Syberia: The World Before - new entry in the series from Benoit Sokal

[WallaceChambers]

https://www.microids.com/game-syberia-the-world-before/




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

Spoiler

19 Aug Syberia : The World Before – Kate Walker returns for a new adventure!
Posted at 10:00h in Syberia : The World Before by Team Microids
Paris, August 19th, 2019 – Microids and Benoît Sokal are delighted to announce the forthcoming release of a new episode in the pioneering and iconic adventure game franchise Syberia.



Entitled Syberia: The world before, this episode will invite us once again to follow the adventures of Kate Walker as she deals with a new investigation. This journey will take us across continents and through time periods to experience a journey rooted in the turmoil and tragedies of the twentieth century.

In production for the past 18 months, “Syberia: The world before” will bring the fans back to the unique atmosphere, trademark of the series. Discover a scenario full of mystery, poetry and emotion. An adventure based on travel and exploration, ingenious mechanisms to unlock and of course, the fantastic art of Benoît Sokal. With its dreamlike, snowy and enigmatic landscapes, its automatons and its endearing and extravagant characters, “Syberia: The world before” should appeal to the series aficionados as well as the newcomers.

“Two years after the release of the last episode, we understand that fans are curious and eager to discover the next installment of the adventure from our much-loved Kate Walker. The game is already under development and we are delighted to be reunited with Benoît Sokal’s unique universe. This latest adventure will offer fans of the series a chance to learn more about our heroine and re-immerse themselves in the atmosphere of the first games,” says Elliot Grassiano, Vice-President at Microïds.

“Today, I’m very happy to be able to continue Kate’s journey and share this adventure once again with the team at Microïds. We want to give the fans a story with an atmosphere that’s just as mysterious as the previous episodes, with even more automatons to operate, puzzles to solve and unusual characters to meet. I can’t wait to share more of the game’s progress and universe with you.” adds Benoît Sokal, Artistic Director and author of the story.

Further information about the release date, platforms and images from the game will be revealed soon. Leave your automaton-PCs on!

(source: Microids website)

Not all that much info but apparently it's been in development for 18 months. From what I've seen people weren't too thrilled with Syberia 3, to put it mildly. But Benoit Sokal's ouput is full of ups and downs imo so maybe he's due for another upswing.

 

[Sordid MCA/Prosper Hybryd]

Does not Syberia 3 end with some kind of cliffhanger?

 

[abnaxus]

Some kind of prequel?

 

[WallaceChambers]

I kinda got prequel vibes from the title "The World Before," that combined with this not being a numbered entry, but wasn't Kate Walker just a normal Lawyer before the events of Syberia 1? Doesn't seem like there's much room for an epic adventure there. I've only played the first game, though. So maybe there's more to Kate's backstory that I'm unaware of.

 

[Maxie]

I kinda got prequel vibes from the title "The World Before," that combined with this not being a numbered entry, but wasn't Kate Walker just a normal Lawyer before the events of Syberia 1? Doesn't seem like there's much room for an epic adventure there. I've only played the first game, though. So maybe there's more to Kate's backstory that I'm unaware of.

You mean besides her unsatisfying life with her nonce boyfriend Dan and her egoism mum? Truly a venue for adventure~

 

[MRY]

just a normal Lawyer ... ? Doesn't seem like there's much room for an epic adventure there.

Syberia is one of those games that was amazingly beautiful and entrancing to me on an audiovisual (and to some extent narrative) level, but so horribly designed that I gave up on it. The combination of extremely slow walking speed (obviously, "Walker" was a joke on this, but maybe increasing walking speed rather than making a joke of it would be better) with terrible ping-pong puzzle design (where you need to go A->B->A->B and A and B are made as far from each other as possible) bored me sufficiently that I just quit at the point where I was walking between a bird's nest and some judges (?) after the fourth time I crawled from one to the other.

Real shame because lawyer protagonist and all... (Although that was before I was a lawyer; maybe I'd have had more sympathy for how slowly she moved if I knew how the career grinds a person down.)

 

[WallaceChambers]

Syberia is one of those games that was amazingly beautiful and entrancing to me on an audiovisual (and to some extent narrative) level, but so horribly designed that I gave up on it. The combination of extremely slow walking speed (obviously, "Walker" was a joke on this, but maybe increasing walking speed rather than making a joke of it would be better) with terrible ping-pong puzzle design (where you need to go A->B->A->B and A and B are made as far from each other as possible) bored me sufficiently that I just quit at the point where I was walking between a bird's nest and some judges (?) after the fourth time I crawled from one to the other.

Real shame because lawyer protagonist and all... (Although that was before I was a lawyer; maybe I'd have had more sympathy for how slowly she moved if I knew how the career grinds a person down.)

Well Pheonix Wright is one of my favorites so there's definitely room for lawyerly adventures. But, sadly, I don't foresee Benoit Sokal taking that approach with this game.

I basically agree with your take on Syberia. I did manage to get through it but that was mostly off the strength of the atmosphere and setting. The plot itself is rather weak. There's interesting lore and world building in the periphery of Kate's journey but her actual story is dull as a dirt. You just don't have to think about it all that much when you're piloting giant Soviet robots and exploring a crazed pianists underground lair. The part you stopped on is easily the shittiest part of the game, So I can totally see it making someone drop off.

Everything you said about the design is the sad truth and it's all made worse by the near non existence of any flavor text throughout the game. There's almost no hotspots for any of the scenery and the ones that are there offer only a very generic response.

 

[LESS T_T]

Pre-order the full game 'Syberia: The World Before' now and embark on a journey across continents and through time, as you piece together the puzzle of a life.

