[SamandMax]

I'm really excited for this game. This and The Last Crown, I have very, very high hopes for them.

[sakusen]

Scratches is one of the best games I've ever played. Lokking forward to this.

[Niko]

Never played Scratches to date, but if i hear good things about this one.....

[shezcrafti]

Wow! Agustin, thanks for posting here & sharing the exciting news with us. Like many others here, I'm a huge fan of Scratches and consider it one of the best horror games I've ever played...the music, the atmosphere, the story...perfect. I'm very excited about your new project and wish you the best of luck with it. I'll be one of the first people in line to buy it!

[MoP]

In case someone missed it... he's here.

[paul1275]

This is great news! I've been waiting for news for ages after playing the rather brilliant Scratches. Only a few games have scared me to the point of letting out a little (girlie) scream (I'm not ashamed to say that by the way) but Scratches was one of them. Good luck with this new title!

[Agustin]

Thank you, guys. Really! I'm delighted that you're so looking forward to this adventure, even though there's barely any details available. I trust however that it won't disappoint you. We're very excited ourselves about its current status.

Expect a full blown announcement in July... and when I say full blown, I truly mean FULL

[Agustin]

So, AGers -- is this what you expected?

[inm8#2]

WHOA! Awesome teaser!

Sanitarium is one of my favorites (see avatar!). I really enjoyed Blackstone Chronicles as well. Putting those themes together with the chills and storytelling of Scratches, and I'd say this one's going to be AMAZING.

[Phaid]

The trailer is fantastic - I love the atmosphere it conveys, the music. Pure brilliance, reminds me of Sanitarium in many ways.
What should we expect in terms of gameplay? A 2D adventure like Scratches or a 3D adventure (maybe with minor action or stealth elements) like Penumbra or recently released Darkness Within 2?

[ZeframCochrane]

Woo... thanks Agustin, impressive trailer. The imprisoned patients are quite scary, but I hope that in the game itself the asylum will actually be abandoned... I have a thing for exploring abandoned buildings in adventure games.
I couldn't help but compare the secretary's welcome and the "train ride" that follows to a certain other welcome to a certain Black Mesa Transit System....

Originally Posted by Phaid

What should we expect in terms of gameplay? A 2D adventure like Scratches or a 3D adventure?

For now, all we know is:

Originally Posted by Agustin

Finally, the engine will operate similarly to Scratches, that is, panoramic rotation -- except we're making it look like actual 3D. You'll see what I mean!

I myself wonder what Agustin meant. The advantage of pre-rendered environments is that although you have to wait for a long time for the environment to be rendered at the development stage, you get a result which is of higher quality (geometrical complexity, lights and shadows, textures, etc) than what you would get by rendering simpler scenes in real time. The tradeoff for this higher quality is, of course, that you can't roam freely in the environment. So I wonder what he means by "actual 3D", because it wouldn't make much sense to use prerendered environments (no free-roaming) with the same (lower) quality as realtime (actual?) 3D. Adds to the mystery!

To all this I must add, to be precise, that I am by no means prejudiced against pre-rendered enviroments (in fact, it's the opposite). Which is the reason why I loved Scratches. And it's not just about the higher visual quality. I feel that having to stand in certain pre-determined spots add to the sense of dread and terror.

All this to say that I'm quite excited by this game!

[Phaid]

Originally Posted by ZeframCochrane

I couldn't help but compare the secretary's welcome and the "train ride" that follows to a certain other welcome to a certain Black Mesa Transit System....

Ha! Good point, I knew I had heard something familiar before, but couldn't recall where exactly

For know, all we know is:

I myself wonder what Agustin meant. The advantage of pre-rendered environments is that although you have to wait for a long time for the environment to be rendered at the development stage, you get a result which is of higher quality (geometrical complexity, lights and shadows, textures, etc) than what you would get by rendering simpler scenes in real time. The tradeoff for this higher quality is, of course, that you can't roam freely in the environment. So I wonder what he means by "actual 3D", because it wouldn't make much sense to use prerendered environments (no free-roaming) with the same (lower) quality as realtime (actual?) 3D. Adds to the mystery!

To all this I must add, to be precise, that I am by no means prejudiced against pre-rendered enviroments (in fact, it's the opposite). Which is the reason why I loved Scratches. And it's not just about the higher visual quality. I feel that having to stand in certain pre-determined spots add to the sense of dread and terror.

My bad, I somehow missed that part. Sounds interesting indeed, maybe they've come up with a way to add "depth" to the scenes by implementing 3D elements here and there? The problem with pre-rendered backgrounds viewed from first person perspective is that while they are beautiful and oozing with detail, they unfortunately often look "flat", static and rather lifeless.
Anyway, I'm intrigued.

[Christian IV]

I find horror and the theme of the terrible mental health facilities of the early to mid 1900s a terrible subject for games, which are supposed to fun after all. We still have far to much abuse in such settings and the approach of the professions that are supposed to help the troubled and which exploit and torture them still with drugs and repressive therapies makes this something I never study or play in games. I wish we could advance beyond such dark things.

