Two Lines (+project file)
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Thank you! I designed this game with the intent that people would have varying experiences with it. Some people are absolutely terrorized by the monster and just give up, and some people squeak by effortlessly. In fact, one person never even saw this monster, which was absolutely mind boggling, but it's all possible! Either way, glad you made it through and enjoyed it!
Ok, I'ma try and keep this asbrief long as possible.
This is the second horror game that I've played from you, and while it falls short in some aspects, it more than makes up for it with the story that is told via symbolism and the game's atmosphere and map design. So, first things first, what does this game fall short on? For me, it's just how long it took to complete the game due to map design. (Ironic, huh? Given how I just said that the map design was one of the game's good things, too. Don't worry. I'll explain.) While for the most part, it is my fault it took me so long to beat it, the city is quite literally a maze in some sense. However, I'd like to think it is designed in such a way for a reason, although I fail to understand why.
Now, while the map design is not desirable for those who want a quick 10-minute horror experience, (Unless some random Joe wings it and makes it to the end on his initial path of travel. Couldn't be me. I was running around like a chicken with his head cut off.) it is absolutely elevated when you see what the stairway, the one that initially appears to be The Stairway to Heaven, really leads to. It was just a cool sight to see and felt absolutely surreal. Definitely added to the unsettling atmosphere in its own unique way.
Now, I want to talk about the riddle and the conclusion that I came to/tried to come to. Spoiler alert, I most likely need another explanation for this game, haha.
'Two tender lines, carefully drawn.
Two for life.
Two for death.'
Of course, this is something that cannot be solved if you fail to make it to the end, so unless you want to watch me run around for a good amount of time, dodging homeboy who is trying to ask me how my days been, then I suggest you watch my YouTube video. (I'm not gonna post it here, I don't want to self-promote myselfTO THAT EXTENT until I post content that I believe to be my best. I bolded the words above because, technically, I'm still self-promoting, just not to that extent, haha.) Anyway, I found the line: 'Two for life.' to be the most obvious if you actually 'LOOK FOR PINK.' Pregnancy = Life. Pretty self-explanatory, but still told in a symbolic way which is what I like about these games of yours, Matt. However, 'Two for death.' is giving me some trouble. Now, I'm gonna try and put out a few ideas on what I think it means, and you can tell me how close to the bullseye I got.
Obviously, I believe that the flipped city in the sky is there for a very good reason. While I don't know the reason, I can say that the apartment room that houses your own dead body is one line. And you wondering the city aimlessly is another. The body in the tub is quite simply death in its literal physical form, and you wondering the city aimlessly, lost, and empty is death in its metaphorical sense. (To be honest, I don't 100% understand how to utilize the word 'metaphorical', so if I used it incorrectly, that's why. So, chill. I'm an idiot who can actually think... Yeah.) This theory is a bit dodgy, but I wanted to put it out there.
Second, the two cities themselves. I can't really think of a reasonable theory, but I also can't help but think about how they may tie into the line of the riddle considerably.
Third, the "psycho" that follows you. At the very end of the game, he seemingly kills you twice, as you are obviously already dead at the very start proven by your dead body in the tub. He is a walking symbol of death that haunts and unrelentingly chases you as punishment for what you did. (Hinted by the lines, 'YOU KNOW THAT YOU DESERVE THIS.') You may have tried to run from your mistakes and find an escape through what you thought to be a quick death, but even DEATH won't let you go. Again, a bit of a stretch with this one, too, but whatever.
And that's all I've got. I recorded my gameplay of this, so if you want to see it, do what you will. Like I typed up earlier, I will self-promote to a certain extent, but not so much that I put the video up here. I don't believe my videos are at my best yet. Anyway, another great game, Matt! And like 'He Keeps Me Here', it is a game that doesn't seem too special until you grasp its purpose through the story that is told in a unique and creative fashion. I love it! Big-ups!
Great atmosphere, it's very creepy and haunting. An amazing thing that happens sometimes is when you don't see the enemy for a while then suddenly hear the clacking of his footsteps but don't see him. It immediately gave me a sense of panic. Awesome job on that. Also this is one of the few monsters I've seen that legit gave me creeps to look at. My only issue with the game is that it feels a lot like a maze. I'm just not a huge fan of maze games in general though so that's hardly a criticism. Thank you for making it!
Hi there! You know, I made this for a game jam, so I didn't have much time to optimize or test specifications. There's not a lot going on graphically in this one, so it won't be as intensive as some of my other games, but I honestly can't say how it will run on your specs. It's free though, so you can always give it a shot! Let me know if you or your friend decide to try it out, and if you have any luck!
