Investigate North today announce their latest project for worldwide release: an innovative mix of story exploration and collaborative investigation that forms a new kind of massively multiplayer game.
Cloud Chamber – which won plaudits in the Scandinavian press and a ‘Game of the Year’ award during its Danish beta phase last year – casts players as users tracking confidential information through dreamily rendered data landscapes. Their aim: to piece together a tale of murder, betrayal, electronica and astrophysics.
The game will be available for PC and Mac this year, via Steam and other digital distribution channels. To accompany the announcement, Investigate North have revealed a new trailer, which can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9XmLNWyr_I
Cloud Chamber follows the investigations of young scientist Kathleen Petersen into the Petersen Institute, one of Europe’s most prestigious scientific centres. While investigating the suspicious circumstances of her mother’s death there, Kathleen uncovers a skein of astonishing revelations about her father, the Institute and the existence of communicative rhythms in the fabric of space. Soon she is faced with an impossible choice between loyalty to her family and a duty to pass on what seems to be a mysterious warning to mankind.
Navigating through a series of 3D datascapes, players collect nodes of information and discuss them with other players. As they progress, players piece together what actually happened from fragments of found film footage, science journals, video diary entries, actual space footage and astrophotography. Only by working together with other players can the truth about Kathleen’s parents and the universe be uncovered.
“We’re extremely curious to see how global audiences take to investigating the Cloud Chamber mystery,” said Christian Fonnesbech, creative director at Investigate North.
“Cloud Chamber is a new kind of game which brings story exploration to a multiplayer environment. In the beta launch, we saw core players discuss everything from the characters’ inner lives to the birth of the universe while trying to figure out what happened. It’s going to be fascinating to see how people from all over the world meet and respond to the challenge.”
Cloud Chamber also features an electronic soundtrack from renowned artists such as Burial and Trentemøller and high-quality found footage from the team behind The Killing – as well as star performances from Hollywood actors from Game of Thrones, Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace. The full game, which will include numerous tweaks and additions following the success of the Danish beta, is due for global release on PC and Mac this year.
What people said about Cloud Chamber’s Danish beta…
“You will be rewarded with knowledge, insight and new perspectives on your existence. Not a boast that many games can make” – Vector
“An incredibly exciting new avenue for games” – Gameplay Magazine
“The games industry’s next step into a new media landscape, one where the game pieces are – to a greater extent than ever before – other people, their perception of you, and what you have to contribute to the world” – PressFire
“Absorbing” – EKKO