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Creators of Мор (Pathologic): The Bachelor's Campaign Prototype Is Ready — Non-linear game without an open world, but with time management

(written on june 30th 2022)

[automatic translator]

"The heads of the Russian studio published an appeal on their VKontakte page, where they talked about the state of affairs in the team, as well as about the progress of work on their projects — including Bachelor.

[...]

On failed ideas for The Bachelor

The studio did not want to do a “normal remake” and set itself the goal of creating a game that would be very different from the Haruspex that was released in 2019. This was also mentioned during the Pathologic 2 Kickstarter campaign.

During pre-production and prototyping, Ice-Pick abandoned various ideas:

something in the spirit of the prologue, "The Marble Nest", with an emphasis on the plot;

"cabinet" game within one house, with an emphasis on "catching" thoughts and phrases from a special "cloud";

a completely non-linear plot with 12 days intermingled with each other and a changing chronology.

Prototypes were even made for the last two, but they were eventually abandoned completely, starting with a third idea for a game that Dybowski compares to Christopher Nolan's Memento.

About what will be the "Bachelor"

The main themes of the game's plot are mortality, immortality, time and its perception. The main character, Daniil Dankovsky, according to the developers, will rethink his own vision of the world, which is also associated with changes in the gameplay compared to the Haruspex.

The Bachelor will not have a “survival” system in the usual sense - you won’t have to keep track of hunger, fatigue and money. Instead of them - "a system of marks for time control", which is explained by the fact that Dankovsky is a "man of the mind."

[...]

— There will be no open world with imitation of life on the streets. Instead, there is a series of locations between which the hero moves “in space and time”, solving his problems. — The combat system and "wandering" passers-by were abandoned, considering the action not the strength of the "Pestilence". — Barter and looting will not be, as this is contrary to the nature of the character. — The system of "behavior" of the infection was reworked, abandoning the clear separation of different states in the quarter ("healthy", "infected", "boarded up"). Plague particles will have to be interacted with more often.

[...]

— Time will be allowed to be manipulated in some way, however, apparently, this ability will have a tangible price.

[...]

— In addition to the "main citizens" in the world, you can find other residents who can be recruited as volunteers who perform routine tasks. Apparently, it will be something like an expedition system. — The scenario will include several locations not previously seen in [Pathologic], and the development of the plot will depend on which tasks the player focuses on.

[...]

The third prototype of the "Bachelor" is currently being tested and tested, finalizing some details. According to the head of Ice-Pick, in August, the developers will be actively working on new assets and gameplay systems, and the alpha version will be ready by October.

The studio does not name an approximate release date, but they claim that they will be able to "announce an adequate period after testing the alpha"