ARISE: a simple story (Game by an evo-web member)

Stan

Stan

Allez les Lionceaux !!!
12 September 2002
Cover:
co1s39.jpg
Platforms: PC/PS4/Xbox One
Release Date: 03 Dec 2019

Developer: Piccolo Studio
Genre: Adventure

Description:
Arise is a journey through the bittersweet lives of two people where memories come alive and time bends to your will. Set out on an emotional rollercoaster ride through the changing landscapes of memories lush with feelings of love and loss.

Some older members may remember drekkard, who used to be a regular on this forum. I kept contact with him and although i've never seen him irl, i can say he is a friend of mine. Drekkard has a game studio and now their first bigger game is out in the PS4 store.

Here is some info:
https://blog.us.playstation.com/2019/09/24/arise-a-simple-story-announced-for-ps4/

The game tralier:

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?...9D444C0F7C63B79667339D444C0F7C63&&FORM=VRDGAR
 
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This looks like something right up my alley. I've taken a massive fondness to simpler, intimate indie games over the last couple of years - Mostly because the old school gamer in me prefers simplicity and linearity over complexity and bloated open terrain... But also so i can play more accessible and endearing games with my young daughter.

When you can design a game that can be picked up by anyone of any age and any experience, Then more people get to enjoy and experience your art and that, is special.
 
I don't have a PS4 unfortunately so I won't be able to try it myself (unless it gets ported to Steam/Xbox One), but I do sincerely hope this goes well.

All the best, man!
 
MafiaMurderBag said:
Mostly because the old school gamer in me prefers simplicity and linearity over complexity and bloated open terrain... But also so i can play more accessible and endearing games with my young daughter.
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Exactly how I feel,I prefer Indie games myself too,on my own or with my daughter.
Inside/Limbo/Little Nightmares/Unravel/what happened to Edith Finch.
All tremendous games,much more value for me than a AAA game.
Not a PS4 owner either,but hopefully it gets ported over to my platform.
 
Stan said:
Some older members may remember drekkard, who used to be a regular on this forum. I kept contact with him and although i've never seen him irl, i can say he is a friend of mine. Drekkard has a game studio and now their first bigger game is out in the PS4 store.

Here is some info:
https://blog.us.playstation.com/2019/09/24/arise-a-simple-story-announced-for-ps4/

The game tralier:

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?...9D444C0F7C63B79667339D444C0F7C63&&FORM=VRDGAR
Click to expand...
This looks beautiful, I'll play it.
 
rockstrongo said:
Exactly how I feel,I prefer Indie games myself too,on my own or with my daughter.
Inside/Limbo/Little Nightmares/Unravel/what happened to Edith Finch.
All tremendous games,much more value for me than a AAA game.
Not a PS4 owner either,but hopefully it gets ported over to my platform.
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Great games, We loved Unravel, The sequel has Co-Op, you should try it if you haven't! Touching soundtracks in both.

I haven't heard of Little Nightmares until now but i checked out the trailer and it looks good, I'll pick it up!
 
MafiaMurderBag said:
Great games, We loved Unravel, The sequel has Co-Op, you should try it if you haven't! Touching soundtracks in both.

I haven't heard of Little Nightmares until now but i checked out the trailer and it looks good, I'll pick it up!
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Loved both unravel games,very northern Sweden,reminds me of my summers at my grand parents
 
rockstrongo said:
Loved both unravel games,very northern Sweden,reminds me of my summers at my grand parents
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Yeah i think that was the objective of the game's direction, Was to instill a sense of longing and nostalgia for childhood memories of walks or weekend vacations with elders, Going on small adventures. It's magical and profoundly sad but it's complimented by it's aching soundtrack.

Now you make me want to play the game and get emotional all over again haha.
 
MafiaMurderBag said:
This looks like something right up my alley. I've taken a massive fondness to simpler, intimate indie games over the last couple of years - Mostly because the old school gamer in me prefers simplicity and linearity over complexity and bloated open terrain... But also so i can play more accessible and endearing games with my young daughter.

When you can design a game that can be picked up by anyone of any age and any experience, Then more people get to enjoy and experience your art and that, is special.
Click to expand...

