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KickStarter Stirring Abyss - Lovecraftian underwater tactical RPG

Taka-Haradin puolipeikko

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https://www.slitherine.com/news/stirring-abyss-announced
Stirring Abyss - Announced

Published on May 28, 2020

We're proud to announce our partnership with Sleepy Sentry in the development of Stirring Abyss, the second indie title to be published under the newly launched K-Project label. Stirring Abyss is a tactical squad-based game with strong RPG elements and a Lovecraftian narrative.

Taking inspiration from the short story The Temple by H.P. Lovecraft, in which a German submarine gets lost underwater during the First World War, in Stirring Abyss you follow the horrifying destiny of the members of the USS Salem’s crew, a submarine struck by disaster whilst on a top-secret research mission in the early years of the Cold War. They find themselves surrounded by the ruins of a forgotten civilization, their badly damaged vessel lying stranded at the bottom of the ocean.



Every expedition lives or dies by the strength of its crew. You have a diverse array of character traits and skills at your disposal, each opening exciting new options for both combat and story events. As you delve ever deeper, you may also subject your crew to powerful but grisly mutations; the price of survival is high, and no one escapes the abyss unchanged.



Check out the first impressions in this article by PC Gamer:

I really dig the way it embraces the aesthetic of the subject matter. The audio is thick and ominous, and the pulpy art style is a good fit: Publisher Slitherine said Stirring Abyss is meant to be weird rather than scary, "inspired by classic board games and traditional RPGs," and it definitely has that look.

Apply for the beta and join the Discord Server to support the development and to deep dive into Stirring Abyss' tentacled horror before everyone else.
 

cyborgboy95

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https://steamcommunity.com/ogg/1178210/announcements/detail/2737576687608148983

Bestiary || Part One
Meet the Lovecraftian abominations of Stirring Abyss.

Meet the Lovecraftian abominations of Stirring Abyss, the upcoming squad tactics game inspired by the short story The Temple.

In Stirring Abyss you take charge of the surviving crew of the USS Salem, a U.S. Navy submarine that sinks while on a top-secret research mission during the early years of the Cold War. The entire game is set in deep waters, which means you need to face terrible underwater creatures during your journey.

SCYPHOZOA
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The Scyphozoa is the first enemy you meet in Stirring Abyss. In order to survive the depths of the sea, it developed unseen before attacks based on electricity. Deflate it with a speargun and your crew will be okay, and don't let it come too close.

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A Smack of Scyphozoas. Spearguns can attack multiples enemies in line of sight.

BURST POD
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The Burst Pod doesn't like to be disturbed. When anyone tries to attack it, it explodes causing damage to everyone (or everything) in the surroundings. It doesn't know enemy nor friends. It just stands, maintaining the same posture until it gets provoked.

Splayed open, all that remains of the bulging pod are the shreds of a thin but tough shell strung between supporting spines.

MURKFIEND
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The Staggering Roar of a Murkfiend is one of the most threatening sounds your crew will ever hear, and it doesn't help your divers' nerves. Taking down this strong Lovecraftian abomination may take a while. Make sure not to leave one of your divers alone with a Murkfiend and try not to get too close: this species is a master of melee attacks.

SPINESKULKERS
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Beware of Spineskulkers: they are masters of poisoned darts and they are experts of hiding in the shadows. Their long-ranged attacks can heavily damage your divers' health if you can't take them out in time. They should be a high priority target for the surviving members of your crew.

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Three divers facing a group of Spineskulkers and Murkfiends. Divers can make Burst Pods explode to damage other enemies.

APPLY FOR THE BETA
Answer the call of the Great Old Ones: Stirring Abyss is looking for beta testers. Apply now and join the Discord Server to support the development.
 
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cyborgboy95

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https://steamcommunity.com/ogg/1178210/announcements/detail/2745460524011841390

Bestiary || Part Two
Meet the not-so-friendly Lovecraftian beasts of Stirring Abyss

The first bestiary post introduced you to Scyphozoas, Burst Pods, Murkfiends and Spineskulkers. This bestiary episode unveils more Lovecraftian abominations you'll face in Stirring Abyss: masters of psychic powers, corrupted creatures, and amorphous beings lurk in the dark and can't wait to drive your crewmembers to insanity.

