Elegy for a Dead World is a side-scrolling exploration game where the player writes a diary visible to other players. The player explores three worlds inspired by British romantic poets Shelley, Byron, and Keats. While exploring, the player makes notes on their observations. The notes are publicly visible via Steam Workshop. The collective note taking mechanic earned it an honorable mention for the Nuovo Award in the 2014 Independent Games Festival.[1]
| Elegy for a Dead World | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Dejobaan Games Popcannibal Games |
| Publisher(s) | Dejobaan Games |
| Designer(s) | Ichiro Lambe Ziba Scott |
| Engine | Unity |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows Linux |
| Release |
|
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Development
editDeveloper Ziba Scott credits the theme of the game to his love for British romantic poetry.[2] Shelley's world, for example, was inspired by Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem "Ozymandias". Developer Ichiro Lambe is exploring the intimacy created through collaborative writing.[3]
Reception
edit| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | 65/100[4] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| Eurogamer | 7/10[5] |
| GameRevolution |    [7] |
| GameSpot | 7/10[6] |
| GamesTM | 4/10[8] |
| Hardcore Gamer | 4/5[9] |
| Softpedia | [10] |
Early critical reception has focused on the novelty of the note taking mechanic,[11][12] and the emphasis on narrative storytelling over action.[13]
On Metacritic, the game holds a score of 65/100 based on 14 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[4]
Hardcore Gamer gave the game a 4 out of 5, saying "Elegy for a Dead World may be a jarring departure from traditions, but unlike the more pretentious attempts at alternative gaming experiences we’ve seen in recent times, this is one idea that should be encouraged."[9]
References
edit- ^ "2014 IGF Finalists"
- ^ "Why so serious, Dejobaan?" Archived 2014-02-27 at the Wayback Machine on IndieGames.com
- ^ "The Write Stuff" on Eurogamer
- ^ a b "Elegy for a Dead World for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
- ^ "Elegy for a Dead World review". Eurogamer. 19 December 2014. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
- ^ "Elegy for a Dead World Review". GameSpot. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
- ^ "Elegy for a Dead World Review". Game Revolution. 13 December 2014. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
- ^ "Elegy For A Dead World review". GamesTM. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
- ^ a b Khan, Jahanzeb (11 December 2014). "Review: Elegy for a Dead World". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved 14 December 2014.
- ^ "Elegy for a Dead World Review (PC)". Softpedia. 30 December 2014. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
- ^ "Shelly They Can't be Serious" on Rock, Paper, Shotgun
- ^ [1] on Joystiq
- ^ Douglas Heaven (22 May 2014). "ButtonMasher: Storytelling beats action in new games". New Scientist. Retrieved 1 June 2014.