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The Shopkeeper set to open later this month

Who's ready for The Antiques Roadshow: The Adventure Game? Okay, you might have to wait a while for that particular title to come along, but there's another game along those lines whose release is right around the corner. The Shopkeeper, currently in the home stretch from Viennese developer verse publications, is being billed as a combination of "The Twilight Zone, classic LucasArts adventures, and The Antiques Roadshow," though it thankfully aims for inspiration more from Rod Serling stories and less from public television programs.

The game tells the story of a man on the hunt for a special gift to impress a "difficult" older relative of his, and in his quest stumbles upon a small antique shop full of items with their own stories to tell, "some quirky, some macabre." Although details are being left intentionally vague in order to keep the mystery intact, the game’s trailer strongly hints that the protagonist has less-than-altruistic intentions for the "gift's" recipient. There's obviously more to the proceedings than meets the eye in any case, as touching the wrong item may have "unexpected consequences" for the main character as he uncovers each object's past.

The Shopkeeper will be a mouse-driven, third-person point-and-click affair, hand-drawn in 2D graphic novel-style. It will also feature a fully-voiced cast of characters, including Jeff Ricketts (Firefly, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) as the lead. For those who want to unearth all the mysteries this little shop of (probable) horrors has to offer, it is worth noting that the game will require multiple playthroughs for a full experience. The developers describe it as a "short-form" narrative that will encourage a completist playstyle.

Primed for release on PC, Mac, and Linux, prospective customers can expect to snag the game on Steam later this month. Until then, more information can be found at verse publications' official website.

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