While walking through the Indie Megabooth at PAX East 2013 this year, one of the small booths caught my eye. On the multiple screens of play, a sultry woman flitted through the shadows, following the direction of a little girl. As I stepped into the booth, the dulcet tones of a female jazz singer grew louder. I’ve always been one for jazz, and the vaudeville inspired art style of the game unfolding in front of me was breathtaking. A longer look at the gameplay showed the woman not only sliding between the shadows, but shifting into them as well. Intrigued, I reached out to the staff working the booth and was delighted to spend some time with the game’s lead producer, Guillaume Provost.
CONTRAST is the first game from the independent studio Compulsion Games. In CONTRAST, you play as Dawn, the imaginary friend of a nine year old girl named Didi. Didi is having family trouble, and it is up to you to figure out what is going on. Of course, as an imaginary friend, things are a bit different for you. First, Didi is the only person you can see. You see the silhouettes of everyone else and hear them speaking, but cannot see them. This unique art decision adds to the mystique of the game, and allows the player’s imagination to fill the details in of the people they see.
Obviously, as an imaginary friend you aren’t limited to the same physical world mere mortals are limited to. The core gameplay mechanic of CONTRAST centers around light - both in collecting light which can be used to light lamps and other things that have gone out, but also to cast shadows. Dawn has the unique ability to “shift” into the shadow world, using the silhouettes cast on the surfaces around her as a 2D plane on which to travel. This allows for some fascinating and clever puzzle mechanics.
CONTRAST is an amazing work of art four years in the making. If you are as taken in by this game as I am, don’t fret. During my interview with Guillaume Provost, the head of Compulsion Studios, he shared the game should be out by the end of May on Steam for $14.99. A $19.99 premium edition will be available that will include the commissioned soundtrack and a digital art book for the game (Get this!). You can hear that interview here:
Interview with CONTRAST Studio Lead Guillaume Provost
If my commentary wasn’t enough to whet your appetite, Compulsion Games just released a new video of some beta gameplay:
Sounds awesome, will pick this one up for sure!