ASYLUM - Scarier than the upcoming Amnesia? [New horror game found]

[Yuhaney]

When I saw the first teaser trailer, maybe a year ago, I was really looking forward to this game.
However, I am a bit disappointed since I'm not a very big fan of point-and-click games. I was hoping the developers would have changed it into 3D during development.
But then again, it was better than I expected since it looked 3D-ish (maybe it was, I don't know).

Will check it out anyways, since there was something interesting in it.

[Bridge]

When I saw the first teaser trailer, maybe a year ago, I was really looking forward to this game.
However, I am a bit disappointed since I'm not a very big fan of point-and-click games. I was hoping the developers would have changed it into 3D during development.
But then again, it was better than I expected since it looked 3D-ish (maybe it was, I don't know).

Will check it out anyways, since there was something interesting in it.

It most certainly is rendered in some sort of 3D engine but I highly doubt it has any physics implemented, so they can't just change the gridlike movement to full 3D without redesigning everything.

[Sexbad]

Oh, is it really Point & Click? Isn't there a true 3D world? Can't you move the character without clicking on a static position?
This would really ruin the project. I hope it will NOT be Point & Click!

The devs said it will be Point & Click, but the 3D environments and the freeflight camera doesn't show that. It looks like a real 3D world.

What do you think?

It's a point & click, and I honestly think that'll work just fine.

It's however not a standard point & click, the world is fully 3D, I imagine the movements and such working very much alike ''Legend of Grimrock''.

It'll be quite different from what we've seen done in the horror genre and I like the idea of exploring, it's still a young genre with lots of potential!

It's not my idea of a good time. It's unrealistic and distracting, plus the games that implemented such a system did so because of technical limitations (Myst for example, and guess what, they remade it with mouselook and 3D movement). I don't like grid-based movement apart from in RTSs and I just can't see how it could be fun to play at all, especially with the jarring fade effect they have going on.

First-person point-and-clicking isn't the newest or greatest system of getting around, but it has its advantages. I actually found the original MYST to be much more engaging, because RealMYST had very slow movement speed that made some of the puzzles end up being quite a chore. I'm not entirely sure how well it plays out in horror games, but the age-old PCA movement is arguably the strongest for adventure games.

For example, with predefined points from which players view the environment, the developers can pay attention to higher detail in the surroundings but also make sure that certain items are given proper visibility at all times. If you need to find a potion that is nearby some junk leaning against the wall or whatever, you will always be in the exact spot that will give you good visibility. Whereas with full 3D movement you could be only half a meter away from that predefined spot and you could completely miss the potion because some gritty artistic detail in the level is blocking your line of sight. The PCA style of movement is a sturdy means to keep accidental pixel hunting like that from ensuing.

In general, the system is very economical, and I don't think it will actually harm the game in any tangible way. It's definitely not going to be a survival horror, so as long as it stays away from the physical and focuses on the psychological, it could still play a damn fine array of tricks and end up being shit-your-pants scary.

[palistov]

I'm sorry, after watching Shutter Island, I can't take that game seriously. Hehehe. No, just no.

[Bridge]

First-person point-and-clicking isn't the newest or greatest system of getting around, but it has its advantages. I actually found the original MYST to be much more engaging, because RealMYST had very slow movement speed that made some of the puzzles end up being quite a chore. I'm not entirely sure how well it plays out in horror games, but the age-old PCA movement is arguably the strongest for adventure games.

For example, with predefined points from which players view the environment, the developers can pay attention to higher detail in the surroundings but also make sure that certain items are given proper visibility at all times. If you need to find a potion that is nearby some junk leaning against the wall or whatever, you will always be in the exact spot that will give you good visibility. Whereas with full 3D movement you could be only half a meter away from that predefined spot and you could completely miss the potion because some gritty artistic detail in the level is blocking your line of sight. The PCA style of movement is a sturdy means to keep accidental pixel hunting like that from ensuing.

