SpaceNET - A Space Adventure

Let me be the first to write a review for this game that for some reason isn't getting any attention. I'm liking this game, for the general retro feel vibe it has and for its simplicity of controls. The functionality is logical. The story is all right (as far as I've seen it yet) and the puzzles are fun. The graphics are very simple but functional. Sound is good, music is good. The developer is responsive and really wants to make his game perfect! I've helped him with fixing some bugs and grammatical/spelling errors and he's eager to get more input to improve further! I currently don't have the time to help him further, I hope others will help too, because it's certainly worth it.

Text is not the only means to tell a story, and someone at Sonejo Studios knows it. Placing the player at the center of a resistance conspiracy, SpaceNET employs simplified graphics that are just enough to outline what's going on but allow the imagination to fill in the gaps. The result stimulates in a similar fashion the text-based adventure games used to do back in a day, but at the same time provides a welcome relief from the gigantic walls of text typical of that genre. This and the decent soundtrack allow the player to immerse themselves in the world of SpaceNET in a refreshing kind of way that is technically a point-and-click adventure but doesn't feel like one. If you like space operas, you'll enjoy it. I know I did. Some parts I loved. See the trailer and decide for yourself. I must mention that SpaceNET is GPL licensed - this fact alone is reason enough to sympathize with the project and wish it well. You can go to https://github.com/sonejostudios/SpaceNET and pick at its inner workings, see how it's done, and maybe get inspired to create your own game in the process. I keep my fingers crossed for this developer. Zero technical issues on my Linux machine. [h3]System Info & Performance Report[/h3] [table] [tr] [td]Operating System[/td] [td]Linux Manjaro.i3 64bit 21.0.2[/td] [/tr] [tr] [td]CPU[/td] [td]Intel® Core™ i5-6600K, 3.9GHz[/td] [/tr] [tr] [td]RAM[/td] [td]Corsair Vengeance® 16GB DDR4 3200MHz[/td] [/tr] [tr] [td]GPU[/td] [td]GTX 1070, nvidia-440.100-1[/td] [/tr] [tr] [td]Technical Notes[/td] [td]No issues[/td] [/tr] [/table]

[b]spacenet[/b] is a retro-style sci-fi point & click that gave me [b]asteroids[/b], [b]elite[/b] and similar vibes, but there's [b]no combat, resource management[/b] (except money, see below) or anything like that here, just you in your spaceship wandering around, talking, puzzling and hacking in a [b]non-linear[/b] fashion. it's mostly played from a top-down perspective and it's [b]mouse-driven[/b], except when you have to type stuff at terminals. each location has a bunch of [b]action points[/b], not like in x-com, but [b]places where you can perform actions[/b]. moving to the middle of a room and double-clicking usually describes the place, there are signs to look at, items and people to interact with, and of course exit/entry points to traverse between screens. you'll want to visit every point because [b]some are hidden when they're not in your line of sight[/b]. the inventory can be brought up and closed with right click and mouse wheel switches between items as well, convenient. combining items isn't possible in the inventory, so when it comes to something like this, you'll have to use the items on the action point you're standing on. strolling around in villages, spaceports and such is fine and dandy, but [b]space travel[/b] is so much better. on paper anyway, as flying around on planet surfaces is a bit finicky because the ship has to turn and it's a bit too zoomed in. going from one space-location to another is as easy as clicking where you want to go though, after locating said place via a terminal, of course. [b]various ships become available[/b], each with their unique selling points, but switching between them is completely free. it's such a topsy-turvy world though, that while renting a ship costs nothing, [b]regular items do have a price tag[/b]. luckily, money's all over the place (mostly in toilets), and there are other means to get some, so you'll most likely have enough for whatever you need at that point without too much effort. the [b]notebook[/b] keeps track of passwords, phone numbers and such automatically, but taking notes of your own isn't a bad idea, as it's not a quest log per se and a terminal might not be nearby to access extra info, not to mention the 'bring this thing to that guy over there' sort of situations. speaking of, since it's a non-linear game, you can do many things in a non-specific order, and there are [b]no dead ends or fail states[/b], worst case you get thrown out of a building. there are [b]timed sections[/b], however, which I found annoying and unnecessary. not saying they should lead to a game over or reloading of a save, but there's plenty of time and they can be repeated if you fail, so they're [b]absolutely pointless[/b]. well, there's one situation with some understandable urgency, but still. oh, and the timer doesn't stop if you alt+tab or bring up the menu, lame. oh yeah, [b]the story[/b]. you're in space, get sucked into a megaship and arrested, you don't remember anything but your name and something called spacenet. after jumping ship, you can find out who you are and why the spacenet thing is important by landing on a nearby planet. the main goal is to activate spacenet itself, powered by a satellite and 5 nodes scattered around, and on the side you can collect 15 gems for a zen guy for some extra dialog (well, 14, as he gives you a sample). [b]I loved the presentation[/b], both the minimalist graphics and the soundtrack, but [b]the writing is not exactly stellar[/b]. in most point & clicks what drives people is a good story with memorable characters, so this should be a dud, but [b]I enjoyed the gameplay aspect[/b]. the ending is really underwhelming anyway. as for technical stuff, [b]manual and autosaving[/b], many slots for both, the former can be done at terminals or from the menu anytime, the latter happens after every 200 actions. [b]no text display sound, which is excellent news[/b], but an option to only advance text with a click would be nice, and if the game stopped after an alt+tab, in order not to miss out on some dialog. it takes [b]about 5-6 hours[/b] to complete, bit more if you want all the gems (there's a choice at the end, so you can trigger the ending whenever you're done exploring), and it's [b]definitely more than the sum of its parts[/b]. the graphics might not be for everyone, but [b]trying the demo[/b] might help overlook it and enjoy the game for what it is. and finally, [b]an anecdote[/b]. when I first started the game, I noticed multiple empty save slots and a separate page for autosaves, and since I knew there were no fail states, dying or anything, I didn't bother saving every 2 minutes like I would otherwise. it took a couple hours to notice [b]I couldn't save and no autosaves were created[/b] either. I had to leave the game running and hope it'd survive putting the pc to sleep overnight, because even the dev couldn't figure out what happened, and patching in terminal saving didn't do me any good, as the game can't update while it's running. luckily, I didn't have much left, could finish it in the morning and [b]restarting fixed the issue[/b], so it must've been a fluke and wasn't win7 not cooperating with the engine after all. good news for everybody, but it wasn't exactly my least stressful gaming experience.

