project_Structure_01

Alright. [i]project_Structure_01[/i] is done and dusted. This is a mega structure walking sim. As is typical of these specific types of walking sims, this game takes you through an abandoned society, offering clues as to why it's abandoned as you progress, until eventually you find your way out or solve the mystery of its inhabitant's disappearance. Or both. And while mega structure walking sims are in fact their own type of walking sims, they have a very real commonality with the monster-free liminal spaces games. Fans of one will almost certainly be fans of the other. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3687021277 In this game, the story is told via messages left by the final survivor of this mega city. Who, while attempting to flee, clearly thought someone might still be left behind who would benefit from its notes. That someone is of course you, a luminescent being following in the inhabitant's footsteps. The story itself is more horror-centric, but you don't directly experience the horror outside of a couple moments where you come across some freaky things such as a group of [i]people[/i] who didn't leave and instead were worshipping something represented by a red light and were impaling themselves on giant spikes. or so it seemed to me. Not in real time of course. What you witness is frozen in time, more or less. I enjoyed this quite a bit. And, the developer has a sense of humor, incorporating rubber duckies into the storytelling. A diligent gamer will attempt to find all the rubber ducks in each level. A less diligent gamer (me) will still find quite a few of them. I'm not entirely certain if grabbing certain ducks unlocks certain areas or not. I got lost more than a couple times and it could've been coincidence that I found new areas after finding new ducks. Actually, I'd say it's almost definitely a coincidence, but I did have the thought that perhaps they were triggers on one level, lol. You will also absorb globes of light which will help illuminate some of the darker areas in the game, for a limited time. Which will help you find some secret paths or notice things that maybe you would walk by otherwise. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3687021178 The graphics are quite impressive, as they should be in megastructure games. The focus is on architectural design, with occasional splashes of art. Lighting is central to this visual landscape, and the variations in lighting really serve to enhance the experience. The levels do tend to seem pretty mazelike until you really start to get a feeling for the distinctions in areas that inform you as to whether you are likely progressing or walking in circles. When in doubt, backtrack a bit. It's likely you missed a passage somewhere not too far away. You will start to recognize areas you have already visited and like I say, I got a good feel for the game's design after an hour or so, which helped keep me moving forward. Of course, when truly in doubt, always take the left path in this game as in life. :) The Tower level features some platforming. I feel this was hindered a little bit by the controls being a little loose. Eventually, I realized that jumping, then moving forward, is a better tactic than trying to run and gauge the distance. It's a thing though and accessing a certain area with quite a few of the rubber duckies required about twenty attempts, lol. You can't die in this game though and falling off the map will respawn you at the spot you fell, so there's no harm in giving things a go. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3687021147 Yeah, I thought [i]project_Structure_01[/i] was a fun and reasonably lengthy megastructure walking sim with a very detailed setting, stellar lighting, a cool story to be found, and an ending that in and of itself was thought provoking. This game very much feels like a game that earns its seven-dollar asking price. I wouldn't be upset to pay that for this experience. Quite enjoyable and worth a look. [b]This game came across my desk via my Robilar's Reviews curator program.[/b] [code]If you found this review helpful and would be interested in supporting my Curator group, [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/32549618/]Robilar's Reviews[/url], it would be appreciated. Cheers.[/code] [code]Also follow [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/32732116-IndieGems/]IndieGems[/url] for more reviews like this one.[/code]

Walking through empty spaces forces us to confront fragments of our own subconscious, a sensation similar to when our beloved childhood wardrobe transformed into a monster when the lights went out. Project Structure is an experience laden with surrealism and a touch of brutalism, placing us in a minimalist and sensory atmosphere, without resorting to cheap scares as crutches.

This game really nails a particular minimalist and brutalist noir atmosphere. The lighting and use of shadows is so pronounced in the dark dithered art style that it makes every turn feel dramatic and intimidating. It felt like I was in an episode of The Twilight Zone lost in some megastructure laden world while being watched by it. I also particularly liked the duck theming and the other things that would spoil the game in a review. But if you like atmospheric walking sims and megastructure games, you owe yourself to check this one out.

Second best game of that specific genre/atmosphere after NaissanceE. The mood is on point, level design is carefully thought out to subtly lead you while still letting you feel lost in a giant maze and there are tons of optional collectibles. It also looks wonderful, with lots of brutalist set pieces and feats of architecture that are a joy to explore. There's some super light platforming with a very generous respawning system as well! I did not enjoy the abundance of "funny/creepy ducks" and thought it actually hurt the mood a bit by inserting very memey/random internet humor, but it's easy enough to ignore. There's a sizeable demo that gives a good feel for the game, give it a try!

