In my preview for this game that was published back in October, we gained a little glimpse into this PS 4 exclusive game’s fictional Soviet world.  The lead designer, Cuthbert also told us that they will try to develop such a social net, which will be original and revolutionize the MMO games of the PS4.

I was able to participate in the alpha testing, and try out this game.  Once I entered, a weird world welcomed me. The characters looked as they were carved from wood, and the atmosphere is mixed with a touch of modernity. Then there were the islands that surround our city – these  reminded me of old statues from the communist era.

The creation of the universe

This crazy world of the story is luckily explained. It all began with an experiment in 1960’s Russia. Humanity’s entire consciousness was merged into one. Our objective, as a child clone within this consciousness is to gather all of Humanity . These are represented  by Matrjoska dolls in the game, which can be found on the Island while looking for resources. However this is not just our main objective, we also have to upgrade and defend our city against the evilish Izver’s attacks.  These entities represent all of humanity’s evil that exists in people’s minds. Basically the world is a constant flux of dreams and nightmares, and we have to create a safe city.

We will be The Tomorrow Children

The entire world  seems  empty. It looks weird in the beginning, we will not see  other players as in the usual MMO-s. Of course someone who is in action will be visible, and we will be able to help them. There’s also another way to attract more players into our world, which will be our whistle. Once we use it, the users around us will be able to see them. This is a bit annoying, as communication can be difficult. Enough to say:  it is trying to conjure up the feeling of the old communist ideologies, as in every caste has to know what to do, and to build together the new world which will allow us to live safely.

What are we ?

There are five classes from which we can select from. Citizen,  ordinary Townsfolk, that has no special ability, and we can upgrade him the way we would like to. Than the Miner, who is good at handling the heavy lifting and resource gathering. Engineer Commander: almost like a Miner, but can fare better in combat. Radio Officer is for long distance recon, and to discover Izvers. Combatant  is basically for fights against the monsters. One thing is sure:  the classes are just there for the basics. All of the classes can use anything without limitation. The items for classes can be bought in stores by earning work points. We can make our characters special with the “FEAT” signed cola machine.

Our city is upgraded with the ore that is mined. This is easy to get. We go to our work desk and select what we would like to build. Then after a quick puzzle we arrange the numbers, and the item will be built.  Interesting is the lack of the quota in which we have to build the items. This provides boundless freedom and it allows us to create what we imagine. If we want we can just create another hovercraft and explore the world.

Would this be canaan ?

Our enemies are rather varied and unbelievable. There are flying rays, robot spiders, and even Robozilla appears. These creatures mean danger to our city, but the smaller ones near the resources can kill our troops. Death does not mean the end of the game, we just lose our “work points ” that we accumulated during  the session. That is why it is important to go to the Labor Office and put in our work credentials , in order to get your hardly-earned points.

The other big enemy is the darkness itself. In the game it’s mentioned as “fade”. As there are day/night cycles,we always have to be aware when the sun goes down.  As there are no light sources in our city, we will fade away (which equals to death).

Will this be great ?

The answer is a simple: yes. The visual elements are great. The entire world is a big surreal painting which I love. The gameplay is mixed with some old communist ideals, the atmosphere provides us with a real sense of originality. But the weirdness and the difficult communication with other plays might alienate some people. It’s a sandbox game that can still receive many new updates in the future. It seems that Cuthbert’s dream came true and an original PS4 exclusive has been made.

One final thing: unfortunately no release date has been given yet. The only date we know is that it will be released in early 2015, and I hope they won’t delay, as I can’t wait to play it.

-Malachit-