Vaghen, 1937: Dana Roze is a 17-year-old girl, who is beginning a brilliant career as a pianist. However, shadows begin to appear over her future as the fascist threat of the Brown Shadow hangs over Europe, at the dawn of the Second World War.

Taiga, 2004: Kate Walker survives as best she can in the salt mine where she has been imprisoned, when a tragic event propels her into a new adventure in search of her identity.

• Set off on an adventure across continents and through time. Play as both Kate Walker and Dana Roze as you get to the bottom of mysteries that have remained buried for too long.

• Explore the fantastic and poetic world of Benoît Sokal, with its breathtaking sceneries and iconic characters.

• Solve complicated puzzles and riddles in keeping with the tradition of the saga.

• Discover a rich and captivating story with unprecedented stakes and gripping dialogue.

• Allow yourself to be transported by the symphonic soundtrack composed by Inon Zur (Syberia 3, Fallout, Dragon Age, Prince of Persia).

Demo:

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

Wtf why have I only discovered this thread now??

And where the fuck is Kate????

 

[toro]

Wtf why have I only discovered this thread now??

And where the fuck is Kate????

"Play as both Kate Walker and Dana Roze as you get to the bottom of mysteries that have remained buried for too long."

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

Yeah I must have overlooked that in a rage when I saw that short-haired punk.

Either way I'm gonna play the prologue tomorrow. Syberia is one of those rare franchises that gets the idea of "fantasy" right, and I even enjoyed Syberia 3 for what it is.

 

[Keshik]

Might as well try this, if for nothing else but to be more disappointed. Lovely, crashed on first start up, hah

 

[WallaceChambers]

Played the prologue, presentation and interface are much better than Syberia 3. Aside from the lip sync the game looks fantastic. Performance seems to be somewhat of an issue. I'm decently over the minimum spec and the game still had framerate issues on medium settings. Hopefully that's something they can smooth out before release. Or at least give more robust graphical options.

As far as the story itself, the tone is much darker and I like the parallel narratives. Still, it's hard to say much since the prologue doesn't cover too much ground. But the dual protagonists give the story an opportunity to bounce between classic Syberia clockwork fantasy and the newer, more grim, locales. The setting, like as before in this series, stole the show for me.

The puzzles were really simple but I wasn't expecting too much in this regard out of a teaser/prologue demo. At least I hope they ramp up to Syberia 3 levels in the full game because messing with those weird mechanical contraptions is one of my favorite things about the series.

All-in-all I liked it, I love the look of the game, love the setting. It's a bit too early to say for sure as far as the story and gameplay but many of Syberia 3's worst issues (terribad VA, horrible interface, rampant bugs,) have been alleviated.

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

I can only concur with what WallaceChambers said, except I just can't get over Kate's new look. I get it, short hair are more practical working in a salt mine, but here she just looks like an ugly dyke. Also her general resemblance is off and the VA feels too hard boiled for her. What is Sokal up to?

 

[Verylittlefishes]

why why do you need to do this why

 

[Keshik]

Well, eventually got it running - game runs like a hog, needed admin mode to avoid it crashing but no matter. Wasn't too put off by it, didn't cover much ground but am somewhat interested in where they are going with this. Still hate having to turn a key as a minigame, though.

 

[Neuromancer]

I can only concur with what WallaceChambers said, except I just can't get over Kate's new look. I get it, short hair are more practical working in a salt mine, but here she just looks like an ugly dyke. A

That "person" is supposed to be Kate Walker???

Just quickly browsing through the pictures and texts, I thought that this would be the new character.
Besides being extremely ugly, she doesn't look anything like the original model from Syberia 1 & 2.

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

Yeah it's a disgrace.

 

[vortex]

New Kate Walker looks like Jehanne Rousseau.

Spoiler

 

[Ludwig von Eisenthal]

I haven't played it and I only know the screenshots and the trailer but it looks like DF: Chapters to me, in other words: politicized. Not interested. Not at all.

 

[WallaceChambers]

That "person" is supposed to be Kate Walker???

Just quickly browsing through the pictures and texts, I thought that this would be the new character.
Besides being extremely ugly, she doesn't look anything like the original model from Syberia 1 & 2.

I think they were trying to give her this haggard look from being imprisoned in the salt mine and doing hard labor. I really hope her hairstyle changes at some point in the game but I expect it wont. Maybe if there's a time skip after the "prologue."

 

[Tom Selleck]

wat did they do to you, sexy kate walker waifu?

i'll still masturbate to you, but begrudgingly

there better be some cool automatons to make up for this shit

 

[Venser]

Wtf why have I only discovered this thread now??

And where the fuck is Kate????

lol I also didn't know this game existed

 

[Neuromancer]

I think they were trying to give her this haggard look from being imprisoned in the salt mine and doing hard labor. I really hope her hairstyle changes at some point in the game but I expect it wont. Maybe if there's a time skip after the "prologue."

I haven't played played the demo yet, since I don't have Steam installed on my computer. Therefore, I can't comment on the game itself and how appropriate her look is for this situation.

To be honest, even the model from Syberia 3 didn't really look like the original Kate from parts 1 and 2.
In my opinion, she resembled a lot Lara Croft from the Tomb Raider 2013 reboot, meaning: a slightly pretty but in general pretty generic looking woman - a definite downgrade for both game series!

For comparison:

Spoiler

Tomb Raider 2013

Syberia 3

 

[Neuromancer]

@Morgoth Just out of curiosity:
What is it, that you are disagreeing with?
My comparison with Lara Croft from 2013?