The Vanishing of Ethan Carter

Skybird · 11-26-14, 08:59 PM

Anyone knowing it, having played it? I picke dit up for 11 Euros at Steam yesterday, and spend the past hour playing it, in the middle of the night, in a dark room, lonely, isolated...

Visually, an eye-opener, hands down the most beautifully drawn world I have ever seen in any game.

Mood and atmosphere: intense would be an understatement, I LOVE it. I had shivers from the gothic atmosphere and setting, and goose pimples at times. Not much has happened, and maybe will not happen, I do not know. But the atmosphere, the scenes like from a melancholic Bradburyan description, sounds and music that automatically adapt and is very well done - it all combines into a piece of arts.

Heck, this is mystery of Twin Peaks and atmosphere from Stalker - packed together and put on steroids.

The game mechanisms are simple, and not much things are to be done. The game lives by the thoughts it invokes in the mind of the player, and beside the visual beauty it lives by the mood and atmosphere it visually provokes inside the player'S mind. If you expect hectic action, you look in the wrong place, and if you want to live a virtual life, look somewhere else. The world is beautiful, but allows only minor interaction. So, the ordinary computer gaming routines you will look for in vein. I cannot reiterate this oftehn enough, this game lives by the intense atmosphere, and doe snot need superficial shock effects. I wealked thorugh a forest, and just the soft, mild ayrkenign of light and colkpours was enough to erect the hairs in my neck and on my arms. A strange noise, some animal calling, maybe, had me alarmed like I did not feel like in a movie or computer game since YEARS.

And the rtisk of repeating myself, visually this game sets standards. On the web, there are severla srticles that describe the new tehcnolgies used to create the game world and to texture it. The textures are laser-sharp and give the whole look an almost overwhelming photorealistic impression. I know no game to which I could compare this beauty. Breathtaking.

There are three possible negative points from this otherwise outstanding (so far) gaming experience.

First, fixed saving points. You cannot stop playing when you want to stop, you would lose all progress since the last save game point. UNFORGIVABLE.

Second, I read that one chapter plays long, with little changes, and somewhat repetitive, its the Mine. I have not reache dit yet, so I am yet forming an opinion on that.

And third, the game is relatively short. Top players are said to race through it in 4 hours. Well, for 11 euros, I do not care due to the intense experience I get form this game, and this stunnign beauty. It is like Bradbury, Lovecraft, Poe, Chandler and then some more of the like being thrown all into one story. 11 Euros, that is one movie ticket, almost. The movie last 2 hours, the game I will spend more thna just 4 hours with, fior I play it slowly and enjoy every single second and view in it. Seen that way, the current steam Sale price is okay.

In case you play this, DO NOT RUSH things. Do yourself a favour, and enjoy this. It gave me gentle joyful creeps like I have not had since I was a boy reading some adventure novel. Play it at night, alone, in a dark room. Enjoy it, take your time - and resist the temptation to run a screengrabber: after one hour you will have dozens if not hundreds of shots taken. You are supposed to be a detective with a seventh sense, not some freaking paparazzi !

Biggest game surprise of the year to me. Highly recommended, despite the minor criticism.

P.S. The audience gave this title an extremely warm welcome. Being a small Indy studio only, The Astronauts released very pleasant sales numbers: 60 thousand copies sold in the first month October alone. I think they got my money well-deserved.

11-26-14, 08:59 PM	#1
Skybird Soaring Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: the mental asylum named Germany Posts: 41,248 Downloads: 9 Uploads: 0	The Vanishing of Ethan Carter Anyone knowing it, having played it? I picke dit up for 11 Euros at Steam yesterday, and spend the past hour playing it, in the middle of the night, in a dark room, lonely, isolated... Visually, an eye-opener, hands down the most beautifully drawn world I have ever seen in any game. Mood and atmosphere: intense would be an understatement, I LOVE it. I had shivers from the gothic atmosphere and setting, and goose pimples at times. Not much has happened, and maybe will not happen, I do not know. But the atmosphere, the scenes like from a melancholic Bradburyan description, sounds and music that automatically adapt and is very well done - it all combines into a piece of arts. Heck, this is mystery of Twin Peaks and atmosphere from Stalker - packed together and put on steroids. The game mechanisms are simple, and not much things are to be done. The game lives by the thoughts it invokes in the mind of the player, and beside the visual beauty it lives by the mood and atmosphere it visually provokes inside the player'S mind. If you expect hectic action, you look in the wrong place, and if you want to live a virtual life, look somewhere else. The world is beautiful, but allows only minor interaction. So, the ordinary computer gaming routines you will look for in vein. I cannot reiterate this oftehn enough, this game lives by the intense atmosphere, and doe snot need superficial shock effects. I wealked thorugh a forest, and just the soft, mild ayrkenign of light and colkpours was enough to erect the hairs in my neck and on my arms. A strange noise, some animal calling, maybe, had me alarmed like I did not feel like in a movie or computer game since YEARS. And the rtisk of repeating myself, visually this game sets standards. On the web, there are severla srticles that describe the new tehcnolgies used to create the game world and to texture it. The textures are laser-sharp and give the whole look an almost overwhelming photorealistic impression. I know no game to which I could compare this beauty. Breathtaking. There are three possible negative points from this otherwise outstanding (so far) gaming experience. First, fixed saving points. You cannot stop playing when you want to stop, you would lose all progress since the last save game point. UNFORGIVABLE. Second, I read that one chapter plays long, with little changes, and somewhat repetitive, its the Mine. I have not reache dit yet, so I am yet forming an opinion on that. And third, the game is relatively short. Top players are said to race through it in 4 hours. Well, for 11 euros, I do not care due to the intense experience I get form this game, and this stunnign beauty. It is like Bradbury, Lovecraft, Poe, Chandler and then some more of the like being thrown all into one story. 11 Euros, that is one movie ticket, almost. The movie last 2 hours, the game I will spend more thna just 4 hours with, fior I play it slowly and enjoy every single second and view in it. Seen that way, the current steam Sale price is okay. In case you play this, DO NOT RUSH things. Do yourself a favour, and enjoy this. It gave me gentle joyful creeps like I have not had since I was a boy reading some adventure novel. Play it at night, alone, in a dark room. Enjoy it, take your time - and resist the temptation to run a screengrabber: after one hour you will have dozens if not hundreds of shots taken. You are supposed to be a detective with a seventh sense, not some freaking paparazzi ! Biggest game surprise of the year to me. Highly recommended, despite the minor criticism. P.S. The audience gave this title an extremely warm welcome. Being a small Indy studio only, The Astronauts released very pleasant sales numbers: 60 thousand copies sold in the first month October alone. I think they got my money well-deserved. __________________ If you feel nuts, consult an expert. Last edited by Skybird; 11-26-14 at 09:34 PM.