Nowhere Studios’ project for their indie puzzle-platformer Monchroma has a funding deadline of 24 August 2013 on the Kickstarter website. At the time of writing it has received $10,585 of its $80,000 target from 330 backers across the world and, after playing the demo, we’d be extremely surprised if it didn’t reach its goal.
I came across Monochroma while browsing Kickstarter last weekend and was instantly attracted to this atmospheric black-and-white game. The developers have described it as ‘a deeply visual, intellectual, and emotional experience’ and a sort of cross between Limbo and Ico – still two of the most beautiful and moving titles despite now being several years old. After sending a link through to the 1001-Up.com boys for their opinion and getting a thumbs-up without hesitation, we became official backers for this wonderful project.
Set in an alternate universe during the 1950s, Monochroma tells the story of a boy and his brother. One day they witness something awful: a crime committed by a massive corporation that makes their money from building and selling robots to the city dwellers. Alone in the rain, the two boys must survive around six hours of devilishly clever puzzles in order to save their world from tyranny.
Monochroma’s gameplay builds upon the relationship and unspoken sacrifice between two brothers. Players take on the role of the elder and early on in the game, your little brother injures his leg; this means that you must carry him on piggyback to continue further as you can’t leave him behind. You must put your brother down temporarily in order to solve most of the puzzles but you can only do this where it’s bright as, like most small children, he’s afraid of the dark.
The challenges take a realistic approach by blending in with the environment, and accurate physics modelling ensures that actions such as jumping and pushing feel true to life. Take a look at our gameplay video below to see what we mean – or download the demo from the Monochroma website and have a go yourself.
As stated by Orçun Nişli, the game’s creative director: “Platformer games are about our childhood. Think about it for a moment. What we do in a platformer is what we used to do when we were children playing at the playground. We’re adults now and don’t need to push a box and jump over it. We never climb wooden ladders or swing on a rope. In Monochroma, I try to celebrate everyone’s childhood by setting the tutorial at a playground. It was my way of saying ‘thanks’ to all the developers that carry childhood memories within and keep the genre alive.”
Nowhere Studios is a team of indie developers, artists and musicians from Istanbul in Turkey. The game features a bold soundtrack from the psychedelic folk band Gevende, and handmade cut-out artworks from award-winning studio LOV B&D. It’s almost complete after eighteen months of hard work; the studio is now producing the third chapter in the story (the Factory) as well as polishing the existing ones (the Outskirts and Ghetto).
He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother.
We can’t wait to get our hands on our copy of the game and we won’t have to stick it out long, with Monochroma due to be released on PC, Mac and Linux in December 2013. Check out Nowhere Studios’ project on Kickstarter and be sure to vote for the title on Steam Greenlight – it won’t be long before you’ll want to immerse yourself in the shadows with the brothers.