In general, the system is very economical, and I don't think it will actually harm the game in any tangible way. It's definitely not going to be a survival horror, so as long as it stays away from the physical and focuses on the psychological, it could still play a damn fine array of tricks and end up being shit-your-pants scary.

Just to clarify, I'm a huge p&c fan and I don't really have anything against first person p&c over prerendered backgrounds. However, it just baffles me why you would create a 3D engine and then shackle it down with this unrealistic and distracting type of movement. It would have been much more effective if left unfettered, because in real life you are not confined to gridlike movement, plus the fade effect they have going on gives me a real sense of vertigo. It just immediately breaks my willing suspension of disbelief which is critical in horror games and I'm not too optimistic. It could very well be a good game, just like Legend of Grimrock is probably a good game, I just don't want to try it because of the fundamental design (that and there seems to be no story in LoG).

[Warp]

I think it looks pretty good, but i'm not a big fan of point and click (aside from the walking dead game). I don't think the enviroments look quite as scary as amnesia either, because it's modern day, with less darknss, and humans instead of monsters.

[spukrian]

The graphics are great and the game seems to be very atmospheric... however this "jerking" around with the POV makes me feel drunk. I don't think I could play the game.

[RawkBandMan]

I think it looks pretty good, but i'm not a big fan of point and click (aside from the walking dead game). I don't think the enviroments look quite as scary as amnesia either, because it's modern day, with less darknss, and humans instead of monsters.

Yeah, because mentally insane humans that could probably easily weld weapons aren't scary at all...

@_@

[AgustinCordes]

Hey all!

First, I'm really glad to see that Asylum has picked your interest. I'm a huge fan of Frictional Games and especially Amnesia (I assisted in beta testing the game during its final stages of production).

Now, I understand your concerns about the gameplay in Asylum and its engine but let me clarify this: Asylum and Amnesia are different games with dissimilar goals. Amnesia has perhaps more in common with the Survival Horror genre with some Adventure elements; on the contrary, Asylum is 100% Adventure that feels like a Survival Horror. When I say "feels" I mean the environments and visual effects, which you will find at times similar to Amnesia. But that's it.

Asylum is heavily story-oriented and especially when it comes to the protagonist, who has a distinct personality and provides insightful comments as you explore the rundown asylum. There's also interaction with secondary characters as well. Point and click makes plenty of sense in this context as we don't want you thinking about your movement or the controls: it's better if you're most of the time still and investing your undivided attention to the environments and what happens in them. As I told Martin, the original poster, there's no room for "physical" horror in Asylum: it's purely psychological, and let me assure you that the game will mess up with your minds in ways you can't imagine (i.e.: no lame scare jumps).

So if you're expecting another Amnesia, you will be disappointed. If, however, you want to play a serious horror game with some of the most disturbing moments ever seen in this industry, we are here to satisfy

As for the engine, the logic behind it is simple: Asylum does NOT need full 3D. In fact, it would be distracting. Like I said, we want you to focus on exploring the environments, seeking clues to unravel an intriguing mystery. If the engine was full 3D, we couldn't provide the level of detail we want. Again, Amnesia has different concerns so it doesn't matter if players see repetition in the environments: in the case of Asylum, there is hardly any repetition because every room is unique and highly detailed, and it has to be that way to maintain your interest.

And yes, there are other benefits: as some of you said, it's economic. We can reproduce this huge virtual building with a very low budget (practically non-existent). If we had to do this in full 3D, we would need a much, much larger team and the game would probably weigh above 8GB (right now it's less than 2GB). There is an extra bonus to this approach too: Asylum will run in low-end computers, and tablets even. An iPad port for example is almost a reality with practically no changes to the game code and assets.

Anyway, I hope this more or less clears up our intentions with Asylum. And I do hope you still will be interested to check out the game when it's ready. We are issuing a playable teaser soon which should give you a nice taste of how Asylum looks and feels.

Cheers!

[Traggey]

Wall of goodie num num text.

Very glad to see you here!

If anything this makes me want to play the game even more, you may take the money out of my pockets
this very second sir.

I'm looking forward to this.