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VESSEL
Scyphozoas in their deadly, mutated form. Corruption completely changed their nature and transformed them into disturbing monsters, willing to commit suicidal attacks.

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VOIDSPAWN
A being with untold, multiple forms, made of materials beyond the understanding of human science. It can entangle a human being like a cocoon, or protect itself with a tough, yet pliable shell. Crewmembers believe that it shares a connection with corruption, a slippery white material that covers the ocean floor.


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Voidspawns in one of their multiple forms

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STALKING TENTACLE
Reason suggests that a limb, when split from its owner, shouldn't have a conscience, free will or any sort of survival instinct, but Stalking Tentacles go way beyond reason. They seem to belong to a creature of some sort. Nobody knows if it's still alive, if it's still able to control them, or if it ever existed. When you suffer from hypoxia and you fear for your life, it's hard to tell the difference between imagination and reality.

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FATHOM SEER
One of the most disturbing creatures of the abyss. It can connect human destinies and play tricks with your mind. Beware of the Fathom Seer: this profane shaman masters ancient arts of mind control, and can lead you to complete insanity.
 
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Infinitron

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Codex Year of the Donut Serpent in the Staglands Dead State Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 A Beautifully Desolate Campaign Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire Pathfinder: Kingmaker Pathfinder: Wrath I'm very into cock and ball torture I helped put crap in Monomyth
Demo coming in the next Steam Game Festival: https://store.steampowered.com/newshub/app/1178210/view/2880572952526851076

Stirring Abyss gets a Playable Demo and its first stream

In the murky seas, below the darkest depths lies an untold story of Lovecraftian horror.

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Hold your breath, divers: Stirring Abyss is crawling out the darkness and is getting a free demo during the upcoming Steam Game Festival, from October 7th, 10 AM PST to October 13th, 10 AM PST.

Grab your speargun and steel your courage for the first 4 levels as humanity’s survival may depend on the clues you discover, so be sure to share your research notes and your comments with us on the Steam forum.

The first Stirring Abyss stream will be on October 8th, 4 PM BST, so be sure to tune in on Steam: the Great Old Ones wait for you in the dark.
 

Taka-Haradin puolipeikko

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https://www.slitherine.com/news/stirring-abyss-out-on-october-29th
Stirring Abyss: out on October 29th

Published on October 06, 2020
Stirring Abyss is crawling out of darkness this month. This indie gem filled with Lovecraftian fear is releasing October 29th so steel your resolve for the tests to come.

The devs are working really hard to provide you with the best survival horror experience. Get ready for: Cosmic horror, astonishing narrative, mutated characters, tested ethics and tactical combat in the ruins of an ancient civilization.

If you want to give Stirring Abyss a try before it officially comes out, don't miss the free playable demo during Steam Game Festival from October 7th to October 13th.

New screenshots

Have a look at these new screenshots and catch a glimpse of the final touches.

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Infinitron

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Codex Year of the Donut Serpent in the Staglands Dead State Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 A Beautifully Desolate Campaign Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire Pathfinder: Kingmaker Pathfinder: Wrath I'm very into cock and ball torture I helped put crap in Monomyth


https://store.steampowered.com/newshub/app/1178210/view/2908721085714872983

Free demo now available

The Steam Game Festival is here and with it comes an exciting development. The Stirring Abyss free playable demo is out now and you can download it here.



But you will want to hurry, it will only be available until the 13th of October.

The developers are working really hard to provide you with the best survival horror experience. Get ready for: Cosmic horror, astonishing narrative, mutated characters, tested ethics and tactical combat in the ruins of an ancient civilization.

The first 4 levels will be available with all of their features, so steel yourself for the long haul through the darkness of the Abyss. There are mysteries to be solved and we think you will love solving them.

Please note that this game is still in development and there may be some issues. We have a list of those here.

If you have any feedback or you find an issue not listed there, be sure to let us know on the Steam discussion forums. Good luck exploring the murky depths of the Abyss.

