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General discussionRelease: Even the Ocean(61 posts)(61 posts)
(61 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted November 16, 2016
The fate of your city hangs in the balance.

<span class="bold">Even the Ocean</span>, a thought-provoking action/platformer about an ordinary woman who must defend her futuristic city from a mysterious calamity, is available now for Windows and Mac, DRM-free on GOG.com with a 15% launch discount.

Aliph was mostly content with her technician job at the power plant of Whiteforge City. But one day, while doing the rounds, her story takes a violent yet interesting turn: a mysterious incident grants her powers she never asked for and she must now balance her Dark and Light energies to face the danger that got unleashed upon her city.
Explore Whiteforge and its surrounding locations, meet with friends, allies, or the occasional stranger that will offer you cryptic advice, and try to figure out a way to stabilize the city. The game's difficulty is fully customizable, letting you choose whether you want to be challenged by the action/platforming scenarios or just focus on the environmental issues and Aliph's struggle to cope with her diverging identities.

Help Aliph keep her Dark and Light energies in check and save <span class="bold">Even the Ocean</span>, DRM-free on GOG.com. If you've fallen in love with the atmospheric <span class="bold">Soundtrack</span>, make sure to also add it to your collection.

GOG-exclusive offer: Even the Ocean is the kind of game that can inspire interesting discussions. So grab the <span class="bold">Friend Pack</span>, which contains a second copy at a fraction of the price, gift it to a friend and get ready for some fun debates.

The Friend Pack offer and the 15% launch discount will last until November 30, 4:59 PM UTC.


https://www.youtube.com/embed/zzqkFcOoixY
Post edited November 16, 2016 by maladr0Id
Posted November 17, 2016
Perhaps the trailer just isn't doing this game justice, but it looks incredibly boring. All it seems to show is running around doing essentially nothing. The description speaks of a "mysterious incident that grants her powers ..... balance her Dark and Light energies". However, I see nothing in the trailer that shows off any of these powers. In fact, it doesn't showcase any combat at all. The main character has a shield, but doesn't even seem to have a weapon. There don't appear to be any puzzles to solve, and there is no hint of character progression either. It looks quite literally like the game is nothing more than running around and talking to people.

A summary of the trailer from my perspective is as follows: 1) main character running across a roof, 2) panning shot of a building, 3) a train (maybe the character is in it???? -- it's impossible to tell), 4) A single line of completely uninteresting dialogue with nothing unique about it, 5) More walking, this time in what appears to be an overworld?, 6) running around and jumping with nothing more (no puzzles, no combat, nothing exciting), 7) Another "line" of dialogue, only this time a single word "Hey!", 8) More uninspired dialogue (nothing about a story that would compel me to want to know more), 9) More running and jumping (again no combat, no puzzles, nothing), 9) "Anyways...goodnight, Journal" -- Why should that capture my attention? What is at all interesting about saying "Goodnight?", 10) The same promo shot as the banner graphic.

Pass. This one won't even go on the wishlist.

I realize it can take a fair amount of work to create a game, so I'm not posting this with negative intentions. Rather, I'm attempting to give the developer some constructive criticism and insight into why the trailer completely failed to capture my attention. At any rate, I wish the developer the best of luck!
Post edited November 17, 2016 by mikaua
Posted November 17, 2016
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seagaia: ...
Hi, dev here! The OST is available in .wav/.flac/etc at https://htch.bandcamp.com/album/even-the-ocean .
Hi seagaia, nice to meet you :)

Just bought your game and I'll play it tomorrow.
I like games which stand out in the bulk, and dare to have a message.
Even more now, in times when rude behaviour and hate campaigns are becoming mainstream. (e.g. this thread).

Unfortunately the trailer doesn't tell us much about the gameplay.
But your description in the blurb
"Super customizable difficulties and play styles: choose between Complete, Story-only, or Gameplay-only options to make your experience your own."
made it easier for me to decide about the game. Nowadays many games are too fast for me, I hope I can play this in my pace.
Good luck with your game.
Posted November 17, 2016
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mikaua: Perhaps the trailer just isn't doing this game justice, but it looks incredibly boring. All it seems to show is running around doing essentially nothing. The description speaks of a "mysterious incident that grants her powers ..... balance her Dark and Light energies". However, I see nothing in the trailer that shows off any of these powers. In fact, it doesn't showcase any combat at all. The main character has a shield, but doesn't even seem to have a weapon. There don't appear to be any puzzles to solve, and there is no hint of character progression either. It looks quite literally like the game is nothing more than running around and talking to people.

