New Alien Fan Game - "Into The Vents"

[barker_s]

Hello everyone, long-time lurker here.

About two months ago I've visited this topic and learned about Alien - Into The Vents, a small horror fan game being created by OpenMawProductions. I was very excited with a prospect of playing a scary Alien game for a change (especially after the failure of A:CM), but it turned out that the project might be dead. I've contacted Steve at OpenMaw and, unfortunately, it turned out to be true - he lost the game code due to an unfortunate accident. I've decided, that his idea was too good to let it die like that, so I've asked for his permission to use it and recreate it in Unity engine. Thankfully, he's agreed and even provided me with some nice assets and valuable advice. So now, after two months of not-so-continuous work I almost have all the features for the initial release in place.

So, what is it?

I took the liberty of tweaking OpenMaw's idea a little. The protagonist, for example, is no longer captain Dallas of the Nostromo. It's a different story altogether, although loosely based on the Dallas' ventilation scenario. The gameplay is simple, yet should provide for many scares and tense moments and it's almost identical to Steve's original concept. You're thrown into the ships's ventillation system, but you're not alone - a xenomorph also stalks these claustrophobic corridors. In order to get rid of it, you need to find 6 randomly placed switches (the number might change after more playtesting) and escape back to the entrance. The alien roams randomly around the ventillation, but if it sees you, it will chase you (of course it's possible to lose it).


You're equipped with a few items to help you with your task:

Flamethrower - its tank is almost empty, only allowing for a few shots, but it will slow the xeno down, buying you some time to escape (although you won't be able to kill it).

Motion tracker - it's the same model that the colonial marines use, but its display is broken. Fortunately, it's been modified to work in 360° radius, so it will inform you about alien's proximity, but not ithe direction it comes from.

Flares - a pack of five flares that you can throw to illuminate some areas or help you mark a path in the maze-like tunnels.


Planned features:

If I can release this without a negative response from Fox, I'll consider expanding it with multiplayer and a level editor.


As for the art, well, that's a slight problem. I'm a programmer, not an artist. I've created some basic, untextured level geometry and ripped some models from A:CM (xenomorph, motion tracker etc.), but it's all just temporary. To lower the chances of getting foxed i thought it would be better to have original art assets. So here's where I need your help guys. Are you a modeller and/or texture artist? Would you like to help me finish this little project? If so, please respond to this topic. I cannot offer you any compensation, since this project is strictly non-commercial, but hey, you're going to have an alien game under your belt .

I'm also open for any ideas or suggestions you might have.

Sorry for the wall of text and thank you if you read this far . I'll try and upload a video of what I've got so far tomorrow afternoon, GMT time.

[barker_s]

Sorry for the delay guys, I've been struggling with video compression - no matter what I did, the video ended way too dark after being compressed. I'll try providing you with a better-quality vid soon. Meanwhile, here's the game that I've been talking about .

[links below]

Sorry for the crappy quality (it's brighter in-game - please watch in 720p for it to be bearable) and again, don't be discouraged by the placeholder graphics. Once I, hopefully, find some artists willing to help me, it will look way better .

As for gameplay, I think I'm going to add limited battery life for the motion tracker, because it's kinda overpowered right now - it'll fit nicely with the whole resource management system. Other than that, there are a few glitches to be fixed, menu screens to add and an end-game scene to be designed. I'll also need to playtest the hell out of it to make gameplay challenging, yet fair. The game needs to be beatable after all .

Edit:

Ok, got it sorted out. Better quality video available here.

Older, crappy version of the video here.

[OpenMaw]

Just saw your message in my inbox over on YouTube. You've recaptured the original atmosphere I had in my videos and taken it further. The gameplay seems to be shaping up really nicely even at these early stages. Dare I say this could out do the likes of Slender?

This project deserves everyone's full support, as it is the first time in a long while that we've seen a survival horror centric based Alien game.

My only complaint is that I think the foot-steps are too loud and resonate just a bit too much. Shave off about 30% of the volume there and I think they'd be just fine. Over all everything seems to be coming along, with the obvious "early is early" isms like placeholders and such.

Is the motion tracker going to actually display anything on it or do you plan to keep it damaged like that? It's an interesting idea, actually. Having it broken so that you can't really see which direction.

[PVTDukeMorrison]

looks creepy, alien should be a bit faster though, can't wait to see the finished product

[barker_s]

My only complaint is that I think the foot-steps are too loud and resonate just a bit too much. Shave off about 30% of the volume there and I think they'd be just fine. Over all everything seems to be coming along, with the obvious "early is early" isms like placeholders and such.

