or is it further along in the game?

     

The truth can’t hurt you, it’s just like the dark: it scares you witless but in time you see things clear and stark. - Elvis Costello
Maybe this time I can be strong, but since I know who I am, I’m probably wrong. Maybe this time I can go far, but thinking about where I’ve been ain’t helping me start. - Michael Kiwanuka

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TimovieMan - 28 September 2015 06:52 AM

Out of curiosity, what’s the final scene of the beta?
Is it the monster jumping through that glass door near the DNA lab? Or is it further along in the game?

No, it’s later. It’s another scene (the worst has yet to come Smile )

     
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It’s actually quite unvering considering its not really designed to be (isometric, mechanically etc). About the ending…

[spoiler] What did you all think? What happened to his family can tragically be found before you reach the end, but I wonder if this might go over some people’s heads. John doesn’t seem to react when you read some of the PDA’s which might make some gamers think it’s not really relevant thus skipping or skim reading it, reaching the end and feeling confused. [spoiler]

     

Recently completed: Game of Thrones (decent), Tales from the borderlands (great!), Life is Strange (great!), Stasis (good), Annas Quest (great!); Broken Age (poor)

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Regarding the ending:
There’s this cloning theory that John’s wife in the ending is nothing but a clone used to transfer information encrypted in her DNA. And John’s real wife is actually one of the three pregnant women (as the PDA kind of implies), more likely the one that reacts to John’s appearance and the one that John sing to. He doesn’t seem to recognise her with her strange outlook and condition, but hey, he didn’t seem to notice that she was dead in the stasis pod as well. Not reacting to PDA was also strange to me. but I considered that game’s mechanics aren’t aware of what John is reading, regarding it as optional. There were other cases where I’ve already read a certain information on a PDA and John is still “oh, what the hell is going on here”. There’s another theory about John’s mental condition. His suit is constantly implying that he’s not quite alright, his serotonin level always rising up. So there’s a chance that not everything John see is real. Which may differ from what the player sees, but may explain some of John’s reactions (or the lack of such Smile ) Anyways, I still don’t support a single solid theory about the story but I like to believe that one of the pregnant women was indeed John’s wife. Maybe he didn’t react at once but his emotional bond with one of the women was evident. Walking in the museum-like chambers, reciting Malan’s words that “whitout family man trembles with the cold” he’d already accepted that he is alone and there’s nothing left to live for. Maybe he saw his dead wife in the stasis pod, maybe he didn’t even care if that was really his wife, but he sent her anyway. Will be happy to see more opinions and theories on that matter. A second playthrough would definitely cast some more light on the story.(

     

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I have to say I LOVE reading the theories about the story. I do have a concrete thing in mind about what I think happened…but Im not going to commit and let anyone know. Smile

     
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I think if you don’t read the PDAs the ending is more simple. and what happens to the family. Wife in the pod, John doesn’t see she is dead, tries do save her.

The PDAs are mostly about the crew but probably have more info The pregnant woman being the wife, not sure about that, would definitely need a replay..

     
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mentioning the PDAs i thought to mention how smart the diaries telling the story (bit by bit), which were easy and intriguing to follow, not like (i.e) the Scratches (long pages and scrambled hand writings)

also not to forget mentioning (for those about too play) that the cursor can hold an action within the eye symbol (more than just a couple of times), tho i read the this was a glitch, and was fixed at the latest patch.

     
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Finished the game, and regarding the ending then I must admit that I’m confused?!

First of all, regarding Th’ea [spoiler]then right up to the end I actually hoped that she would turn out to be good! I of course never trusted her one bit, and if you read all the “cooperate spy” pda’s, then it is pretty obvious that she had to be the outside agent that was controlling whathisname, but I kept hoping that the developer would throw a curveball, in the form of that seeing all the monstrosities that had happened here would somehow have changed her, and that she now cared more about exposing this than about the money, but that obviously wasn’t the case.[/spoiler]

Regarding his wife, then the most logical explanation is indeed, that she was one of the three birthing women that he killed. Both the pda telling that she was used very successfully as this, and Johns reaction, singing the lullaby, when he kills them very strongly suggest this. But if that is the case, then who was the dead women in the stasis chamber at the end? I simply don’t buy the theory that she should be a clone of his wife.