100%
Feel the same way.
I'm constantly looking for games like Firewatch (totally loved it).

And this one, ARISE, looks perfect for me if it wasn't because it's PS4 exclusive. Would love to get it if it was on PC.
 
MafiaMurderBag said:
Yeah i think that was the objective of the game's direction, Was to instill a sense of longing and nostalgia for childhood memories of walks or weekend vacations with elders, Going on small adventures. It's magical and profoundly sad but it's complimented by it's aching soundtrack.

Now you make me want to play the game and get emotional all over again haha.
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Ha ha sorry brother:)
I'm thinking the same.
First game my daughter and I played was Inside,that blew me away,can't wait for more games from that studio.
Btw,have you played fire watch?
Not a game for father/daughter maybe,but I loved it,very cool game.
There's just so many good games out there.
My daughter was pretty blown away by Edith Finch too
 
Inside is on my backlog for sure, We played Limbo together and that was a great game although i had to play the later, trickier puzzles though.

No i haven't played Firewatch but i'm well aware of it, The only "Walking Simulator" I've played this gen is Everybody's Gone to the Rapture. Which is polarizing to more casual gamers but for me, It was more than just a game, It's a piece of experimental art and a radio play. I couldn't stop thinking about the game for days after i finished it.

I've got Edith Finch and Gone Home and i'm looking forward to playing those. If you're on PC, Definitely check out The Stanley Parable if you haven't. It's getting ported to consoles soon too.
 
Great tips there mate!
Yeah I'm in pc as well
Firewatch got stuck in my head long after finishing it.
My daughter was blown away by Edith Finch,so was I ,a game that got stuck in our heads a long time afterwards.
I think the rewarding thing doing this with your daughter is that you can bring up subjects of loss and other tough issues quite naturally.
That's probably why I love doing it.

We've been playing some Life is strange too,good game for a 14-15 year old, especially for girls.

I'm going to check out Stanley parable and everybody has gone to the rapture.

I've played some We happy few,very cool and weird game.
Also recommend Brothers for you and your daughter,great game!

So many good games out there
 
MafiaMurderBag said:
Inside is on my backlog for sure, We played Limbo together and that was a great game although i had to play the later, trickier puzzles though.

No i haven't played Firewatch but i'm well aware of it, The only "Walking Simulator" I've played this gen is Everybody's Gone to the Rapture. Which is polarizing to more casual gamers but for me, It was more than just a game, It's a piece of experimental art and a radio play. I couldn't stop thinking about the game for days after i finished it.

I've got Edith Finch and Gone Home and i'm looking forward to playing those. If you're on PC, Definitely check out The Stanley Parable if you haven't. It's getting ported to consoles soon too.
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rockstrongo said:
Great tips there mate!
Yeah I'm in pc as well
Firewatch got stuck in my head long after finishing it.
My daughter was blown away by Edith Finch,so was I ,a game that got stuck in our heads a long time afterwards.
I think the rewarding thing doing this with your daughter is that you can bring up subjects of loss and other tough issues quite naturally.
That's probably why I love doing it.

We've been playing some Life is strange too,good game for a 14-15 year old, especially for girls.

I'm going to check out Stanley parable and everybody has gone to the rapture.

I've played some We happy few,very cool and weird game.
Also recommend Brothers for you and your daughter,great game!

So many good games out there
Click to expand...


Great! Now I got some to add to my list!
I only need to stop with footy games to make some room for other games.

Going back to Firewatch for just a bit, you know Rocko the same thing happened to me.
I was going through a pretty nasty breakup at that time. More like a divorce, but we weren't actually married although we lived together for almost 6 years. So I was quite sensitive and numb at the time I played Firewatch and it hit me. I don't know why. Some people were hating the ending back then here on EvoWeb, but that game meant something for me. Maybe due to the situation I was in at that time.

And if you guys love to "think" more than shooting or fighting random people, like in most games today, I'll definitely suggest you play Grim Frandango and Full Throttle. Both remastered.
Amazing games.

I'll even go as far as saying DON'T EVEN WASTE YOUR TIME WATCHING THE TRAILERS. Trailers are shit. I wouldn't have played those, or Firewatch if it was for the trailer. I'm telling you now, those two games marked my childhood (used to play them with my mom, we loved to find solutions to the puzzles, and we used to spend hours and hours just thinking and figuring things out) and I'd love to have a daughter or a son right now to re-play both with them!
 