[Agustin]

Originally Posted by ZeframCochrane

To all this I must add, to be precise, that I am by no means prejudiced against pre-rendered enviroments (in fact, it's the opposite). Which is the reason why I loved Scratches. And it's not just about the higher visual quality. I feel that having to stand in certain pre-determined spots add to the sense of dread and terror.

Exactly! This has been discussed quite a bit in the past and, for some reason, the discrete movement adds a lot to the fear factor. I believe that's because the game "forces" you to stand still and explore your surroundings more often, while getting soaked in the atmosphere. Of course I'm by no means ruling out what games like Penumbra do, which take excellent advantage of the full 3D, but I couldn't imagine a Scratches in 3D.

I know my description remains cryptic but we're truly aiming to make the most out of this pseudo-3D. We still have perform many tests to make sure that standard systems can support all that we're intending to do graphically-wise in Asylum but, suffice to say, if it all works out, you better be ready for one of the most engaging and dreadful environments you will ever get to experience.

Sorry, that came out like a marketing blurb

[Agustin]

Originally Posted by Christian IV

I find horror and the theme of the terrible mental health facilities of the early to mid 1900s a terrible subject for games, which are supposed to fun after all. We still have far to much abuse in such settings and the approach of the professions that are supposed to help the troubled and which exploit and torture them still with drugs and repressive therapies makes this something I never study or play in games. I wish we could advance beyond such dark things.

You have a valid point and, of course, it's up to you whether you want to play the game or not. But, on a more serious tone, I believe that we should not forget the past and what human beings can be capable of doing. If anything, maybe by facing our own demons we may avoid this kind of stuff from happening again (and I'm pretty sure that repressive therapies and abuse of patients still exist).

Reality is far more scary than fiction. That's what I learned after my research for Asylum

[Fantasysci5]

Although I like playing games to have fun, I also like a story that will stick with me even after I finish the game, and really makes me think. And usually those types of games are the more dark, instead of 'fun'. I'm definetely looking forward to this game.

[cbman]

For me this looks and sounds too similar to Blackstone Chronicles at the moment.

Also, I have to say that judging by the trailer the scenes are inadequately lit again, as they were in Scratches.

There was so much potential in Scratches that was ruined by some poor game and graphic design elements. This doesn't bode well for the creator actually taking on board criticism from previous games. Maybe there were / are too many uncritical 'Wow, it's so amazing' type comments about Scratches for the developer to actually be aware of what its faults were.

Searching for 30 seconds for a door handle is not fun.

Just please tell me that the gameplay doesn't mostly revolve around phoning a friend and waiting for a letter to arrive again...

[Cactusgod]

One thing I have to speculate on, though, real fast.

I just bought Scratches myself and am enjoying the little I've played. However, there is one thing that I personally believe all horror adventure games sorely lack. The ability to die. (I'm not sure you can in Scratches but I'm assuming not) It doesn't have to be all the time, and it could work precisely the way it did in say...Nikopol for instance (where you die and restart at the exact spot moments before you died) but....for a horror game, I just feel like some impending sense of POSSIBLE death really changes the game. It's almost like..well, those of you who played Silent Hill: Shattered Memories know that you could literally run from point A to point B without any fear of monster attack and it really reduced the overall fear factor in the game.

Every time I open a door in Scratches I wonder if something is going to come at me, and I'm merely at the exploration part of the beginning. Imagine if something COULD!

So, Agustin, I beg of you! In the future, introduce some kind of death mechanic into one of your horror games ;p. I feel confident that you would be the person who would be able to pull it off in a way that would be pleasing!


PS. The new game DOES look fantastic and I shall definitely be picking it up ;p

[tastebud]

the trailer really impressed me. at first i thought an asylum as a setting was sort of too cliche (then again, less cliche than a haunted house), but the atmosphere in the trailer, which luckily seemed to be kinda bloody as well, really sucked me in. rest assured, i'll get this on day one!

[inm8#2]

Originally Posted by cbman

For me this looks and sounds too similar to Blackstone Chronicles at the moment.

Also, I have to say that judging by the trailer the scenes are inadequately lit again, as they were in Scratches.

There was so much potential in Scratches that was ruined by some poor game and graphic design elements. This doesn't bode well for the creator actually taking on board criticism from previous games. Maybe there were / are too many uncritical 'Wow, it's so amazing' type comments about Scratches for the developer to actually be aware of what its faults were.

Searching for 30 seconds for a door handle is not fun.

Just please tell me that the gameplay doesn't mostly revolve around phoning a friend and waiting for a letter to arrive again...

While you are entitled to your opinion, Mr. Cordes has been very kind to come here and update us on his new game's development. Many of us enjoyed Scratches and look forward to this one. I just think it's a bit rude to list numerous complaints to the developer like this. I know they appreciate feedback, but it seems odd to voice harsh criticisms while Mr. Cordes and his team are working so hard to give us a great product.