A summary of the trailer from my perspective is as follows: 1) main character running across a roof, 2) panning shot of a building, 3) a train (maybe the character is in it???? -- it's impossible to tell), 4) A single line of completely uninteresting dialogue with nothing unique about it, 5) More walking, this time in what appears to be an overworld?, 6) running around and jumping with nothing more (no puzzles, no combat, nothing exciting), 7) Another "line" of dialogue, only this time a single word "Hey!", 8) More uninspired dialogue (nothing about a story that would compel me to want to know more), 9) More running and jumping (again no combat, no puzzles, nothing), 9) "Anyways...goodnight, Journal" -- Why should that capture my attention? What is at all interesting about saying "Goodnight?", 10) The same promo shot as the banner graphic.

Pass. This one won't even go on the wishlist.

I realize it can take a fair amount of work to create a game, so I'm not posting this with negative intentions. Rather, I'm attempting to give the developer some constructive criticism and insight into why the trailer completely failed to capture my attention. At any rate, I wish the developer the best of luck!
Judge a game by its trailer?

I guess trailer can be wrong sometimes but judging a game/movie solely on that, at least wait for reviews or something...
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paladin181: Haha. Was that Mode 7 in the overworld?? Bad game looks bad.
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Hollyhock: Watching a related video about the development of this game, I learned that the main dev didn't include any attacking or levelling up mechanics because he considers levelling up and combat to be capitalistic tropes.
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paladin181: Like making a game and getting paid to sell it? hypocrites. :P
More like getting paid to make another one. :/
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eiii: But why do you get only the lossy mp3 version here while you get the mp3 plus the flac version on bandcamp at the same price?
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seagaia: Easier to manage for me, multiple prices gets confusing - I figured a notice here would be enough and people who want the .wav/.flac would know to look at bandcamp.
Please now that it is easier for your clients to not "get rekt" by buying your products. Best in this case would have been to not include the soundtrack at all here. Your call though. My two cents.

Good luck with the sales! :)
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Hollyhock: Watching a related video about the development of this game, I learned that the main dev didn't include any attacking or levelling up mechanics because he considers levelling up and combat to be capitalistic tropes. I got the impression the devs might haven't crafted the gameplay mechanics as a result of finding them to be more entertaining, but instead because fuck Wall Street and we are the 99% and wake up sheeple.

If we add the tumblerite appearance of the main character, I can sense a gigantic "social awareness" vibe emanating from this game, which raises a red flag for me. Past bad experiences have made me wary. After paying for a game, I don't want to get lectured mid-game about some political views, nor discover that the white cis male authority figure turns out to be the evil imperialistic antagonist to beat.

Still, the game looks good, is definitively not a walking simulator, belongs to a genre I like, and I enjoyed their previous game Anodyne. I don't mind the background of the devs as long as they don't shove any political bullshit into the story. That's why I liked Undertale but I loathed Gone Home. So, I would like to ask if anyone knows which is the extent of political propaganda (if any) that permeates into the story of Even the Ocean.
Undertale was social too and made you think about that kind of stuff too, you just didn't notice.

And sorry but games are a way of expression, including socio political views, just like books, movies, paintings, music, etc...

You sure can express your disapproval of not mainly entertaining games but don't put them down just because of that.
Post edited November 17, 2016 by Zoidberg
Posted November 17, 2016
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Zoidberg: Undertale was social too and made you think about that kind of stuff too, you just didn't notice.

And sorry but games are a way of expression, including socio political views, just like books, movies, paintings, music, etc...

You sure can express your disapproval of not mainly entertaining games but don't put them down just because of that.
I totally noticed the social awareness vibe of Undertale, that's why I mentioned it as a counterexample, I liked that game because it's good and because it doesn't try to shove any viewpoint on the player.