[Quote][h1][b]For more reviews follow 👍 our [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/34310167]English Curator[/url] and [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/40165899]Italian Curator[/url] pages.[/b][/h1][/Quote] Retro point and click adventure reminiscent of 80s floppy disk games. Fun puzzles/hacks, fairly smooth non-linear story, simplistic graphics that help the immersion. Gloriously niche.

[table] [tr] [th]Follow our [url=https://steamcommunity.com/groups/SpaceExperience] [b]GROUP[/b] [/url] and [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/37277628-Space-Experience/] [b]CURATOR[/b] [/url] for more interesting games and quality reviews! [/th] [/tr] [/table] [u][h1]Authentic small two-color point-and-click adventure game in retro 80s style.[/h1] [/u] This game can be a real gem for you if you value minimalism and retro atmosphere with a non-linear sci-fi adventure with less graphics and more story. The game stimulates the imagination just like the old 80s text adventure games that were made before. And at the same time, the game provides a welcome relief from the giant wall of text typical of older games in this genre. [h1]Plot: [/h1] The story is interesting and non-linear. The player finds himself at the center of the conspiracy of the resistance movement and he has to save the universe. [h1][+] Advantages: [/h1] [olist][*]Its simplicity of controls. The functionality is logical. [*] Deep and non-linear plot. [*] Fun puzzles. [*] Decent soundtrack and ambient sounds. [*] The developer replies in the forum, listens to community feedback, and regularly releases fixes and additions. [*] Works on Linux machines. [*] SpaceNET is GPL licensed! That is, the author transfers the software into the public domain. [/olist] [h1][-] Disadvantages: [/h1] [olist][*] There is no translation from English. But, fortunately, it is possible to understand the story. [*] Sometimes there are minor spelling mistakes. But, the author gradually corrects them. [*] There is room for improvement and additions. But for now, the game has little fame and community. [/olist] [h1]Conclusions: [/h1] Great niche game. Simplified graphics to help you immerse yourself in the atmosphere of the game. The game does have some charm, and it's being improved and expanded still. Hopefully the game will become more famous and there will be mods and options to continue the plot. [u] [i]I advise you to pay attention to other games of this genre:[/i][/u] [table] [tr] [th] [h1] [b] LIST OF SPACE COLONIZATION AND SURVIVAL GAMES [/b] [/h1] [/th] [/tr] [tr] [th] The largest and most structured list of space games you can see here: [tr] [th] 1) [h1][b]Curator[/b] "SpaceExperience" of games about space in Steam: [/h1] https://store.steampowered.com/curator/37277628-Space-Experience/ Reviews on all space games. A huge number of lists and categories. The most complete information both among those games that have already been released and among the new products. Here you can choose a space-themed game to your liking. Also, here is information about all distributions of games and sales. [/th] [/tr] [tr] [th] 2) [h1][b]Group[/b] "Space Experience":[/h1] http://steamcommunity.com/groups/SpaceExperience This group contains the largest and most structured list of games and programs about space. Here you will find everything that exists to feel like in space, see VR space, build a colony, feel the harsh conditions for survival, control a rocket and repair it, arrange a battle in space, see 3D maps of planets and universes, and much other. [/th] [/tr] [tr] [th] 3) [h1][b]Guide [/b] "Space colonization & survival Games" [/h1] https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1994216417 [/th] [/tr] Join us if you like space games! [/th] [/tr] [/table]

