2040 Critical mistrust
Retro-futuristic escape game
When humanity must come together, you have several choices...Either cooperate, or confront. Either save yourself, or save all mankind.GAME SHEET
Name: 2040 Critical Mistrust
Type: Cooperative game in virtual reality.
Number of players: 2 - 3 or 4 players.
Duration: 60 minutes
Language: English
Accessibility: All Audiences
Platform: VR arcades with wired or autonomous virtual reality headsets.
Synopsis: Humanity is on the verge of extinction due to a pandemic disease. To save everyone, a team composed of the 4 great nations of the planet is sent to a space station in order to develop a cure. But in the middle of the Cold War can they trust each other ? Who spread the virus ? Who is the manipulator ? Is it one of them or is it the station’s AI trying to save our planet from human pollution ? In this escape game, each player will find his own answer to these questions and choose his side in the end. Collaboration or betrayal, individualism or team spirit are the mechanics found in 2040 Critical Mistrust.
Producer: Compagnie des martingales (France)
Artistic Direction: Studio Nyx (Angoulême - FR)
Concepts Art: Red Comet (Angoulême- FR)
Game Design: GameExPro (Berlin- GE)
Graphics and Animations: Studio Nyx (Angoulême - FR)
Development: GameExPro (Berlin - GE)
Sound: G4F (Angoulême -FR)
phase 1 : game design
The GameExPro company carried out all of the game design and puzzles for the game. Users feedback and tests carried out during the development have been taken into account
phase 2 : artistic Direction
In this collaborative video game, Studio Nyx was in charge of the artistic direction.
Studio Nyx has been choosing the colors, materials and atmospheres of each environment, in order to create a universe in line with the Game Design created upstream by the GameExPro studio in Germany.
Critical Mistrust takes place in year 2040 as we imagined it would be back in 1970, it is a retro-futuristic environment. The crew docked in an international space station must climb from floor to floor by solving the puzzles of each level, until reaching the highest point of the station. This ascent is associated with the rising lights and color up tothe climax.
At the beginning of the game, players start in a cocooning atmosphere with earthy and luminous hues. With each level up, blue is added to the earthy colors and the amount of light is reduced. We therefore move from an ocher, luminous atmosphere to a dark and suffocating atmosphere tinged with blue.
The artistic direction process allowed the company G4F to work on the sound environment of the game.
PHASE 3 : concepts and storyboards
Christophe Malcombe of Red Comet, based on the Studio Nyx artistic direction has developed concepts for environments, objects and characters.
These concepts allowed the team to validate and choose the game design, environments and atmospheres.
PHASE 4 : environnement and animation
The environments and animations were created by Studio Nyx based on art concepts designed by Red Comet. Atmospheres, lights, textures and colors were implemented from the artistic direction elaborated upstream. Changes were made during the development in connection with the evolution of game design.
PHASE 5 : specials effects
Studio Nyx and GameExPro have extensively worked on the special effects of the game.
These elements are important to the realism but also for the players' immersion experience. There was however a strong technological barrier due to the power of the Oculus Quest 2 (standalone headphones frequently used in VR arcade). These headphones have a computing power equivalent to a smartphone, which makes it difficult to use the power consuming special effects.
Despite this difficulty, a wide variety of special effects such as lightning, smoke and flames have been successfully iintegrated.
Testing a special effect.
PHASE 6 : DEVELOPMENT
The development and implementation of the game’s avatars were carried out by the GameExPro studio in Berlin. The particularity of these avatars consists in having a whole body moving with the player’s movements. Fullbody avatar test. One players sees his two teammates salute him.
Fullbody avatar test. One of the players sees his two teammates salute him.
partners