Was a very environmentally stimulating game! The fog and the sounds really amped up the surrounds and the whole game. The sounds design choice was also good; you can here the shinigami dude walk up to the player, and the player has to dodge them by out-manoeuvring it. I think I broke my shinigami's AI and it didn't follow me after encountering it at the beginning.
The story and imagery that you've put into the game is done insanely well. How the stairs at the end seem like stairs that go up or down, and how the cities are inverted; makes it seem like one is real and the other one is the afterlife. Or one is death and the other is life. The story is pretty well explained in the last part where the player is in the room; there are simple objects that tell a very straightforward story (I think so at least), and it's really well done!
Even the puddles of blood that are left when the player is caught was pretty cool! So yeah, overall, it was a really fun game to play and a game that has so much thought and depth put into it!
Playing on Linux; I got trapped in the area with the dead body in the tub, the door shut behind me,
I couldn't progress any further.
The monster also didn't come to finish me off!
Had to force close.
Terminal output said something about the monster/killer being out of world bounds, most likely a glitch, will try again.
Thanks for this.
Yes, that's a bug I never got around to fixing. Basically, if you take too long to check the bath tub, the creature hits the kill Z. I had intended to send him to a certain place on the map, but I think it clipped him through the floor, and left him falling :/ This was a jam game, so I left it as-is, with a plan to eventually do a proper remake. Anyway, thanks for letting me know! It's great to have Linux feedback!
Greetings from America! Thank you so much for playing! Man, I really thought you had it on your 3rd attempt. If you can get past the monster and put some distance between him, you have a good chance of making it. Once you get on the rooftops, you want to keep going up as much as you can, and avoid going back to the ground level. I don't know if you'll give it another try or not, but I think you would beat it with another attempt. Anyway, thanks again for playing! Be sure to check out some of my other games. If you want my best, definitely give NEMESES a run!
Thank you so much for giving such an eloquent, in-depth review! It means a lot to me when someone takes the time to look more into my games and analyze them below surface level. There's always more there to dig up for those who want more than just a scary experience.
I'm so glad you guys find this to be one of the scariest games ever! My dream is to do just that, so I must be on the right track :) Thank you for appreciating the little nuances that collectively make the experience what it is. Making the Punisher was probably my favorite part, especially when I tested out his up close, shaky animation. It even terrified me, haha. I'm glad your experience went as intended; a lot of people just beeline it for the exit, and then complained that they didn't see him again. Taking more time to explore, and just having the Punisher constantly stalking you is what I was going for.
I agree with you that this game needs more to do. Since I made it for a jam, I decided to leave it as-is to maintain its integrity. I'm considering a remaster at some point though, because it would be fun to reimagine certain things without the time limitation. The goal would be to make it look better, be more fun to play, and definitely scarier :)
Thanks again for the lovely review! If you haven't checked out NEMESES yet, that's my bigger project, and you might even find it scarier!
Saw you on Alpha Beta Gamer's channel a while back, so I just had to try this game, first things first I know this game was made for a game jam a year ago so this game is a old project but I genuinely did enjoy your game for what it had especially the maze-like structure of the map, it just made me a bit stressed out, that demon who came chasing after me had me on my best efforts to just finish the game (That dude just freaks me out), the atmosphere just makes me feel uneasy and kinda on my toes throughout the whole gameplay all in all I think this would be one of my most favorite indie horror games, I would like to see more of your future projects so I'm going to give you a follow.
Either Matt is a NIN fan or im going crazy xD
This is a great little game. took me about half an hour to find my way round this aMAZEing place. Really quite creepy, wasnt expecting it to make me quite so tense at times. Loved trying to work out the hidden meaning. Pretty sure ive worked it out or at least rather close to what its meant to be.
Had a few frame drops but think thats more down to my pc being on its last legs. Not much else to say without potential spoilers for anyone reading this. All i can say is, another well put together game. Really loving your content. Keep it up :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8dJ5qQjTAY
This was a great game! Very simple but with a creative story (if you bother to find out what the story is). The developer does hint at the fact that he actually tried to make a story for this game. The monster was also creepier than I thought it would be. Lastly, some people complain about the maze portion of the game, but I don't feel that's appropriate. It wasn't that difficult. You just need to keep your eyes open :) Great job!
Hmmm. Ok. Two lines. (this was my train of thought). I'm in purgatory. Heaven & Hell. One line up. One line down. Two Lines. So started going up to see the road signs are now upside down to suggest even going up is actually going down. Found a murder scene in which I killed everyone and then myself to which the birdman hookhand thing comes in to send me back to the start so I can't leave Purgatory. Turns out all this was totally wrong but even getting it all wrong the game was still extremely fun to play knowing your being chased and even seeing the thing chasing you on the stairs below or across from you. You just have to keep moving and that was very cool. Overall I really liked this even if I didn't get the story. Well done Matt. Another winner... :)