Chuny said:
Great! Now I got some to add to my list!
I only need to stop with footy games to make some room for other games.

Going back to Firewatch for just a bit, you know Rocko the same thing happened to me.
I was going through a pretty nasty breakup at that time. More like a divorce, but we weren't actually married although we lived together for almost 6 years. So I was quite sensitive and numb at the time I played Firewatch and I hit me. I don't know why. Some people were hating the ending back then here on EvoWeb, but that game meant something for me. Maybe due to the situation I was in at that time.

And if you guys love to "think" more than shooting or fighting random people, like in most games today, I'll definitely suggest you play Grim Frandango and Full Throttle. Both remastered.
Amazing games.

I'll even go as far as saying DON'T EVEN WASTE YOUR TIME WATCHING THE TRAILERS. Trailers are shit. I wouldn't have played those, or Firewatch if it was for the trailer. I'm telling you now, those two games marked my childhood (used to play them with my mom, with loved to find solutions to the puzzles, and we would spend hours and hours thinking and figuring things out) and I'd love to have a daughter or a son right now to re-play both with them!
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Thanks for sharing mate
Sorry for the shitty break up,been there too,a crappy divorce,nasty shit!
Long time ago,over it now,but it's a fucking trauma isn't it?

Firewatch got me really hard,such a great story ,and being in a desolate place like that, transcends in to being in a desolate place mentally as well .

Just like movies,games needs a great story and great acting to get me in.
Sometimes I like playing mindless AAA games with a story you've seen a million times before,but nothing beats a great story.

Very rarely buy those big titles,prefer the smaller and quirkier games.

Hope you find those games @MafiaMurderBag and me recommended up your alley mate.
Will take your tips as well.

I could easily quit footy games,not entirely,bit for periods since they mainly cause you crap,like s dysfunctional relationship.
 
@rockstrongo I can't wait to try Edith Finch now, You're really selling me on the game!
The other reason i enjoy playing these unique games with my daughter is that i get to relive the magic, That wonderment of the sights & sounds of a new game through her eyes. I remember when i was her age (6) and discovering video games through my older brother, A crazy, vivid new world that drove my imagination and curiosity wild. My earliest, Priceless gaming memories. And now i can help form some for her and introduce her to this special medium.

When you get a lot older, You feel like after 20+ years of gaming, You've seen everything and nothing amazes you anymore. At least when indie games come in, It's a reset button on your gaming fatigue and you start to appreciate games that go for artistic style & gameplay that's outside the box. It's more sincere and feels like a labour of love rather than the corporate AAA crap that's focus tested & churned out purely for profit.

I have played Life is Strange but the themes and constant strong language is too much for my daughter and to be honest i started groaning at the dialogue. I think it's a game that appeals more to teenagers. However, I do suggest trying out the Captain Spirit demo which is made by the same people, It's amazing how it manipulates the gamers emotion and goes from being quite innocent and light hearted to being quite dark and heavy, But without the swearing.

@Chuny I'm really liking the sounds of Firewatch too, There's a theme developing here with that game that it's a hit.
You're right, A lot of games come full circle to violence and shooting stuff and it's very fatiguing and not very stimulating.

Regarding your last paragraph, I don't bother watching trailers really either, Especially if it's for something i know i'm going to buy anyway. It's the old school gamer in me. It's hard to control how much exposure we get to games nowadays as the convenience of social media and the internet has kind of spoiled the anticipation of waiting for a new gaming magazine and using your imagination to fill in the gaps of what a game is like, Or popping in a demo disc and playing every obscure demo on there for the first time because you want to get your money's worth from that issue, and discovering a gem going in blind.

That's what's special about indie games to me as well, There's so many to choose from now that it kind of recreates that feeling of taking a gamble on something that you know little about, With only the thumbnail and a couple of screen shots to go off on the store.

Same with solving puzzles without giving in and resorting to guides. Again, Pre-Internet if you didn't have a walk-through book in front of you, You had to crack it yourself and yeah it would get long and frustrating but the sense of achievement when you did was thrilling and the way a game would make you feel like a genius when you did was priceless.
 