This is what I call "exploring monochromatic WeirdSpace," a genre I'm relatively new to. Less-educated fellows would snarkily call this a "walking simulator". You walk or trot, fight nothing, and get reset promptly if you fail a significant jump. Nothing can hurt you. There's way more to this game than just that, but we'll get there in due time. The government requires me to meet a minimum word count, after all*. [quote]Important caveat: This is a review copy. I am impartial, and you'll get my honest thoughts on the matter.[/quote] Now, There's a sort of lineage to games like this. First, the anime "Blame". I haven't seen it, but it's set in a giant, machine-made city of impossible age, inhabited by people who've forgotten so much of their past. There was a game, NaisanceE, which you can play for free. It involves exploring a strange, monochromatic world, filled with massive architecture and strange passages, where light and dark are used to set a mood, with no colour or texturing anywhere. (You can read my review of that for more details.) The creator openly expresses their inspiration of Blame. And then there's this, project_Structure_01, which in turn is inspired by NaisanceE (NE). This game, unlike its source of inspiration, respects the player. Which isn't to say it doesn't play some tricks on the player on occasion, but doesn't set about trying to induce seizures or strobe the player. This one also has textured surfaces, which makes things actually feel a little more real, like there actually is a place somewhere with hundred-story subterranean towers. The goal of both games is to make your way through some enormous structure that was clearly, at some point, inhabited. As a genre, the game lets the architecture do the heavy lifting. Well, to be fair, the original lets the architecture do ALL the lifting. Project Structure respects the player a lot more, and has things buried hither and thither to reward an inquisitive player. One of the ways it respects the player is not blowing out the monitor. Sometimes it lets the player pick up little light blobs for a bit more illumination in dark areas, which are totally optional. Sometimes it hints at corridors with well-placed lights, or a hint of colour (colour sorely lacking from NE, as it were). Not quite everything is roses, though. There's no configuration to be done other than adjusting the volume of background music. You can't even check the preassigned keybinds until the game is launched. That's going to drive my wife nuts, who is a lefty ("I'm sinister!" she might proclaim) and requires key rebinds. I felt the addition of anisotropic filtering might help, as I had a couple eye-tricks played on me near the end with rows of distant lights. And, because everything is so stark, this game may give you eyestrain. It's best to do it in bursts, instead of all at once as I did. If you like exploration and tricky jumps, there's a lot of little things tucked away, like clips of art made by people on his Discord channel, and a duckling tally to follow. I liked this, in the end. It's very much not for everyone, to be certain, and if you're not given over to rooting into every corner and having a good sense of direction, you'll find the experience short and/or frustrating. But if you have that sense of direction, that desire to go off the beaten path, the urge to rescue every hidden duck, you could be here for quite awhile. If you're down here, well, I've got a lot more like this. This is where I'd plug my curator and streaming, and you'll find those details in my profile. Don't be shy about dropping me a message either. And if you wanted to roam in the world of Blame, you should consider this game. * No, actually, the government doesn't even know what I get up to these days.

If you're like me, you're probably looking at this game because you're a fan of NaissanceE. You're also probably aware that what you're buying is, in essence, a playable 3D sculpture/tone piece with light platforming. In this regard it passes the assignment, and as a product it's worth the price tag. As an art piece my thoughts are a bit more complex, but leaning positive. As a game clearly inspired by NaissanceE, I was hoping for a game that scratched a bit of the itch that title gave me years ago. What I got was 75 minutes spent walking about a gloomy megastructure (this is a good thing), and I appreciate the game for giving me that. There are some gorgeously staged moments, some mild spooks, and an overall feeling of navigating a space not meant for your presence. And an odd fixation on ducks. That's not a bad thing, for the record. It gives the game a bit of bizarre personality that distinguishes it from its inspirations. That said, I have some criticisms, and I'll do my best to be constructive as this is a solo project and I assume there's good odds that Vesa Härkönen will personally read this. Hi, Vesa! Thanks for putting toggle-sprint in your game. My carpal-tunnel appreciates it. To boil down my critique, I think some of the level design is a bit 'much.' "Wow, this room is big" is a great feeling, I'm here for that more than anything. But if the feeling wears off by the time I make it to the other end and then I have to navigate a space of equal size without much to break up the pace, that feeling loses a bit of its special-ness. Artfully and subtly breaking up those experiences to keep them fresh for even an hour-long game is an immensely difficult undertaking, and a thing that not even this game's predecessor always gets right (and that game had a ten year development cycle IIRC). I know this opinion isn't going to be shared by everyone (length versus price is a nightmare-discussion), but I would find the game equally enjoyable if some of the sections were truncated, and it was more of a forty-minute experience than a seventy-minute one. The bridge, though, that part rocks. Turning around to realize I could no longer see the light of where I'd come from was a great feeling, then accidentally looking up to see the... thing, overhead, was a delightful moment. I would rather critique a project like this entirely on its own merits, but the fact that it's walking so intently in NaissanceE's tracks means project_Structure_01 attracts an unavoidable comparison. Nevertheless, my feelings are positive. I'm looking forward to what Vesa does next, especially if there's a bigger emphasis on their personal flair next time around.

So I cant get enough of this. I love the serenity of exploring giant brutalistic style mega structures. And this kind of crosses over into backroom territory. Which is a great mix. All the rubber duckies not withstanding. As a huge fan of BlackShard this is another trip into surrealist beauty with that uneasy feeling of minimalist isolation. Devs can keep taking my money with this type of adventure so keepem coming please.

A good trek through a brutalist heaven/hell! Come for the architecture, stay for the... ducks, I suppose (and maybe a bit of getting lost). In a more serious take this game might not be for everyone, but if you like megastructures you've come to the right place. The game has good, if very lonely, atmosphere, music, and visuals. The levels are labyrinthean but somehow flow quite nicely to make you unlikely to get TOO lost. A very solid first effort from a dev who evidently dreams in concrete!

If you like what you see on the screenshots, you're going to enjoy project_Structure_01 a lot. It's really that. You walk around in those environments while listening to the solid ambient tracks, and occasionally solve a little platforming challenge, or try to find your way in the tricky geometry... If you expect something more meaningful/thoughtful though, you may end up somewhat disappointed. It seems like there is some mystery you need to uncover, or an exciting lore you can piece together - but it's rather just occasional, suggestive scenery, so I think that is the weak point of project_Structure_01. Also, the duck and orb collecting is absolutely pointless, as far as I can tell - which is a shame. Either way, the project is a fantastic showcase of the developer's TrenchBroom, lighting and ambient music composing skills - so if you feel like [i]that's all[/i] why you come here, it's a rock solid recommendation from me.

The ducks really messed up the atmosphere at some points but apart from that I quite enjoyed it.