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General discussionRelease: Californium(98 posts)(98 posts)
(98 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted February 17, 2016
Streets are uneven when you are down.



<span class="bold">Californium</span>, a surreal adventure in the unmapped intersection of realities, is available now DRM-free on GOG.com for Windows and Mac, with a 10% launch discount.

Creating different, plausible realities is what writers do, if they are any good. Elvin Green is not considered good by his editor, who no longer wants him as his client. He is not considered good by his wife either, as made abundantly clear in the goodbye letter she left behind. Elvin Green needs a different reality. And he will get a number of them bundled with weird, psychedelic images that wash over his mind, as he looks to make sense out of a meaningless existence.

1967 is not a good year for Elvin Green. But it has now become a very interesting one. As he explores the shifting realities that converge around him, he realises he can communicate with the colorful inhabitants and hop between worlds by touching objects which don't seem to belong. And unlike the bleak, dystopian imagery in which most of Philip K. Dick's work is typically represented in various media, the realities of Californium are bathed in a vibrant, intoxicating palette, representative of Elvin Green's indulgence in recreational chemicals. Will they prove to be the root of his plights or the catalyst to better understanding himself?



Get lost within the layered realities of <span class="bold">Californium</span> and find the piece of mind you're missing, DRM-free on GOG.com. The 10% launch discount will last until February 24, 10:59 AM GMT.
Posted February 18, 2016
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Konrad: This is true - since Arte is a public channel, folks from France and Germany can get the game for free. There are several pretty marked differences between the free and retail versions though.

The free version is:
— available in French & German only
— episodical, it'll be released piece by piece
— missing the save feature
— missing the OST bonus-content
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styggron: Hello Konrad,
You say the free version is missing the OST, but when I look at GoG's version it does not say it has an OST. Nothing lists as extras on the GoG version from what I can tell. Have I missed something ?

Also more generally,
I watched, albeit briefly, a few youtube plays and the game looks ok to me. I am worried it might be poor. There is only a single review here on GoG but the stars are high.

Is it really that bad ?

At the moment I have wishlisted it. Maybe wait till it goes down to $5 perhaps, I don't know. Just worried about the bad review at present. Not much info on it around really.

Anyone else bought it and played it ?
Same here, no extras shown at the game page, so the price makes no sense.
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Konrad: This is true - since Arte is a public channel, folks from France and Germany can get the game for free. There are several pretty marked differences between the free and retail versions though.

The free version is:
— available in French & German only
— episodical, it'll be released piece by piece
— missing the save feature
— missing the OST bonus-content
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omega64:
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DanielRuf: Wait, shouldn't it be free for european users?
Why this price here?
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omega64: Explained here.
There are no extras listed or mentione on tge game page ehre ;-)
Post edited February 18, 2016 by DanielRuf
Posted February 18, 2016
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PaterAlf: It might be interesting that the single episodes can be downloaded for free from Arte's website:

http://californium.arte.tv/de/#/episodes
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Konrad: This is true - since Arte is a public channel, folks from France and Germany can get the game for free. There are several pretty marked differences between the free and retail versions though.

The free version is:
— available in French & German only
— episodical, it'll be released piece by piece
— missing the save feature
— missing the OST bonus-content
Like other people, I'm quoting you for the absence of the OST on GOG gamecard too ;)
Posted February 18, 2016
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styggron: Hello Konrad,
You say the free version is missing the OST, but when I look at GoG's version it does not say it has an OST. Nothing lists as extras on the GoG version from what I can tell. Have I missed something ?

Also more generally,
I watched, albeit briefly, a few youtube plays and the game looks ok to me. I am worried it might be poor. There is only a single review here on GoG but the stars are high.

Is it really that bad ?

At the moment I have wishlisted it. Maybe wait till it goes down to $5 perhaps, I don't know. Just worried about the bad review at present. Not much info on it around really.

Anyone else bought it and played it ?
avatar
DanielRuf: Same here, no extras shown at the game page, so the price makes no sense.
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omega64: Explained here.
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DanielRuf: There are no extras listed or mentione on tge game page ehre ;-)
I know, but it's his explanation not mine. :P
Posted February 18, 2016
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styggron: Hello Konrad,
You say the free version is missing the OST, but when I look at GoG's version it does not say it has an OST. Nothing lists as extras on the GoG version from what I can tell. Have I missed something ?

Also more generally,
I watched, albeit briefly, a few youtube plays and the game looks ok to me. I am worried it might be poor. There is only a single review here on GoG but the stars are high.
avatar
HypersomniacLive: Emm.. what OST bonus are you referring to? The game page doesn't list any extras, nor have I seen anyone post here that the game does indeed come with the OST.
Will it be added later, or is this an "oops"?

On a side note - the episodical release, and perhaps even the absence of the English language, may not be a big deal to the taxpayers that funded it, but to not offer a saving feature is giving them the short end of the stick. Why? Because they don't pay again to play them? At least the BBC produced games got it right - taxpayers get the exact same game, content and feature wise, as everyone else that has to pay for them after release.
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styggron: Exactly what I also asked on the previous page. No extras appear to list on GoG
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catpower1980: Like other people, I'm quoting you for the absence of the OST on GOG gamecard too ;)
So, it looks like we all got a little confused over here — but long story short, the OST should be available pretty much right.... now.

If you don't see it in your shelf yet, try performing the all-resolving, all-encompasing refresh by heading to this link: http://www.gog.com/account/refresh
Posted February 18, 2016
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Konrad: If you don't see it in your shelf yet, try performing the all-resolving, all-encompasing refresh by heading to this link: http://www.gog.com/account/refresh
Thanks, now it makes sense:

"Included goodies: soundtrack (MP3)"
Post edited February 18, 2016 by DanielRuf
Posted February 18, 2016
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Konrad: So, it looks like we all got a little confused over here — but long story short, the OST should be available pretty much right.... now.
I'm 2 hours late to the party but yeah, I see the OST..... now :o)
Posted February 18, 2016
Thanks!
Not only the OST is here, but also an updated version.

