Starward Industries and 11 bit studios are combining sci-fi, philosophy, and a heaping helping of out-of-this-world atmosphere with their new title The Invincible. We got a chance to dive into its atompunk world – see what’s to come with our preview.
The Invincible Preview
Kicking off shortly after the beginning of the title, our journey with the astrobiologist Yasna kicked things off with a dire situation. She’s stuck on an alien planet, lost her memory, and has no contact with the crew – what’s a girl to do?
Eventually coming across a camp, things get even stranger – their andronot is jammed, Dr. Krauta is in a stupor, and there are other things that don’t quite add up.
What follows is a journey to make things right. As players traverse its world, they’ll set out to find crewmates, extraction sites, and other clues that can help Yasna get to the bottom of things.
The Invincible does this by absolutely immersing players into this alien planet. This protagonist is tenacious and skilled; there are tracker signals, telemeters, journals, and other things that can be used by Yasna. Much like the Bioshock series of games, this interaction with the environment lets people discover the world on their own terms. No need for waypoints when there’s a mission log that people can reference.
There’s even graphical flourishes like the space suit fogging up when sprinting. This tried and true principle of showing as opposed to telling really makes things go far.
Although Yasna’s in a dire situation, we’re eager to fully immerse ourselves in the full release of The Invincible and lead her on her journey home.
The Invincible will come out for the PC via Steam in 2023. As part of LudoNarraCon (happening from May 4 to 8), a demo of the game will be available. Learn more on the official Steam page here.