I'm kind of amazed that SpaceNET doesn't have more reviews, as it seems like it could easily get a lot of attention. At its core, it's a simple point and click adventure, but it does some stuff very well: - Graphics are one of the main draws here, and it's probably what you've noticed first. SpaceNET goes for a 2D, top down and two-color style. This means that everything is pretty simple, but this works well for several reasons that I'll detail later. - The presentation is enhanced by the graphical style, and instead of doing the classic point and click UI, SpaceNET gives you a top down view of the rooms you are in. This makes for a minimalistic experience that leaves a lot to the imagination, and feels a bit like old text adventure games. You know that this square room with some dotted lines and a circle is in fact a staff room with lockers and a robot because you get used to the setting, and everything is described in details. - Gameplay-wise, you know what to expect. You can go to several points of interest in any room with which you can interact with, either without or with an objet. Some of these points of interest have objets you can pick up or use other objects on. One of the first rooms of the game has you pick up a newspaper on a table and use it to plug a sink, causing it to break. This is all standard and expected of a point and click, so no problem here! What I like is that the space setting adds some more stuff to the table. You've got terminals in which you can write stuff, a spaceship to travel through the galaxy with and a bunch of locations you can visit in almost any order. This means that the game is non-linear, which isn't without some problems but adds a lot of charm to the adventure. Now, SpaceNET isn't perfect. Despite the non-linearity generally being great, it can be confusing at times - even though that's in the point and click adventure DNA, it could do with some hints at times. Moreover, the writing is good but I think that the dev should embrace the fact that imagination does a lot of the work here, and focus on expanding the writing even more. After all, the game's tagline is "Less graphics, more story" - go further with that! An option to look around, detailed room descriptions and more interactions that don't serve a purpose could be great additions. It's a genre that will definitely benefit for having even more text. I still recommend the game - at 10 bucks for several hours of content, it's a steal. Devs are active and provide answers in the Steam discussions, new content seems to be added regularly and you've even got a demo to try things out. [code]Find more reviews of small and overlooked indie games that deserve more recognition at our [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/40624114-Hidden-Indie-Gems]Hidden Indie Games[/url] curator page![/code]

‎̶ ̸‎̵ ̶

・ミニマルかつ軽快なUI（たとえば殆どの行動アニメーションはクリックでスキップできる、なんてのは配慮してない作品が案外多いですね） ・ユーモア混じりのテンポ良いストーリー展開 ・なんというか、ヘタに精細な映像以上にワクワクとさせてくれるベクタースキャン風ビジュアル ・「え、そうはならんやろ」とならない筋が通った謎解き と、大作とか濃厚というわけではないですが綺麗にまとまったポイント＆クリックADVです。特にこのトップビューで移動先が展開していく形式は状況の把握がしやすく、臨場感も十分確保されるためもっと流行って欲しいところ。 シナリオは読んでいかないと何をすればいいか分からなくなるタイプですが、テキストもまた8bit時代を彷彿とさせる簡潔さであるため、ゲームプレイに影響しない文を長ったらしく読まされるということはないです（数字等は自動でメモを取ってくれます）。 直近の拡張コンテンツに関連したバグに一度遭遇したもののこれは素早く修正され、それ以外は非常に安定していました。正直もう少し遊びたかった感はありますが、ADVとしての全体的なセンスが好みで次回作にも期待したいですね。

Barely an hour in and I am already loving SpaceNET! The game plays like a top down 2D point and click adventure game. It has a cool and easy to use terminal mechanic, very stylish atmosphere, good audio and it's a pleasure to look at too! The writing is nice and funny too, the game made me laugh quite the few times already. Easy recommend.

If the screenshots don't scare you off, and you like point & click adventure games, you should definitely give this game a try. A lot of passion obviously went into SpaceNet, and there's plenty of good stuff that makes it easy to forgive its flaws, such as unremarkable, occasionally downright bad, writing and a very underwhelming ending (the game just kinda... ends, all of a sudden, without a good payoff). The strength of the game is all in its atmosphere. Once you accept and actually embrace its minimalist graphics you will find it very gratifying to fly around in your little spaceship discovering new things throughout space. The sound design and soundtrack help a lot, with several satisfying sound effects, good ambient music and a few really catchy tunes in the jukeboxes you'll find in the couple bars you'll encounter. A mechanic that I really enjoyed, and that I wish more adventure games made use of, is the Terminals, AKA computers where you can physically input certain info using your keyboard, like username, passwords and coordinates. Hopefully if a sequel comes out, there will be more of that (I would also love the chance to write my own notes in the notebook...) All in all I can't but recommend this game, even just to support the developer (who's very responsive). Hopefully it will have enough success to see a more fleshed out version of the SpaceNet universe, with more to explore and a better story. TLDR; - Story - Writing + Terminal-related game mechanics + Atmosphere + Sound + Exploration + Graphics (if you are into the style)