And then there is the whole Becky scene, in an earlier clip we see Becky as being a blonde, but the child that we see being murdered is a brunette! The most obvious explanation for this is THAT IT IS NOT BECKY!
How John could not notice this, is a bit of a mystery, but I guess that it could be explained by his whole state of mind, which the suit keeps warning us about, similar to how he doesn’t react stronger to the pda about his wife.

This also got me wondering about the whole time-line. The only way that we know that John has been in stasis for three years, is because he finds a calendar on a wall and comments on it, but how do we know that the calendar is current? It wouldn’t have been the first time, that an outdated calender had been left hanging somewhere, and I also seem to recall the Th’ea hesitated when confirming that it had been three years, though that might of course just be my imagination. But what if it hasn’t been three years, but instead 10 or 15 years?

If this is the case, then it might also mean that one of the three pregnant women that he kills, is ACTUALLY HIS DAUGHTER BECKY!
This would much better explain why he starts singing the lullaby, after turning off the power supply. And if the mother was suited for giving birth for hybrids, then it also makes sense that the daughter would be, especially since they had both suffered from the same genetic disease. It also explains why the “Becky” we see getting killed is suddenly brunette instead of blonde, and it means that the dead women in the stasis chamber at the end, could actually be his dead wife.

The one problem with this theory, is that John and Th’ea uses the blood of the dead child, to trace the location of Johns wife. But Marlack (or whatever his name was), could have arranged all of this, he might have been aware of what Th’ea was planning, and then planted the blood and arranged the whole “Becky dead scene”, in order to smoke out Th’ea. it all makes at least somewhat sense imo

The other possibility is of course [spoiler]that the dead women in stasis is just some random women, that Th’ea thought was John’s wife, but that she was just some random corpse, and that either Becky or John’s wife, depending on which of the two the pregnant women was, is actually still alive somewhere, but I doubt that is the case.[/spoiler]

     

You have to play the game, to find out why you are playing the game! - eXistenZ

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Iznogood - 03 October 2015 12:09 PM

Finished the game, and regarding the ending then I must admit that I’m confused?!

First of all, regarding Th’ea [spoiler]then right up to the end I actually hoped that she would turn out to be good! I of course never trusted her one bit, and if you read all the “cooperate spy” pda’s, then it is pretty obvious that she had to be the outside agent that was controlling whathisname, but I kept hoping that the developer would throw a curveball, in the form of that seeing all the monstrosities that had happened here would somehow have changed her, and that she now cared more about exposing this than about the money, but that obviously wasn’t the case.[/spoiler]

Regarding his wife, then the most logical explanation is indeed, that she was one of the three birthing women that he killed. Both the pda telling that she was used very successfully as this, and Johns reaction, singing the lullaby, when he kills them very strongly suggest this. But if that is the case, then who was the dead women in the stasis chamber at the end? I simply don’t buy the theory that she should be a clone of his wife.

And then there is the whole Becky scene, in an earlier clip we see Becky as being a blonde, but the child that we see being murdered is a brunette! The most obvious explanation for this is THAT IT IS NOT BECKY!
How John could not notice this, is a bit of a mystery, but I guess that it could be explained by his whole state of mind, which the suit keeps warning us about, similar to how he doesn’t react stronger to the pda about his wife.

This also got me wondering about the whole time-line. The only way that we know that John has been in stasis for three years, is because he finds a calendar on a wall and comments on it, but how do we know that the calendar is current? It wouldn’t have been the first time, that an outdated calender had been left hanging somewhere, and I also seem to recall the Th’ea hesitated when confirming that it had been three years, though that might of course just be my imagination. But what if it hasn’t been three years, but instead 10 or 15 years?

