Loco Motive - Monkey Island meets Murder on the Orient Express

[Infinitron]

https://locomotivegame.com




https://af.gog.com/en/game/loco_motive?as=1649904300

Spoiler

Welcome aboard the Reuss Express, a journey of a life-time derailed by an unexpected assassination…

On the eve of a landmark speech by the wealthy heiress Lady Unterwald, a straight-laced lawyer, a crime novelist-turned rookie detective, and an undercover spy find themselves embroiled in a murder, a mystery, and worst of all… an adventure! Now stuck onboard a luxurious steam train, within stabbing distance of a cold-blooded killer, the race is on to prove their innocence once and for all!

Loco Motive is a slapstick adventure, packed full of deadly surprises, shocking twists and larger than life characters! Play as Diana, Arthur and Herman to unwrap the mystery and put your point and click puzzle-solving skills to the test…

Who is developing Loco Motive?
Loco Motive is being developed by Robust Games, an indie studio founded by brothers Adam and Joseph Riches.

Loco Motive is the studio’s first full game release, inspired by the point and click games of their childhood. Prior to forming Robust Games, Adam was an Artist at Chucklefish, working on titles such as Starbound and Wargroove, and Joseph was a software developer with a focus on Unity apps and full-stack web applications for educational games.

When will Loco Motive release?
Loco Motive is scheduled to roll into a platform near you, Summer 2022.

What platforms will Loco Motive be available on?
Loco Motive is currently planned to launch on PC, Mac, and Nintendo Switch.

What languages will Loco Motive be playable in?
We can't confirm localisation plans at the moment, but we’ll be closely watching wishlist data and player feedback to evaluate which languages the community are most interested in!

What are the origins of Loco Motive?
Loco Motive originally started as a 2 week game jam ‘proof-of-concept’ as part of AdvXJam 2020 on itch.io. Adam and Joseph enjoyed working on the game jam so much they decided to take the concept and turn it into something much bigger!

• Reimagined full-length story with new chapters, dialogue & of course slapstick humour
• Brand new hand-crafted pixel artwork, animation and cinematic scenes
• Take direct control of 3 playable characters in an interlinking comedic adventure - play as Arthur Ackerman, Herman Merman & Diana Osterhagen
• Feature-length gameplay time (expected to be approx 7hrs+)
• Fresh point & click-based puzzles that won’t leave you head scratching for hours
• Fully voice acted

Where can I go for game updates?
You can find Dev Blogs on the Loco Motive Steam page, and follow Robust Games on Twitter for the latest information on the game’s development.

Early Game Jam version available on itch.io: https://robustgames.itch.io/loco-motive

 

[Modron]

This finally got a release date of 8 days from now: https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1709880/view/4489619632029696378

Full Steam Ahead: Loco Motive Arrives November 21st!
10% off Launch Week for early birds!


Hi everyone!

Firstly, thank you to everyone who played Loco Motive during Steam Next Fest, and shared kind comments and feedback. It was amazing to see so many of you loving the voice acting too!

Which leaves us only one thing… the release! We’re pleased to announce that Loco Motive is officially pulling into the station on November 21st! Prepare your wits, sharpen your sleuthing skills, and pack your bags for a journey aboard the glamorous 1930s steam train, the Reuss Express

Loco Motive will be fully playable in English & German (with English voice acting), and yours for just $17.99 / 17,99€ / £14.99 and is coming to Steam, Nintendo Switch, GOG & STOVE. We’ll be pressing the big red ‘Out Now’ button on all platforms at 11:00 GMT / 12:00 CET / 03:00 PST / 06:00 EST.

As a thank you to early supporters, Loco Motive will also be available for 10% off from launch for 1 week only!



Loco Motive is a comedy point-and-click adventure, bringing a modernised twist to the beloved genre with captivating puzzles and an all-star fully voice acted cast of colourful characters. If you love a compelling murder mystery with an off-the-wall sense of humour, Loco Motive is your ticket to a world of adventure!

What’s in Store on the Reuss Express?

Loco Motive takes players into the heart of a murder mystery, putting you in control of three unique characters! You’ll play as Arthur Ackerman, a bumbling, heart-of-gold lawyer, Diana Osterhagen, ambitious secret agent, and Herman Merman – a self professed ‘detective extraordinaire’!

As a nod to the late, great Agatha Christie and other classic mysteries, Loco Motive fills every carriage and corridor with interest & intrigue, interjected with a good dose of humour and mischief to spice things up! Solve item-based puzzles, uncover shocking secrets (some soup-related, some not), and get ready to suspect everyone… maybe even yourself?

You might even learn a thing or two, like how to cheat at roulette, or fuel a motorbike with pencil lead - you know, all the good stuff!

• 15+ hours satisfying point-and-click adventuring
• Fully voice acted with an all-star cast
• A deadly mystery to solve, full of twists, turns, and slapstick humour
• Steam Deck verified
• Beautifully detailed pixel art animations
• In-game hint support system, call the Dirk Chiselton Hotline
• Choose how you play, with direct character control options
• No-blood ‘confetti’ mode & a suitably suspenseful Noir mode
• Font and text accessibility options
• Featuring the slinky sounds of composer Paul Zimmerman (Wildfrost, Space Haven)

Save the Date for November 21st!

Ready to hop aboard the Reuss Express? Loco Motive will be available on PC & Nintendo Switch for $17.99 / 17,99€ / £14.99 on November 21st!

Whether you're a seasoned sleuth or just looking for an unforgettable adventure, Loco Motive promises a train ride like no other. So grab your hat, dust off your magnifying glass, and get ready to board – because the journey to solve this mystery is one you won’t want to miss!

If you’re a streamer and keen to get early access to keys when they’re available you can request access by going to our Press Engine Loco Motive page. You’ll also find answers and basic info about the game in our handy FAQ.

