Routine Is Anything But

[Andy Chalk]

Routine Is Anything But

​

Routine is all about first-person perma-death exploration horror - on the moon!

The first-person horror genre just got a little more crowded with the announcement of Routine, a game in which you're sent to investigate the disappearance of all personnel at a research station on the moon. It looks like a fairly conventional addition to the field at this early stage, at least as it's been defined by the hit Amnesia: The Dark Descent, with "full body awareness" and no HUD or hit points, but it adds a few unique twists of its own that could turn it into a seriously compelling experience.

For one thing, it will be entirely non-linear. The lunar base will be fully open and explorable from the get-go, allowing players to solve the mystery on their own terms and even discover secrets that others miss. Not that solving the mystery is a given, though, because Routine also makes use of a "Perma-death system" and while it's not actually described to any extent, it seems pretty obvious: you die, and you start over.

That's a ballsy move and will no doubt drive people crazy, but I like it. One of the few weaknesses of Amnesia is that it could be "beaten" simply by blundering through it, because death carried no real consequences. But if dying means starting over, you can bet that people will work a lot harder to stay out of trouble, and to haul ass when they run into it.

Routine is the first project for three-person development team routinegame.com [http://www.lunar-software.com/].



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[natster43]

Looks cool. I definitely like the completely open world from the beginning. And the perma death sounds interesting.

 

[Mr Cwtchy]

Zero-gravity zombie astronauts. Calling it right now.

Anyway, sounds intriguing. I had thought permadeath had, well...

died. Permanently.

 

[Braedan]

There's obvious similarities with Deadspace, but this game might actually be SCARY. Deadspace was a joke. Buying weapon upgrades at a vending machine? In a HORROR GAME? Lets hope they keep the gun toting marines out of this one.

 

[Aerosteam]

Perma-death is not scary, all it does is make the player more cautious before death and angry afterwards.

It does look interesting, but another game for all youtubers to play is the last thing we need. We've had Amnesia, Slender and now this.

 

[RoyalWelsh]

Sounds and looks really interesting. Not sure about the perma-death, that could be incredibly frustrating but having said that, it could have an added layer of survival about it which could make it more tense and scary.

 

[l3o2828]

So Perma-death implies zero save functions available?

Well that's...just dumb.
Not scary.
It's not 'I could die' that makes Scary games scary.
It's the immersion, atmosphere, TENSION, being in the shoes of a protagonist that is in no way able to defend himself properly, it's the panic that makes it all worth it, not the end that means you died, infact dying is always sort of a relief in horror games.

 

[Ruedyn]

DayZ in SPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACE!

Looks interesting, I'll be keeping my eye on this.

 

[BreakfastMan]

Looking badass so far. I love horror and science fiction and it is rare that games combine the two, even rarer when they do it well. This looks to do both. Really looking forward to this one.

 

[GenGenners]

Alone in an empty moon base? A company called Lunar?

Do we play as Sam Rockwell?

HA! xD

OT: A 3 person team? Seriously? Kudos.

 

[Dr Pussymagnet]

Can't wait for all the scare cam lets plays...

 

[Formica Archonis]

Not that solving the mystery is a given, though, because Routine also makes use of a "Perma-death system" and while it's not actually described to any extent, it seems pretty obvious: you die, and you start over.

So, just like every roguelike I tried, I'd play it between two and four times before giving up entirely because I'm sick of rehashing the opening game. Because no matter how open or randomized things are, it's always the same basic hoop jumps at the start.

I have an idea, how about I not play it? Sounds good.

 

[FEichinger]

So Perma-death implies zero save functions available?

I'd assume no multiple-saves-for-one-playthrough functions. And not the Pokémon Cop-out, but rather constant autosaves. At least I hope so, because I'd love to play that, even though I really hate horror games.

 

[marurder]

Sounds very much like the old Amiga game Infestation - except that happened on a space station and was bug related. Good game though. The more time you spent exploring, the worse the infestation got.

 

[sethisjimmy]

Very intriguing. I actually like the perma-death idea, barring that the world is just as open as they say it is, because if you die, you should just be able to set off in a different direction and get a new set of experiences that way.

Let's hope they don't fill the spaceship with monster-sized vents everywhere though.

 

[Andy Chalk]

A "perma-death system," so details remain to be disclosed. There may be options, tweaks, whatever, that give death more impact without making it completely frustrating.

Or they might say FUCK YOU GUYS! DIE AND START OVER! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

We'll see.