If this is the case, then it might also mean that one of the three pregnant women that he kills, is ACTUALLY HIS DAUGHTER BECKY!
This would much better explain why he starts singing the lullaby, after turning off the power supply. And if the mother was suited for giving birth for hybrids, then it also makes sense that the daughter would be, especially since they had both suffered from the same genetic disease. It also explains why the “Becky” we see getting killed is suddenly brunette instead of blonde, and it means that the dead women in the stasis chamber at the end, could actually be his dead wife.

The one problem with this theory, is that John and Th’ea uses the blood of the dead child, to trace the location of Johns wife. But Marlack (or whatever his name was), could have arranged all of this, he might have been aware of what Th’ea was planning, and then planted the blood and arranged the whole “Becky dead scene”, in order to smoke out Th’ea. it all makes at least somewhat sense imo

The other possibility is of course [spoiler]that the dead women in stasis is just some random women, that Th’ea thought was John’s wife, but that she was just some random corpse, and that either Becky or John’s wife, depending on which of the two the pregnant women was, is actually still alive somewhere, but I doubt that is the case.[/spoiler]

This is a great theory, i think with its terrific art and sound design, the story fell apart in the final third of the game in comparison, leaving me with a bittersweet feeling.
The only cons were character animations and story elements.

Game like these have a problem, you have this amazing art, music and sound which makes your mind thinking of different scenarios in the head, inspiring you all the way.
And then if story pulls off tropes of Doc vs the world, god complex, being played like fiddle by NPCs, it all makes the overall experience a bit watered down.

Still the rendered stuff was so detailed at times , that its worth another playthrough.
Oh and i hope it gets console release, i liked the interface alot , and its suited for PC, but still would love to enjoy the Art on comfy couch and even bigger screen.

 

     
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Okay, I’ve reached Project Seed (including the chamber full of hybrid creatures), and I have to say that the place is creeping me out more and more. And I have a VERY high tolerance for f#%@ed up shit… Gasp

     

The truth can’t hurt you, it’s just like the dark: it scares you witless but in time you see things clear and stark. - Elvis Costello
Maybe this time I can be strong, but since I know who I am, I’m probably wrong. Maybe this time I can go far, but thinking about where I’ve been ain’t helping me start. - Michael Kiwanuka

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Haven’t posted for ages on here but I’m a regular lurker. Just finished Stasis tonight and it’s been a while since I enjoyed a game this much. Didn’t think it would be my thing but I was intrigued about it being a clever sci-fi horror, rather than jump scare old hat.

It’s even more impressive when the dev team was so small. Really good effort, even the text descriptions were a pleasure. The PDA stories that were interwoven were a nice touch too.

In terms of the ending, I’m sure the PDA in the SEED lab says that his wife was used for the pregnancy experiments and was likely one of the women you end up killing - it is strange that there’s no reaction to the information other than John’s visible distress after removing the power core. I’m unsure who the woman in the stasis pod was. Of course we could just be looking for answers that have no questions and the woman is indeed John’s wife, with the PDA just being reference to previous experiments.

I’d certainly recommend it and look forward to seeing what the developers do next.

     

He gave me a cold, shocked stare as if I’d farted at a funeral.

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No…


I just reached our in-person meeting with Dr. Malan. The resulting cutscene left me staring at the screen in utter shock for five minutes, unable to move, and crying…

I’m starting to think the game won’t have anything even closely resembling a happy ending. If this happened now, then I don’t see Maracheck reaching the end of the game alive. In fact, I think we won’t find Ellen alive. The PDA in the lab with the hybrids mentioned that [spoiler]Ellen Maracheck gave birth to the “alpha male” hybrid, so she’s definitely a victim of the SEED experiments[/spoiler]. I just hope she won’t turn out to have been deformed to the point that we didn’t recognize her in that lab with the pregnant women we mercy-killed previously.


I had a longer game session in mind, but I’m done for this evening. This game is brutal…

     

The truth can’t hurt you, it’s just like the dark: it scares you witless but in time you see things clear and stark. - Elvis Costello
Maybe this time I can be strong, but since I know who I am, I’m probably wrong. Maybe this time I can go far, but thinking about where I’ve been ain’t helping me start. - Michael Kiwanuka

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