Dark Side Of The Planet: The Invincible
There's something sinister in this hard sci-fi adventure.
‣ The Invincible
From: Starward Industries, 11 bit studios
Platforms: PC
Release: 2023
Steam Link • Demo Video
A group of scientists get into trouble when they visit an alien planet, and you need to get to the bottom of it in this eerie adventure. Based on the work of sci-fi and futurist author Stanisław Lem, The Invincible is a gorgeous but tense first-person exploration game—playing as astrobiologist Yasna, you must find your missing team members and figure out the secret of Regis III, a dead and spooky planet.
This demo takes place slightly into the game and briefly visits the world of Regis III. You primarily walk around, interacting with objects or your equipment. A lot is at stake: your choices can change the game. The Invincible is very atmospheric and uses the Unreal 5 engine. Some of the developers had previously worked on the Witcher franchise, and that triple-A experience reflects in the environment design and voice acting. The demo does not run very smoothly nor reveal much, but this small taste makes us curious enough to keep an eye on The Invincible. Due for release in 2023.
Explore The Game with Youtube Chapters:
AIIG's Take: We need first to mention the performance. We couldn’t get the demo to run very smoothly, and the frame drops in the gameplay video reflect the experience. So, why would we highlight this game? First, the developers note that the demo is still very early and not optimised. And when we put the frame rate aside, The Invincible looks very good. The level design creates a slightly ‘on rails’ experience, though you can move around as you please. Swirls of dust and moody lighting create a forbidding world that Yasna explores, trying to find her fellow scientists.
The best description for this game is a narrative adventure, which makes sense since a sci-fi novel of the same name inspires it. Your choices can switch branches in the story, and the final game will have a reported 11 different endings. This demo always ends the same way, but we recorded two different playthroughs in our video to show how you can take different approaches. Published by indie powerhouse 11-bit studios, there is real talent and experience behind this game. If the final version carries through on the demos promise (and runs better), this might be one of the year’s surprise indie hits.
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