Time-bending action-adventure Omensight is out today, and today, and today
Good Omens(ight)
Here is a list of reasons for why I'm strongly considering taking a break from a game I'm really enjoying, so that I can play Omensight (which just came out) instead.
- It's about re-living the day of the apocalypse and attempting to stop it by solving a murder.
- You solve that murder by following different characters, manipulating them, then allying with or fighting them based on what you learn.
- There's time-bendy combat that reminds me of Transistor in all the right ways.
- It's got some cute mice in it.
- It's about re-living the day of the apocalypse and attempting to stop it by solving a murder.
Omensight is the spiritual successor to Stories: The Path Of Destinies, which was hindered by the blandest of names and a structure that involved repeating the same segments in order to see its branching story. Hopefully, this time round Spearhead Games have found a way to make retreading the same ground a) less common and b) more interesting.
Here's the trailer, which features incongruously adorable animals facing the imminent destruction of all life.
Keep your eyeballs moist, because I also want to show you this developer commentary that'll walk and talk you through the more exciting aspects of the game. The first minute or so is a bit 'genero lore-heavy fantasy noise', but bear with it.
Orchestrating events using knowledge gained through time-travel in order to solve a murder is an idea that oozes potential. The set up makes me think of Punchdrunk, a company that make immersive theatre experiences where you can follow different characters around. This does a similar thing in that you can gain different perspectives of the same event, but then goes one step further and lets you shape the outcome.
All of that could be undermined by poor execution, and it's entirely possible that that dev video presents the game in a way that suggests you have more control over things than you actually do. Still, it's a compelling enough premise that even if the story-shaping turns out to be disappointingly minimal, I reckon it'll be worth my time.
I might not be saying that if the combat didn't look pretty neat, too. Skip to the 5 minute mark if that's what you're interested in - that's when they show off a time-freezing ability that lets the player pick up an explosive barrel and lob it into a pillar, bringing it crashing down into a group of swordsmen. The more standard dodging, countering and whacking also seems on point, though it's hard to get a proper feel for that without playing it.
Yep, I've talked myself into temporarily abandoning God of War.
Omensight is available on Steam, GOG, and the Humble Store. The 20% Humble launch discount brings it to £10/$16/€12, so feel free to pop over there rather than swallow Steam's mere 10% discount.