We talk more and more about the world of Italian development, and now we can rightly say that it is a universe, with its galaxies and its stars. We have already presented the intriguing to you in the past Vesper, the first work of Cordens Interactive, a Lombard studio that is preparing to release the adventure of the android Seven on Steam next July 30th: we thought to present you a preview of their work with a fascinating journey to the planet Aryish.
We talked about stars, also why Cordens Interactive shone in the Red Bull Indie Forge contest, placing himself among the finalists (you can find here our special on Vesper, finalist of Red Bull Indie Forge). The development team offered us the opportunity to take an in-depth look at the game’s settings and sci-fi atmospheres, and we were happy to accept their invitation.
After the apocalypses
The robots that populate the world of Vesper have suffered well two disasters of unimaginable proportions: first a war fought by machines of titanic dimensions, and then the activation of the Vesper protocol, an emergency measure aimed at avoiding total destruction.
The Prologue, playable in the demo released on Steam, makes the player relive this second key moment in the history of robots, using a color palette mainly based on red and blue. Here, the first aspect that catches the eye in Vesper is precisely theuse of color. Matteo Marzorati, Creative Director of Cordens Interactive, has highlighted on several occasions how the colors of the game are used in an emotional way first and foremost: in this case the contrast between the bright red, associated with war and chaos, and the blue of the rooms where the Vesper Protocol is activated by the android controlled by the player, is evident.
Water extinguishes the fire, of course, but one wonders if the Protocol was really the panacea for all evils: only the gaming experience will allow the user to get a precise idea. But there is more: it is the name of the game itself, Vesper, that gives us an interpretative address.
Vespers is the time of sunset, and to this specific moment of the day many Christian Churches associate the prayer of the Vespers; from what we have been able to see, in Vesper there is no lack of religious references, and therefore we believe it is right to give relevance to the meanings of the title chosen for the adventure of the android Seven. The sunset is a liminal moment, in passing; the moment in which it is neither day nor night; thin border line between different worlds.
Moving on to the gameplay, the Drive Gun, key weapon for solving environmental puzzles and advancement tool in the game world. It seems to be a light catalyst, with various uses: a sort of summa of Seven’s gameplay, alpha and omega of the challenges of the planet Aryish. We are curious to find out more about her, given that her use by Seven was not central to the materials we have viewed; the Cordens Interactive team, however, never missed an opportunity to highlight its iconic status for the android population.
The sunset: a Limbo
If it is true that to judge the development of the Vesper plot we will have to wait for the moment of the review, we can however say that the aesthetic management of game screens it’s all about that liminality we talked about speculating on the name of the title. The very strong contrast between the black used for the characters and the setting in the foreground, as opposed to the backgrounds, it allows us to compare Vesper to an illustrious predecessor: Limbo (2010). Not only that: a type of robot that Seven will meet on Aryish has the clear appearance of an arachnid, and the spider is precisely the most representative animal of Limbo.
The choice of contrasting the foreground with the background seems to pay off, both in terms of screen readability and artistic rendering: the strong colors of the alien planet settings emerge in all their character, as you can see from the videos accompanying this article. The whole is enhanced by theabsence of any HUD, a radical choice, but which we hope will prove to be functional in conveying Vesper’s messages and facilitating it emotional connection of the player with the events narrated and the vicissitudes of the android Seven. In addition, a good one seems to be present in the video clips we have seen variety in environments, both indoors and outdoors.
Seven moves in autonomous screens between them, designed to tell the alien planet that hosts the adventure; you go from the laboratories, to the rooms of a museum, to feel small small in contrast with the immensity of the sky … and of the giant robots that dominate motionless, menacing reminder of a time that was. Here, one might think – and, once again, we could deny ourselves in the review – that Vesper is a game of contrasts: between light and shadow, color and dark; between opposing parties in an ancient war; between the small Seven and the gigantic architectures of the planet Aryish.
Aliens
Seven’s journey seems to be mostly solitary, but in an interesting clip the protagonist extends a robotic hand towards a being very similar to a deer. The development team confirmed the presence of numerous animal species on the planet Aryish, each with its own characteristics.
It goes from Nalantule, almost a hybrid between spider and moth, ai Axolird, birds that manage to inhabit any biome. In the images of the museum we noticed a being that looks like a giant crustacean, and we are curious to find out if it is an inanimate fossil or a species still present on the planet. As for the likes of Seven, their fate following the activation of the Vesper Protocol seems to be less clear. However, we noticed in a video clip the presence of a village: that it can house surviving androids?
The state of the huts does not seem to be the best, and therefore drawing conclusions is perhaps premature. We have to understand if the world of Seven is on the verge of a new catastrophe, or if it has already gone beyond the point of no return. We are confident that the settings will be an important narrator in the course of our adventure; the presence of papers more or less hidden that aim to deepen the events that have affected the androids in the past, allowing us to understand the objectives of Seven and its present.
We wonder what possibilities we will have in defining the future of robots: according to the passion of the creators of Seven for science fiction literature – Isaac Asimov And Philip Kindred Dick in the head – we can imagine that issues such as free will will have a significant weight in the adventure and in the documents available on Aryish. A narrative that could turn out to be similar to that of titles like Dark Souls and Hollow Knight, therefore; all within the framework of an art direction that was the driving force behind the creation of the game.
It often happens that developers start from a plot, and then devote themselves to the construction of the settings and atmospheres; in this case, Cordens Interactive has stated on several occasions that the sketches and prototypes of Aryish were conceived before defining the aspects relevant to the story. An undoubtedly particular procedure – in this case the hen seems to have been born first, and not the egg – and to be taken into consideration when analyzing the finished product.
Now the wait is almost over: Vesper will be available on Steam from July 30th. We remind you that by adding the game to your wishlist – maybe after trying the free demo – it will help developers make their creature more visible.
In short, just a few clicks are enough to promote the Seven adventure and send a big good luck to Cordens Interactive! What do you expect from Vesper? We are waiting for you to discuss it in the space dedicated to comments!