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The indie game scene is something that really gets the while family going,my gf isn't much of a gamer,but she's pretty much the one digging them up via YouTube and on the indie section on Xbox,then we usually play them together

Might have a go at Sea of solitude as my next indie title.
@MafiaMurderBag I really loved what I saw regarding your tips ,right up my alley mate.

Pre internet was a great time for gaming,needed to fix it yourself etc,banging out Metal Gear solid back then was quite a task.

Nice to have some fellow indie players in here @Chuny and @MafiaMurderBag
 
Chuny said:
We totally hijacked Stan's thread xD
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Sort of, But one can't help bring up the charm and magic of indie games in general that Arise evokes when watching it's trailer. This game reminds me a lot of Rime & Old Man's Tale. 2 great games with bright vivid visuals and have a real sense of seamless pilgrimage.
 
Hi guys! And thanks Stan for intrducing Arise here! Yep it's our game!!!

It's been a hell of a week, and I thought to come by to post something... only to findthat it exists already!

I'm so happy to announce the game after 3 years of total secrecy. We spent a lot of time and effort to raise the financing (it's very hard to raise money for this kind of product) and spent about 20 months developing (which is such a tight schedule...)

Stan knows how difficult it has been to do something like this, and how hard it is to even exist in this industry doing this kind of game. But it's the product we love, to us games have to connect emotionally and be the promise of an adventure.

The game releases for PS4, Xbox One and PC (through Epic store) on December 3rd, and preorders get the whole Soundtrack for free as a bonus on launch day. Oh and it's 19,99€ only ;)

Speaking of the music (which is awesome), both the Art director and the Music composer worked on Rime, we hired them because they are hugely talented artists and we wanted talent in our company. And oh boy they delivered!

I loved games like Ico, Journey, Flower, Limbo back at the day, and lately I also loved Inside, Firewatch, Unravel, Lilttle Nightmares and Gris (Nomada studio are friends of mine from Barcelona also). So Arise is similar to those games but it has its own personality: With the right stick you can scrub through time and each chapter of the story happens in a totally different time lapse and environment (we're going to disclose more information about it soon).

So it's not only an emotional rollercoaster (which it is) but also has some original gameplay mechanics in it. Playtesters loved the game so we expect the general audience will as well.

Also, it features local co-op, and is aimed to be a game that you can play with your loved one (together) or you can play while your loved one watches how everything unfolds, it's your choice.

You can stay tuned to our Twitter account @Piccolo_Studio or ask me here, though there are things under NDA that I won't be able to answer. Feel free to ask anything, though.

PS: Seeing my own game in this website, even though I haven't been around lately, it's special. I spent a lot of time in Evoweb back at the day, commenting games from other people. Now it's my turn on the other side. Just be gentle... haha actually not, it's better to be honest and see what people really think about it.
 
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I really hope it will sell very well and will get raving revews, Alex. You deserve that after all you've been through. I remeber some of your mails when you had doubts about this projects. Well you guys made it and you should be very, very proud. The things i've seen from the game (and by the way, thanks for sharing them, it was an honor) looked very, very promising.

I wish you all the best luck with this game.
 
Well done Drekkard. I saw the gaming during the state of play and thought wow this looks excellent, little did I know it was by your studio! I listen to Greg Miller's (kindafunny.com) podcast and he was also very excited by it so hopefully you get the sales that the effort you clearly have put in deserves.
 
drekkard said:
Speaking of the music (which is awesome), both the Art director and the Music composer worked on Rime, we hired them because they are hugely talented artists and we wanted talent in our company. And oh boy they delivered!

I loved games like Ico, Journey, Flower, Limbo back at the day, and lately I also loved Inside, Firewatch, Unravel, Lilttle Nightmares and Gris (Nomada studio are friends of mine from Barcelona also). So Arise is similar to those games but it has its own personality: With the right stick you can scrub through time and each chapter of the story happens in a totally different time lapse and environment (we're going to disclose more information about it soon).