I thought I explained myself in my previous message. I don't mind seeing multiculturalism, sexual diversity, enviromentalism or anti-capitalism, or the lack of it, or even opposites of it, in videogames, as long as they are a way of expression that enriches the medium (the game). What I don't like is being lectured about political topics, even about those I support. That's what separates a way of expression from a pamphlet.

I don't mind, and I even like, that Undertale has developed characters who happen to be lesbians, but I facepalm when a character in a medieval setting waives her sexuality as her only personality trait just before making a gamergate joke. I expect multiculturalism in a futuristic trading videogame, I expect arabian monoculturalism in a game with medieval arab setting, but then I cringe with supposedly historically viking societies filled with race quotas.

It sure is annoying to ask or be asked things like that, but as a consumer I don't want to get burned.

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seagaia: Hey, I rarely watch stuff by Sarkeesian, one reason there's a lot of non-white people in this game is because the two creators (myself included) are Asian, and also we grew up in/live in mixed-race neighborhoods.

Also, I don't read anything on Tumblr either.
Thanks for the reply. It would be okay if you made those things, I just wanted to know if you were using your game as a political vehicle.
Post edited November 17, 2016 by Hollyhock
Posted November 17, 2016
A stupid question but... can somebody please explain the title to me? I’m confused because the word "even" has multiple meanings. Is it some kind of word play or I’m just being stupid? What is this supposed to mean?
Posted November 17, 2016
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seagaia: snip
Thanks!
Any chance of a Linux port someday soon?
Posted November 17, 2016
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Starmaker: FINALLY.
Instabought so 'insta' I didn't notice the friend pack offer.
edit: bought twice (well, thrice). Code expires in 2026.
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IAmSinistar: If you get around to playing it soon, I'd appreciate your impression of the game. Might grab it in short order and gift away the extra code if it lives up to its promise.
Sent you a link. I'm still not allowed to play Windows games at home without "adult supervision".
Posted November 17, 2016

about an ordinary woman
The main character is short, fat, black with Asian eyes, has dyed hair and carries around a shield that looks like a LARPing prop. Maybe that's what's considered ordinary in San Francisco.

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Zoidberg: Judge a game by its trailer?

I guess trailer can be wrong sometimes but judging a game/movie solely on that, at least wait for reviews or something...
A trailer is supposed to showcase the best parts of a game/movie and let me know what it is about, so if there is no demo that's all we can judge the game/movie by. Of course it's entirely possible that someone just half-assed the trailer and the game is totally different, but come on, what are the odds of that?
Post edited November 17, 2016 by HiPhish
Posted November 17, 2016
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Ghorpm: A stupid question but... can somebody please explain the title to me? I’m confused because the word "even" has multiple meanings. Is it some kind of word play or I’m just being stupid? What is this supposed to mean?
Well, I haven't played the game, but the title could mean even as in to make level, so it could be to still the waves in the ocean. Or it could mean that everything is doing something, and that the ocean is no exception (no idea what action it may be doing). Or it could mean to counteract an overwhelming presence of something so that it is less prominent (in this case, and in my other examples ocean stands for something else; and overwhelming unending existence that stretches vast and wide).
Posted November 17, 2016

about an ordinary woman
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HiPhish: The main character is short, fat, black with Asian eyes, has dyed hair and carries around a shield that looks like a LARPing prop. Maybe that's what's considered ordinary in San Francisco.

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Zoidberg: Judge a game by its trailer?

I guess trailer can be wrong sometimes but judging a game/movie solely on that, at least wait for reviews or something...
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HiPhish: A trailer is supposed to showcase the best parts of a game/movie and let me know what it is about, so if there is no demo that's all we can judge the game/movie by. Of course it's entirely possible that someone just half-assed the trailer and the game is totally different, but come on, what are the odds of that?
Usually, trailer are QUITE different than the finished full product, it should already be a learnt lesson for movies, AND games.

And you DO NOT judge a game by its trailers, even if they WERE accurate. You either judge them YOURSELF on the basis of your own opinions, preferences, both subjective and objective OR you ead several reviews.

As a member of a jury you do not judge and accused based on what you've heard in the medias or around you, you base your judgment on the most objective things and, for critique, on subjective things that you actively PUT as subjective.