Lastly, if you’re as excited about Loco Motive as we are, come join the community discussion over on our Discord, sign up to our Community Newsletter, or follow us on X for more Chucklefish gaming news!

 

[Maxie]

promotional art looks nice, so i open the video and its pixel shit. jesus

 

[taxalot]

pixel shit

 

[Rincewind]

I find the pixel art lovely; I actually prefer it to high-res cartoony art (Monkey Island 3 style). Just needs a good CRT shader, that's all.

Thimbleweed Park is a good example of stellar looking traditional pixel art with a modern touch.

Good art & music — check. Now they "only" need to ensure the game has good puzzles and an acceptable story (because puzzles >>>>> story).

 

[Maxie]

I find the pixel art lovely; I actually prefer it to high-res cartoony art (Monkey Island 3 style). Just needs a good CRT shader, that's all.

Thimbleweed Park is a good example of stellar looking traditional pixel art with a modern touch.

Good art & music — check. Now they "only" need to ensure the game has good puzzles and an acceptable story (because puzzles >>>>> story).

you've seen dozens upon dozens of adventure games doing pixel shit, some to a parodistic degree of decomposition (the last door for instance)
there's no gain from it unless you have in-built shaders like SKALD. it just makes production longer than it has any right to be.

 

[Rincewind]

Related: this is important, guys!

Boob Basics for Pixel Artists (and Everyone Else)
https://pixelparmesan.com/boob-basics-for-pixel-artists-and-everyone-else/

Cheers!

 

[Maxie]

game's out and costs 18 bucks or something
who's rich and bored to check it

 

[Infinitron]

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1709880/view/6373250901747958008

Loco Motive is OUT NOW!
*BING BONG* Weeeeelcome aboard the Reuss Express! This is a non-stop hype train that will take you all the way through an ambiguous European locale. For your own safety, we kindly ask that you keep your arms, legs, and important legal documentation inside the carriage at all times. Please keep your belongings on your person, including any toilet plungers, overly-perfumed love letters, and novelty-sized hearing devices. Any unattended items may be pocketed and later used to solve seemingly unrelated puzzles, and therefore we cannot guarantee their safe return. We hope you have a pleasant journey *BING BONG*

Hey everyone!

Loco Motive
the comedy point n’ click adventure is out right NOW!

Jam-packed with twists, turns, capers, jokes, japes, hijinks and belly laughs. Playable in English & German for
$17.99 / £14.99 / €17.99
PLUS cheeky
-10% launch discount until 27/11/2024
to say a big thank you to all those early supporters. As kids in the 1930s would say, thanks homies.



“Loco Motive is a must play.... The set-up, characters, pixel art, slapstick humor, voice acting, animation – everything is fantastic."

- GamesRadar+

Loco Motive
takes place on the Reuss Express where a passenger has been murdered, and you’re the prime suspects! Uncover a thrilling mystery and solve satisfying puzzles to prove your innocence! It’s absolutely CRAMMED full of deadly surprises, slapstick adventure, shocking twists and larger than life characters!

• A (roughly) 15 hour comedy adventure that hits like smooth jazz, set onboard a 1930s express train
• Beautifully detailed pixel art animations and cutscenes
• Take control of three playable characters, in an interlinking comedic adventure
• Meet a train-full of quirky and somewhat suspicious fellow passengers
• Fully voiced with a star studded cast!
• Uncover a deadly mystery, full of twists, turns and slapstick humour
• Stop at nothing to solve item-based puzzles, that won’t leave you head-scratching for hours
• Need a little nudge in the right direction? Telephone for assistance with an in-game hint call-line!
• Choose how you play - take direct interactive character control, or opt for a classic point and click experience
• With the slinky sounds of composer Paul Zimmermann (Wildfrost, Space Haven)
• No-blood ‘confetti’ mode & a suitably suspenseful Noir mode
• Font and text accessibility options
• Fully compatible with Steam Deck!

We’re pumped for you to get stuck into the nutty adventure and mystery that awaits you in
Loco Motive!
Thanks to all of you who’ve been following this title since the original proof of concept from AdvXJam 2020!

Shine your shoes, press your tux as it's time to jump full steam ahead into the world of
Loco Motive!

 

[Fatberg Slim]

Thoughts after finishing this (took about 9 hours):

- You play as three separate characters, first individually and then together. You experience the events of the game from slightly different perspectives and time points with each of them, which was mildly interesting but not earth-shattering
- Interface is a slight downgrade from most modern point-and-click games – not only is there no parser or multiple actions, in many cases you can’t even interact with objects besides looking at them
- Puzzle quality is uneven. Puzzles were very easy to start, but became more involved as the game goes on. This pattern repeats itself every time you start with a new character, which didn’t make sense to me since you can't play the scenarios out of order. The "use toilet to transfer items" mechanic from DOTT makes an appearance!
- The game is set up such that you are generally only working on one or rarely two puzzles at once. This is not only simplistic but also frustrating at times, since there are some actions I anticipated needing to do and the game wouldn’t let me until it decided it was the right time, often with no feedback that I can try again later
- Attempts a very inoffensive humorous tone. I chuckled a few times at some of the throwaway lines
- Graphics were decent for a pixel adventure game and music was nice. Game camera has an optional slight sway effect, presumably to simulate old movies. The use of modern smooth text triggered me though:

Picture

- Game also has “dyslexic” text option – WTF is this:

Picture

-SJW watch: Of the three protagonists, the black woman is portrayed as the most competent. Also makes fun of the French a lot, but who doesn’t

These comments are all pretty negative, but since I was mentally burned out this past week and specifically wanted to play something relaxing I liked it more than I might normally. I'd say it's worth getting if you are in a similar mood and it's on sale.