Ah, yes, sorry about that - I knew the footsteps were too loud, but I didn't have time to change them before the recording .

Is the motion tracker going to actually display anything on it or do you plan to keep it damaged like that? It's an interesting idea, actually. Having it broken so that you can't really see which direction.

I'll keep it damaged, as it helps build incredible tension. Especially when you're at a four-way junction and it starts beeping. This situation is very reminiscent of that scene in Alien, when Lambert shouts at Dallas to run, because the alien is getting close, but she can't pinpoint its exact location. I'm also going to add a limited battery to it, because even without display it's way too powerful.

looks creepy, alien should be a bit faster though, can't wait to see the finished product

Alien's speed will be definitely tweaked, although its initial speed might be slower than expected. At the moment it works like this - the alien starts with a preset speed, but every time you find a switch, it gets a little faster and it's harder to lose it (it remembers your position longer). Also, after you've hit all the switches and run to the exit, it will go into chase mode (it will know where you are, whether it sees you or not) making things pretty hard for you, especially if you didn't conserve your resources.

Thanks for the feedback guys and please keep it coming . Whether you'd like to offer suggestions, ideas or point out shortcomings, I'm all ears.

[szkoki]

so its basicly the same concept like OpenMaw started a year ago? because i have an idea, rather then a picture and a few words after you die, how about a gif/video pops up with the agony of the dying Dallas?

[barker_s]

so its basicly the same concept like OpenMaw started a year ago? because i have an idea, rather then a picture and a few words after you die, how about a gif/video pops up with the agony of the dying Dallas?

It's basically the same, but not exactly the same . As I've stated in the opening post, Dallas is no longer the protagonist, it's a different, although an analogous story. As for the death sequence, when the alien gets you, I'm planning to have a split-second animation of the alien grabbing you, played from the character's POV, which then turns into static. Think of that scene - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqb8n0FJqBQ#ws I believe it'll provide some nice shock value. As for the picture, I think I'll drop it altogether and leave it to your imagination to decide whether you were brutally murdered or turned into a breeding grounds for a biomechanical horror .

[JokersWarPig]

so its basicly the same concept like OpenMaw started a year ago? because i have an idea, rather then a picture and a few words after you die, how about a gif/video pops up with the agony of the dying Dallas?

I thought something similar, like a head-bite or being dragged through the vents while screaming

[PVTDukeMorrison]

An animation where the alien curls its lips back and does the head bite would be very cool

[Hudson]

Really cool. I feel like instead of footsteps a shuffling noise would be more appropriate. No one trying to evade something would be stomping around on a metal surface. Shit...I'd take my shoes off and go barefoot.

[barker_s]

I thought something similar, like a head-bite or being dragged through the vents while screaming

An animation where the alien curls its lips back and does the head bite would be very cool

You're reading my mind guys . There's definitely going to be an animation played from the player's POV when the alien gets him. Perhaps even two or three variants, but I can't be more specific until I find somebody to model/animate the new xeno model. I'd rather not use the current one, since it's been ripped directly from Aliens: Colonial Marines.

This video is my inspiration when it comes to the player death scene - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqb8n0FJqBQ#ws . Short, shocking and ending in static.

Really cool. I feel like instead of footsteps a shuffling noise would be more appropriate. No one trying to evade something would be stomping around on a metal surface. Shit...I'd take my shoes off and go barefoot.

People have mixed feelings about these footsteps sounds - some love it, some hate it. I'll definitely turn down their volume and try to tweak them (or maybe use a different sounds altogether if a lot of people dislike them).

[Corporal Hicks]

Absolutely keep the footfall sounds! Just tone it down a little like OpenMaw said. It looks like it has the really potential to make me shit my pants. Love the broken tracker too.

I just hope you can fancy up the objectives bit a little? Computer terminals, rewiring or something?

[barker_s]

People seem to be really polarized about those footstep sounds . I might end up having two different sets of sounds that you could switch between from the options menu (seriously, it wouldn't even be that much of a hassle).

I just hope you can fancy up the objectives bit a little? Computer terminals, rewiring or something?

Could you please elaborate a bit on this one? I'm always open to suggestions that might make the gameplay better.


Later today I'll make a post explaining the level design - hopefully it will help me find modellers willing to do level pieces.

[Corporal Hicks]

Well it'd just be a bit dull just going around hitting switches. What you want to do is fancy it up with some in-universe style switch hitting. At this "switch" you rewire the a panel, at another "switch" you hack the terminal. That kinda stuff.

[barker_s]

While I'm afraid it might be a lot of work with little payoff, I'll certainly consider that further along the way. Ultimately it will boil down to the artist's will and capabilities (assuming I find one ).