A short impression about my first steps into this adventure:

This game is definitely not my usual point'n click game.
It's strange and I have to retry steps.
One may not be sensitive to seasickness (LOL).
I like the art and the atmosphere.
I must say, I'm hooked.

Back to the game...

<edit: typo>
Post edited February 19, 2016 by gixgox
Posted February 18, 2016
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gixgox: Thanks!
Not only the OST is there, but also an updated version.

A short impression about my first steps into this adventure:

This game is definitely not my usual point'n click game.
It's strange and I have to retry steps.
One may not be sensitive to seasickness (LOL).
I like the art and the atmosphere.
I must say, I'm hooked.

Back to the game...
Let me know how to finish the first chapter :) I did all the televisions and then at the end just looked around, talking to the people over and over again with that big symbol shining into the street, not knowing what to do...
Posted February 18, 2016
I just randomly stumbled upon an on-going twitch stream of the game:
http://www.twitch.tv/fuzzyfreaks
Posted February 18, 2016
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gixgox: SNIP ...
I must say, I'm hooked.

Back to the game...
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disi: Let me know how to finish the first chapter :) I did all the televisions and then at the end just looked around, talking to the people over and over again with that big symbol shining into the street, not knowing what to do...
Please don't wait for me, I'm a very slow player and just now I'm going to start over after GOG sent another update.
My first version crashed when I closed the game, maybe it was just my machine.
Posted February 18, 2016
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styggron: I never knew I could ask so I never asked for a refund for Westport Independant. The only GoG game I would like a refund for. Too late to ask now, it's been weeks :( :( :( :(
Yeah, I almost thought of asking for a refund on Westport Independent also, but my wife had already played it for a couple hours. Those guys scammed us all good. :(
Posted February 18, 2016
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styggron: I never knew I could ask so I never asked for a refund for Westport Independant. The only GoG game I would like a refund for. Too late to ask now, it's been weeks :( :( :( :(
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bigsilverhotdog: Yeah, I almost thought of asking for a refund on Westport Independent also, but my wife had already played it for a couple hours. Those guys scammed us all good. :(
How were you scammed if your wife played a couple of hours?
GOG generally does not offer refunds except when you have technical issues that they can't help you fix.
Seems like exceptions are made but those are exceptions.
Posted February 18, 2016
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DanielRuf: Wait, shouldn't it be free for european users?
Why this price here?
"European" users are not just German and French customers. I'm European, too, and I can't get the game for free from arte's site, unless I use some sort of VPN to bypass the ISP check. It seems only citizens of those two countries can get the game for free.

Also, this commercial release adds one extra "reality" to explore, has slightly updated graphics (namely, textures) and comes with the original soundtrack -- even though it only got the OST today. And, yes, I had to "pirate" arte's "free" version to check this out. I prefer my legitimately bought GOG copy, to be honest.

As for all the people complaining about the game, it's your opinion, you're entitled to it, but I think that "advising" other users to not buy the game because it's "complete trash" (or other variations of these words) is taking it a bit too far. I, for one, am glad I didn't listen to any advice from people in this thread; I'm liking the game a lot and I say that, if you like narrative experiences (read "walking simulators") with a bit of weirdness to them and some minor puzzle elements, you should give Californium a go.

People who love Philip K. Dick's work and life might enjoy it more than others, but even if you're remotely interested in or fascinated by anything literature-related, especially XX century US authors and their works (Burroughs, Cummings, Bukowski, Ginsberg, Kerouac, Pynchon, Vonnegut, S. Thompson, etc), I think you'll probably find something in Californium that you'll enjoy.

It's not the best game out there, to be sure, it's not even the best "walking simulator" (as a fan of the genre, it pains me to call it that, as most "REAL GAMERS" use it derogatorily) or the best puzzle game; but it's a nice, surreal adventure that provides some insight into the mind of a writer. It has a cool aesthetic, awesome music (did I mention you get the OST as a bonus if you buy it on GOG?), interesting characters that provide background to the PC's own story and somewhat interesting puzzles (albeit mostly perspective-based ones, from what I experienced so far).

People who hate the game will keep hating it, and there's nothing wrong with that, just be aware that it might not be as bad an experience as some want you to believe it is. Bottom line is, I guess: if you're interested in trying it, consider doing so, even though you shouldn't jump in thinking it'll be something like Jazzpunk, because they're kind of different types of games.

Just my two Euro cents on the topic.
Posted February 18, 2016
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groze: "European" users are not just German and French customers. I'm European, too, and I can't get the game for free from arte's site, unless I use some sort of VPN to bypass the ISP check. It seems only citizens of those two countries can get the game for free.
That's simply not true. I'm downloading the 1st episode of the game right now, and like you I'm in the "not-so-fancy" part of Europe (in my case, Spain).

Maybe it's just your ISP's fault.
Posted February 18, 2016
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groze: "European" users are not just German and French customers. I'm European, too, and I can't get the game for free from arte's site, unless I use some sort of VPN to bypass the ISP check. It seems only citizens of those two countries can get the game for free.
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muntdefems: That's simply not true. I'm downloading the 1st episode of the game right now, and like you I'm in the "not-so-fancy" part of Europe (in my case, Spain).

Maybe it's just your ISP's fault.
Your part of Europe is still fancier than mine, though. :P
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This is my favourite topic
Community
General discussionRelease: Californium(98 posts)(98 posts)
(98 posts)