The development of first-person shooters as a storytelling medium is really starting to intrigue me. Of course, I was a huge fan of Bioshock, so when I first heard about Cryostasis, I got a little tingly. 1C Company, the Russian Developer/Publisher/Distributor/Retailer, gave an impressive showing at their press event in San Francisco last weekend, bringing out their line of games set to spearhead their invasion of the North American market.
During this event (that is, somewhere between the food, socialization, and shots of Russian vodka), I got some hands-on time with this one. I have to say I'm impressed. You are Alexander Nesterov, a meteorologist who finds himself trapped on a frozen Russian Icebreaker ship. The captain and crew have all frozen to death, and from the looks of things, you aren't going to be far behind them. The game mechanics of Cryostasis revolve around heat. Your 'life bar' is actually a measure of your body temperature. With a glance you can gauge how cold your immediate environment is, and compare that to your core body temperature. All enemies that I saw during my time with the game are frozen, reanimated, crewmen. When they hit you, your core body temperature drops. When you step outside or into a cold area, your core body temperature drops. When you have to reach out and interact with something frozen, (a door handle, a switch, etc) your core body temperature drops. Do you see the trend?
Fortunately, the ship still has a bit of power and there are areas where you can turn on the heat. Cryostasis' environment is typically completely covered in ice and frost. When the heat comes on, the graphics engine really shines: fluid effects take over and you can literally see water running down as the ice begin to melt off the walls. Frost that has formed on counters, hand rails, and even your guns will melt and it all looks amazing. In these heated areas, your character can relax a tad and spend some time getting their body heat back up to be ready for the next cold spell.
On top of this "don't freeze to death" theme, your character has a "mental echo" ability, where he can merge with a dead body and "re-live" the last few moments of that person's life. In these echoes, you take control of the crewman and have the chance to change the way he acted during those last few moments. If you can make him survive, the body will be gone when you re-enter your own body and you can move on with the game. While this wasn't explained during the demo, I was told that through saving these people, you somehow manage to save your own soul. Overall it's a damn cool mechanic. Being pulled from your current situation, and being thrown into another body (usually one without guns) that has to survive adds a very thrilling and difficult 'puzzler' aspect to what's already shaping up to be a great FPS.
Cryostasis is still in development and is not slated to release until late this year. This was the first chance I had to take a look at it, but I'm glad I did and I look forward to seeing more.