Also, it features local co-op, and is aimed to be a game that you can play with your loved one (together) or you can play while your loved one watches how everything unfolds, it's your choice.
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These remarks especially have taken me from very curious to extremely excited. Your post just kept betting and better. First of all, I adored Rime in it's beautiful simplicity and memorable sights and sounds as well as having sentimental feelings as it's one of the first games me and my daughter finished together so to hear you've brought the art director and composer on board - The men who are responsible for Rime's iconic aesthetic; Is a heck of a coup and is a recipe for brilliance.

The games you listed are those perfect journey/wandering type of games i have become fond of most of all for their ambience and accessibility so this also excites me that these have influenced this project.

And finally Local Co-Op! Seems like a bit of a rarity and a luxury these days as not many games are developed with this feature in mind. It's especially neglected in main stream AAA titles and it's one of the few remaining staples of traditional gaming that many of us grew up with that we have left and it's slowly being phased out in favour of anonymous and voyeuristic online connectivity. It's down to indies to preserve those old fashioned joys of gaming. The intimacy of playing a game together with a friend or a loved one in the same room, Both participating, The mystique of a game only being unravelled through playing and not by insecure trailers that give away way to much.

I'm very excited for this, At the moment me and my daughter are strolling through Unravel 2 together and i'm introducing her to one of my favourites from my childhood, A game that was permanently etched into my memory and will hopefully hers too - Tombi!

Best of luck for this games launch and i'm sure myself and especially my daughter will love this dearly.
 
drekkard said:
The game releases for PS4, Xbox One and PC (through Epic store) on December 3rd, and preorders get the whole Soundtrack for free as a bonus on launch day.
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Xbox One too? Wow, that sounds interesting. Definitely noted down! :TU:

Also the chance to play local co-op is a very nice feature, I got to show the trailer to the missus one of these days and see if she wants to join. :YES:
 
kamy100 said:
Well done Drekkard. I saw the gaming during the state of play and thought wow this looks excellent, little did I know it was by your studio! I listen to Greg Miller's (kindafunny.com) podcast and he was also very excited by it so hopefully you get the sales that the effort you clearly have put in deserves.
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Thank you! I heard the Greg Miller podcast, it's good that people took us into acount considering that we were featured alongside monsters like TLOU2, Call of Duty or LA Noire. We are a very humble and small company, so that's beyond our expectations in terms of communication. It was great from Sony to include us there. Much respect for them and their care for products that go beyond the usual AAA.

MafiaMurderBag said:
And finally Local Co-Op! Seems like a bit of a rarity and a luxury these days as not many games are developed with this feature in mind. It's especially neglected in main stream AAA titles and it's one of the few remaining staples of traditional gaming that many of us grew up with that we have left and it's slowly being phased out in favour of anonymous and voyeuristic online connectivity. It's down to indies to preserve those old fashioned joys of gaming. The intimacy of playing a game together with a friend or a loved one in the same room, Both participating, The mystique of a game only being unravelled through playing and not by insecure trailers that give away way to much.

I'm very excited for this, At the moment me and my daughter are strolling through Unravel 2 together and i'm introducing her to one of my favourites from my childhood, A game that was permanently etched into my memory and will hopefully hers too - Tombi!
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Local coop is not very demanding in terms of skill for the second player, it is aimed to couples in which one of the two may not be a hardcore player, or may be a kid. There are spikes of difficulty here and there, in which both players have to coordinate a lot, which should be fun/crazy. I would say the second player will have a more relaxed experience overall.

The game is an emotional rollercoaster, I don't know the age of your daughter but at some points she's probably going to cry. It's part of the journey. We had some 7-12 years old kids playing the game, they loved it and at some points they experienced a bit of fear/sadness/joy/happiness...

*aLe said:
Xbox One too? Wow, that sounds interesting. Definitely noted down! :TU:

Also the chance to play local co-op is a very nice feature, I got to show the trailer to the missus one of these days and see if she wants to join. :YES:
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Yes, we wanted to make a game that we could play with our own missus, coach coop is great. There are not many local coop games and most of them focus on skill (dead nation types of games, for instance) so we wanted to do something a bit "unbalanced", demanding a bit more skill on one player and more relaxed for the second one. The production values, the music and the story are very focused on female audiences as well.
 
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