If you survive, we look forward to also seeing you when the game is released on October 29th.
 
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Taka-Haradin puolipeikko

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Started playing the demo; 2 missions in, default difficulty.

-Game seems to be using 2 action system, but moving, for example single square, doesn't use whole action.
-Diving suits have limited air, which can be replenished from air vents or tanks, which are carried in inventory.
-USS Salem has some global abilities which can be used for supporting the away team, but some, like lights can't be used inside caves.
-There's enemy type that reacts to nearby lights and tries to move away from those.
-There's a non-combat stat-check on 2nd level, which gives player access to incantations. I haven't tried those yet.
-Sanity control has been non-issue so-far, but this is still practically a tutorial.
-Crew comes in 3 different classes, leveling up seems pretty simple. I haven't gotten access yet to mutation system.

Some screens:
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edit.
That new trailer above is horrible and gives completely wrong picture of the mood of the game.
 
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Nortar

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Pathfinder: Wrath
Started playing the demo; 2 missions in, default difficulty.

I've tried it too.
Looks like not just name, but also rank of the starting character is random and does not affect anything. Mine was a lieutenant.

I really like the limited air supply solution.
It adds some pressure, but is not as limiting as fixed number of turns.

Other then individual characters level-ups there's also an "enigma board" that unlocks global progression.
gVL5eUb.png

So far the combat looks rather simplistic, and field team is only 3 characters, but maybe this could be increased with unlocked abilities.
 

Taka-Haradin puolipeikko

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Couple other things I noticed.
-Damage heals slowly between missions, you'll need to use medikits or supplies in mess hall.
-Sanity doesn't seem to regenerate on its own.
-It would be nice if game used colour coded squares to show when you're using just 1 AP, like almost every other similar game.
 
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lightbane

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Checked the demo briefly. The goods news are that it works for W7, despite not specifically saying so in the description.
 

Taka-Haradin puolipeikko

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IS there an "overwatch" mechanic equivalent?
Didn't come across one during the demo.
Engagement range is usually very close and both player and enemies can take friendly fire.
Close combat attack of opportunities (and skills that disable it) are in.
Also last level of demo gives you automated turret.

That aside slowly healing damage & sanity, permadeath, limited resources & single save spot seems to be how campaign will give challenge.
 

lightbane

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Gave this a spin, ended up playing for 1 hour before realizing how much time passed. Definitively interesting. I'll get it (at a discount), it's worth it. Unlike most modern games, there's 0 handholding: Besides telling you how to move, everything else is up to you to discover (and reading the manual, if that's a thing). Tooltips are useful, but there are things you cannot know without experimentation. Ie: Harpoons do damage in a line, and they're infinite in quantity (although you must reload per shot). Unlike every Lovecraft protagonist, your men aren't little girls that will run away screaming once an ugly monster shows up. There are attacks and events that damage Sanity, of course, as well as having your air tanks too low, which causes hypoxia, which reduces your sanity for reasons. Thankfully, your men know some sort of arcane trick to summon your submarine for a rapid rescue at will (without needing someone at the helm), and won't receive penalties to stats no matter their current HP. The submarine has limited power that is used to free new rooms to use, or activate special abilities mid-combat (ie: shoot strategically aimed torpedoes, once again remotely).

There's a long skill tree to buy new abilities, but once again little info is given. The one that increases your air tanks' capacity is a must though, seeing that one signals how many turns you have per mission. You also can learn supernatural abilities that can be used a few times per mission, unless you buy a special ability that lets you exchange sanity for said points. There's also mention of mutations but no idea how will that work.
SJW-wise, there's a few black guys here and there, and even women according to the crewmembers' dialogue, which is quite a surprise for a professional expedition in the 1950s.
Your units have classes which lets them use special abilities, as well as some default ones given by items. Oddly enough everyone knows how to do instant autopsies on a killed enemy's body, even those that ARE NOT a science officer, but I guess that's due gameplay reasons.

Permadeath and ironman mode is enforced by default, for good and bad.

In short, worth a try.
 

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