Video Games
Text-Based Adventure Horror Game ‘[I] doesn’t exist’ Arrives September 12 on Steam [Trailer]
Old-school gamers will remember the classic text-based adventure Zork, and even a modern take of sorts with Feardemic’s Buddy Simulator 1984. DreadXP and developer LUAL Games KIG are bringing that gameplay back while examining what it really means to be “human” with [I] doesn’t exist. This modern text adventure that explores themes of control, isolation, and mental health will arrive on September 12th, with a demo available now on Steam.
[I] doesn’t exist is described as “a love letter to the origins of narrative-focused gaming”, and takes the text adventure genre to the next level through the use of conversational text recognition in combination with surreal pixel art and unconventional, intrapersonal themes. In the game, players awake in an unfamiliar forest populated with illogical scenery and oddities like friendly, talking mushrooms. As they command their in-game avatar and contemplate the solution to puzzles (and the meaning of their own existence) to escape the seemingly innocuous forest, the façade begins to show its cracks to reveal something far more sinister.
Utilizing a combination of 2D and 3D perspective through optical illusion, the game gives off a dreamlike experience. The visuals and text-based narrative design, supported by modern “Natural Language Processing” technology allows players to creatively answer in-game prompts without sticking to a set of specific terms. And in case anyone’s wondering, [I] doesn’t exist doesn’t rely on AI-generated text when it comes to the answers.
Buckshot Roulette creator Mike Klubnika and co-developer GDeavid’s “friendslop” collection of violent party games in Machine Party is out now on Steam, where you and your friends can finally compete in glorious gory fun. As an added incentive, Machine Party is available with a limited-time 15% launch discount until August 13.
Gather 2 to 4 friends, strap in, and prove your life is worth more than theirs in this collection of borderline illegal and extraordinarily violent party games. Featurng an industrial soundtrack composed by Alex Peipman, Machine Party takes classic party game formats and gives them deadly twists, turning friendly competition into something far less friendly, but always hilarious. Across 15 unique minigames set within the Klubnika universe, players will jump between split-second reflex challenges, calculated decision-making, and social situations where trust doesn’t last long and betrayal is always an option.
Each minigame throws players into increasingly absurd and dangerous challenges where cooperation, competition, and betrayal are all viable strategies. No matter how you play, or how devious you are at screwing over your friends, survival is never guaranteed. For more absurdity, you’re able to customize your test subject with a variety of cosmetics.