But that's only my two cents, of course.

Also, on your first reaction, "ordinary" doesn't imply necessarily white, young, "presentable", non geeky, etc... maybe that was the point of the character design, don't you think?

I personally find it refreshing even if I don't seem to be having a lot in common with the main character, but that happens in the real orld you know, it doesn't force me to hate the person/character right away.
Post edited November 17, 2016 by Zoidberg
Posted November 17, 2016
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Ghorpm: A stupid question but... can somebody please explain the title to me? I’m confused because the word "even" has multiple meanings. Is it some kind of word play or I’m just being stupid? What is this supposed to mean?
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paladin181: Well, I haven't played the game, but the title could mean even as in to make level, so it could be to still the waves in the ocean. Or it could mean that everything is doing something, and that the ocean is no exception (no idea what action it may be doing). Or it could mean to counteract an overwhelming presence of something so that it is less prominent (in this case, and in my other examples ocean stands for something else; and overwhelming unending existence that stretches vast and wide).
Thanks, I was kinda thinking about something like this but you've made it much clearer.
Posted November 17, 2016
Even the Ocean.. what?
I need to know!

.

about an ordinary woman
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HiPhish: The main character is short, fat, black with Asian eyes, has dyed hair and carries around a shield that looks like a LARPing prop.
Lol, I thought the same.
And.. maybe I'm wrong, but I also have a feeling that dtgreene will love this..
Post edited November 17, 2016 by phaolo
Posted November 17, 2016
high rated
Here is a general note about the trailer: it is accurate of the gameplay. The game is a combination of running around a city, talking to people, running around outdoors areas, talking to people, and jumping through platforming challenges in power plants.

You may watch a 30 minute let's play of the game here if you like, to get a better idea of the game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNKq8IBDddY

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about an ordinary woman
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HiPhish: The main character is short, fat, black with Asian eyes, has dyed hair and carries around a shield that looks like a LARPing prop. Maybe that's what's considered ordinary in San Francisco.

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Zoidberg: Judge a game by its trailer?

I guess trailer can be wrong sometimes but judging a game/movie solely on that, at least wait for reviews or something...
avatar
HiPhish: A trailer is supposed to showcase the best parts of a game/movie and let me know what it is about, so if there is no demo that's all we can judge the game/movie by. Of course it's entirely possible that someone just half-assed the trailer and the game is totally different, but come on, what are the odds of that?
Hi, neither of us live in San Francisco, and we don't plan on moving there. I don't think it's too weird to play as a human that looks different considering you can play as human-like animals in many games, which is pretty far from ordinary I would think? I know a number of people who are short, round, have dark skin and 'asian eyes', so Aliph's design is not that unrealistic.

Regarding the shield, but there are games where you can carry giant swords or play dress-up (like Dark Souls, which is great by the way), so again, I think the shield is not too weird.

You can watch some gameplay here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNKq8IBDddY .

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seagaia: snip
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vicklemos: Thanks!
Any chance of a Linux port someday soon?
It's possible but not at the moment - we have to see how well windows/mac does and whether it's worth the time/money. Also, it seems like the game works with Wine on Linux. Not that that's an actual port, but the option is there if you're curious to try it out.

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Post edited November 17, 2016 by seagaia
Posted November 17, 2016

about an ordinary woman
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HiPhish: The main character is short, fat, black with Asian eyes, has dyed hair and carries around a shield that looks like a LARPing prop. Maybe that's what's considered ordinary in San Francisco.
You forgot to lead with "I'm not racist, but".
[url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Population_Growth_by_World_Bank_continental_division.png]People with dark skin are ordinary. Asians are ordinary.[/url] If you're triggered, it's your problem. Go back to your special-snowflake politically correct safe space.
Posted November 17, 2016
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Starmaker: Sent you a link. I'm still not allowed to play Windows games at home without "adult supervision".
Very kind of you, thanks! I will share my impressions if they are of any value. And don't feel bad, I'm still only allowed safety scissors. ;)
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This is my favourite topic
Community
General discussionRelease: Even the Ocean(61 posts)(61 posts)
(61 posts)