Home Gaming Ex-Bioshock developers looking to kickstart their new game – The Black Glove

Ex-Bioshock developers looking to kickstart their new game – The Black Glove

3 min read
26

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Many were sad to see Irrational Games closing their doors. The studio gave us some good titles, most notably, the rather awesome Bioshock series. It took gamers into some really imaginative places under the sea and up in the sky. Some who worked on that franchise have now been freelancing and working on another game in their spare time. They are looking to kickstart their new title which is called The Black Glove.

Here’s the video off their Kickstarter page (via Polygon):

Welcome to The Equinox, an eerie 1920s theatre that appears unstuck from conventional reality. A venue pervaded by weird dream logic, inexplicable holes in space, unshielded x-ray art installations, and tasteful use of crushed velvet.

There really is a distinct ‘Bioshock’ feel. It’s not just the 1920s setting or the music, but also the way the characters are modelled, the way they speak, and also, for lack of a better description, the certain ‘weirdness’ we’ve become used to thanks to our experiences in Rapture and Columbia.

Here’s the premise for the game:

The Equinox has three creators in residence: the artist Marisol, the filmmaker Avery Arnault, and musical act Many Embers. Their work is in bad shape when you arrive and it’s taken a strange, metaphysical toll on the theatre. Time flows backward in areas. Weird things peek out of once-sealed doorways. Unearthly music plays.

As the latest Curator, it falls to you to get The Equinox back on its feet. It’s your job to change the creators’ past to improve their work in the present. How? The hosts Hazel and Cribbage explain that there are “certain games of skill and chance that allow us to interact with… what you might call ‘fourth-dimensional space.'”

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I’m not quite sure how arcade games allow for the manipulation of reality or interaction of fourth-dimensional space, but I think the developers needed some kind of excuse to add gameplay elements to their story. According to Chad King, the senior artist for the project, there will be dozens of unique narrative scenes and environments which means the game needs multiple playthroughs to be fully enjoyed. I’m strongly reminded of The Stanley Parable which was similar in that regard. It looks like there will be loads of unique instances to explore.

Critics hint at what to change next, but even a wrong turn can produce interesting results in a “so-bad-it’s-good” way.

Based on your decisions, the creators may become influenced by 8-bit video game music, 60s era pop art, Day of the Dead folk art, 70s cosmic comics, anime, multi-media experimental art, cyberpunk fiction, sad-eyed clown paintings, low-budget   b-movies, and more. The choice is up to YOU.

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The Kickstarter has a goal of $550 000, which realistically (compared to AAA titles these days) really isn’t that much. As of writing, $22 557 has already been pledged with 31 days still to go. I fully believe they will reach their target.

Feel like helping out? You can donate anything from $20 to get a downloadable copy of the title (which is estimated for release in October 2015), or I don’t know, $2500 to have your face represented as art in the game. Decisions decisions! Will you be pledging or getting the game? It certainly does look interesting, and will be, IF the developers can keep to their promises.

Last Updated: October 7, 2014

26 Comments

  1. I love how much this feels like Old School Bioshock

    Reply

  2. Guild

    October 7, 2014 at 11:21

    Nope not interested.

    Reply

  3. Hammersteyn

    October 7, 2014 at 11:25

    Intrigued, but that’s it.

    Reply

  4. Alien Emperor Trevor

    October 7, 2014 at 11:28

    Interesting.

    I quite like the look of this project too: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/503519380/black-the-fall?ref=category

    Reply

    • JJ of Meridian

      October 7, 2014 at 11:44

      Wow. This looks great.

      Reply

  5. Jess

    October 7, 2014 at 11:35

    The game looks good and interesting, but Kickstarter is just glorified begging. I dispise Kickstarter. Get some proper funding.

    Reply

  6. JJ of Meridian

    October 7, 2014 at 11:42

    I support kickstarter as long as it’s applied right.
    Some great ideas get lost because they can’t get funding while shit like COD still manages to rage on.

    Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      October 7, 2014 at 11:52

      Chris Roberts had to raise $2 mil via crowd funding to show potential private investors there was a demand for a dead space sim genre game that publishers wouldn’t touch… $56 mil & counting.

      Reply

      • JJ of Meridian

        October 7, 2014 at 11:54

        Well, there you go.

        Reply

  7. Travis

    October 7, 2014 at 11:48

    It looks amazing :-). Someone tell Mossel.

    Reply

    • Mossel

      October 7, 2014 at 12:22

      LOL! I actually think it looks bad. Still need to check the vid though once I get home! So there is still hope!

      Reply

  8. RinceThis

    October 7, 2014 at 11:50

    “I’m not quite sure how arcade games allow for the manipulation of reality or interaction of fourth-dimensional space” Obviously never played Battletoads…

    Reply

  9. Admiral Chief 0

    October 7, 2014 at 11:51

    OJ or MJ?

    Reply

    • JJ of Meridian

      October 7, 2014 at 11:54

      Why not JJ?

      Reply

      • RinceThis

        October 7, 2014 at 11:57

        OTT?

        Reply

      • Alien Emperor Trevor

        October 7, 2014 at 11:58

        That’s not his MO

        Reply

  10. Mossel

    October 7, 2014 at 12:20

    This looks shit. Coming from Bioshock’s number one fan.

    Reply

    • JJ of Meridian

      October 7, 2014 at 12:21

      Wow. Really? I thought you were going to be psyched.

      Reply

      • Mossel

        October 7, 2014 at 12:36

        Yeah man, I just checked the vid and it reminds me too much of Stanley Parable. So it might be entertaining for an hour or two, but ultimately it won’t have that thing that Bioshock has…that story that makes you ponder life afterwards, makes you think that man can never achieve such greatness or power…and if it does, how long will it last? Who will have to suffer for it? THAT is what makes Bioshock good, the fact that the gameplay is pure awesome is just a bonus!

        Reply

        • JJ of Meridian

          October 7, 2014 at 12:37

          Wow dude. Dat Infinite ending.

          Reply

          • Mossel

            October 7, 2014 at 12:39

            Infinite was amazing, but I think it was so for me because I never knew what to expect from the game. I thought I bought a shooter with a cool setting and I ended up getting my mind blown with literary genius!

          • Mossel

            October 7, 2014 at 12:41

            Btw I registered on Runic Games’ site and can now play TL2 online! Set yours up so we can jam!

          • JJ of Meridian

            October 7, 2014 at 12:45

            Woo!
            Sure. I’ve been enjoying TL2 so much. Got the Gauntlet for some co-op with my gf. Now that is some epic old-school dungeon crawling.

          • Mossel

            October 7, 2014 at 12:47

            Awesome! Those maps are huge sometimes! The gameplay is fun, but I must say I have no idea what the story is about. That’s where Diablo still reigns supreme.

          • JJ of Meridian

            October 7, 2014 at 12:52

            Oh so there’s a story? ;P
            Agreed. Still need to get me Diablo 3 though. One day.

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