Certain locations are just jaw-dropping to behold, like the ship’s grandiose theatre, while others are almost painterly, with beautiful rivers of ‘exotic matter’ slipping through areas of the ship. The Helios is immaculately detailed, and very impressively rendered in Unreal Engine 4, with many locations to explore that juxtapose beautiful art-deco architecture, with some pretty gruesome scenery left behind in the wake of the incident on board. The closeness between the two games in aesthetics and storytelling is honestly distracting, even if they have different gameplay styles.Ĭlose to the Sun does hit the nail on the head with mood and atmosphere, however. You, as an outsider, are clued in to where to go via a faceless voice over the radio, one who may have less-than-genuine intentions. The Helios’ scientists, often wearing masquerade masks, meet their gruesome ends after one particular experiment has unintended consequences and allows the ship to fall into anarchy and decay. Telsa, by the way, is not only ever-present through propaganda plastered on every wall, but also revealed to be perpetually suspicious of spies and those who would seek to undermine Helios – agents of Thomas Edison, in this case. The art-deco inspired Helios is a scientifically-improbable achievement at sea that allows scientists to pursue their own projects and agendas unhindered by governments or nations, overseen by its benefactor, Nikola Tesla. Despite the developer’s disclaimers that Close to the Sun is not Bioshock, it’s hard to avoid thinking about it constantly while playing. One thing I hate to have to address is the obvious similarities this game has to another. Something has gone terribly wrong with time on board the Helios, merging past and present, and Rose has to overcome the many safety measures in place to find her sister and make their way off the ship before it’s too late. One of these is Ada, sister to the game’s protagonist, Rose, who sends her a letter summoning her to the Helios to help her escape. The Helios is the world’s largest ship, an enormous city unto itself that sails through international waters, capable of defending itself with a high-tech ‘death ray’ and housing the world’s top scientists, free to explore their own pursuits. The game is set in an alternate timeline where Nikola Tesla is a globally recognised titan of industry, supplying half the world with electricity and christening his success with the launch of his greatest invention – the Helios. But, much like one of Nikola Tesla’s coils, it’s one that’s cool to look at, and may even have some hair-raising moments, but doesn’t offer much beyond its brief moment of flash. It stands out as an indie title with a lot of potential, mixing adventure with horror elements, in a beautiful setting that invites players to explore everything to reach the truth. Any one of these cool sci-fi ideas would make for an compelling story, but all of them are at the heart of Storm in a Teacup’s Close to the Sun, which launched this month as one of the first exclusives for the Epic Games Store on PC. Creatures beyond understanding living within exotic matter. Experiments with the ‘one electron’ theory making time ‘bleed’. A mysterious, giant ship adrift in international waters. Nikola Tesla’s inventions, all realised and allowed to dominate the world.
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