Hidden Dawn begins to emerge from Malaysia
Proving once again just how global the genre can be, today’s news comes from Malaysia, where the independent E-One Studio has offered up the first details about its upcoming third-person adventure, Hidden Dawn.
Described only loosely as a “fantasy adventure to ‘save the world’”, Hidden Dawn takes a much different approach to its subject matter than ye ol’ traditional medieval-style fable. The game centers around an ordinary person whose special abilities are not her own, but rather belong to a unique item she carries – naturally, an item that others are eager to claim for themselves. Even these powers are not the standard types of might and magic, but “derive from tapping into the components of existence, such as vitality, the mind, power of material attraction, and unity.”
The backdrop to Hidden Dawn is the world of Empyria, home to several sentient species from both land and sea at an unidentified point in time. In the aftermath of a catastrophic battle in which a conqueror wiped out almost an entire group of people, a young girl named Heru sets out from her home only to discover that her family is being hunted for something she doesn’t even realize she possesses.
Heru soon learns of her access to the Essence, a “collection of abilities tapping into the fabric of the universe”, such as controlling plants, gravity, and even psychic thought. She’ll need to use these abilities to conquer various puzzles, from “physical ones in environmental travel, to shape-based puzzles requiring the use of certain Essence, to mental puzzles of pattern recognition, time-based puzzles and dialogue-oriented puzzles.”
Along with Heru as the main protagonist, the game will feature three other playable characters, each with their distinct role in the unfolding tale. Controlled using a mouse/keyboard combination, Hidden Dawn will also feature some Quick Time Events and light combat, though the developers claim this won’t represent a significant portion of the gameplay , aiming for a “cross between Dreamfall and Indigo Prophecy” in this story-driven adventure. Heru herself has no combat abilities, and players will be controlling her about 80% of the game.
Perhaps the best news of all is that the game is now well along in production. The team has been working on Hidden Dawn since 2006, and is now close enough to be targeting a release in the third quarter of 2009. No firm release plans have been finalized yet, but E-One is speaking to publishers now, and investigating every avenue available, including digital distribution and self-publishing online, though their main goal is to get the game on shelves as a full retail product.
We’ll be sure to keep an eye on Hidden Dawn in the coming months. In the meantime, be sure to check out the game’s official website.
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