First-person exploration games have been slowly gaining traction, and they are great alternatives to the first-person shooter genre. Instead of killing bad guys left and right, a player can experience a tale that doesn’t involve stopping an evil group from taking over the world. You can keep watch over a forest to make sure people aren’t misbehaving in Firewatch, or you can visit your home and find out what happened to your family while you were gone in Gone Home. The possibilities are endless. Giant Sparrow, the development team behind the first-person painting game The Unfinished Swan, is working on a new first-person exploration game called What Remains of Edith Finch.
The game takes you on a journey into the different lives of a cursed family in Washington state. These stories consist of older members back in the early 1900s to new family members in the present. You’ll be playing Edith Finch, the last member of the family. As you explore around the house, you’ll get to relive a moment in a family member’s life. All their stories have one thing in common, each one ends in their death. The biggest mystery of all? Why is Edith the last member alive?
I had the chance to check out the demo of the game during PlayStation Experience 2016. The game’s art direction is wonderful including the way text pops up on the screen and the different room settings in the house. It’s like an illustrated children’s book coming to life. The game is definitely eerie as you’re exploring an empty house. It’s even creepier knowing that the rooms once belonged to a former family member. (I’m getting goosebumps just thinking about it.)
One area I checked out was the outside area with a tree swing. I get to relive a kid’s memory as he swings higher and higher. I can hear his mom calling out to him, but all the boy wanted to do was be the best swinger ever. I’m able to swing around the tree branch, and when the swinging was at its peak, the boy decided to jump out. He had a moment of freedom with the sky before the story fades out and you get to control Edith again.
Check out the story trailer below.
What Remains of Edith Finch will be available in Spring 2017 for the PlayStation 4 and PC.
from Nerd Reactor
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