I’ve been reviewing Liberated Pixel Cup Games. This is one of the 48 Games.
Disclaimer: I’m competing in the cup too! I am not a judge!
Solitude [Download me] [Bitbucket Repository]
This is a Single Player Game, powered by Python and Pyglet. Despite being a Python game, I couldn’t figure out how to launch it. I tried all python files inside the “lib” folder but none of them would actually execute the game. There was a binary called “solitude” though, which I used to run the game.
This game also requires AVBin to run, for audio support. Fedora does not ship it in the repositories, and even rpmfusion seems to have discontinued it. AVbin’s Download site has a link that lets you download it, but the game wouldn’t detect it. The game will crash as soon as it tries to load music, but there’s a newer version, 1.2, available on the bitbucket repository that fixes this (and other issues). While I couldn’t actually listen to the music, I did manage to play through the game.
As for the game, you’re alone, in a small mountain region. Your character looks like he’s taken a beating, it looks pretty banged up. There’s some indicators on the bottom left corner that signal that you’re hungry, thirsty and sleepy. A nearby apple tree can provide some food, and a nearby lake provides water… as for sleep? You can sleep wherever you want.This will trigger one of the four alternate endings.
As soon as you sleep though, you start dreaming. Perhaps of a distant past, perhaps of an alternate life. One of the dreams put me in an office-type building, with my boss asking me to collect some reports from the employees. After talking to each, I exit through the door, and the game simply said “I never fit in”, and ends.
Another dream had me in a wooden house with a farm nearby. A girl was standing by a lake, and you propose to her. As soon as you do, you’re led back to your house, unable to exit it. I got goosebumps in this part of the game, feeling how depressed the character was, not wanting to eat or go outside. After sleeping several nights on the bed (And it feels like he’s been shut in for a long time, not a few nights), a newspaper reports a wedding, which I’m assuming isn’t yours. You then leave the house and the game simply states “There’s nothing left for me here” and ends.
Update: There’s also another ending, where instead of delivering the report immediately, you can exit the building. There’s a lot more to see in the game than I initially thought! (Thanks for the tip, Malachite!)
Update 2: I found the last ending thanks to Malachite. Instead of going straight to the girl, you need to gather 3 things. You’ll be able to walk around a dojo and see some deer among other things.
With the game’s bad endings it lives up to its name, making you feel alone in the world if only for a few minutes. The game’s “good” endings leave an open world where you can use your imagination to write what happens after.
