COMPASS ROSE

Dawn breaks. It looks like it's going to be a beautiful day. In a marble temple, under a huge eight-pointed golden star that spins endlessly like a fan. A lot of water around me, rippling and slightly noisy. I feel trapped, constrained in a centrality I didn’t choose. I also notice my wet feet, but they must be my imagination. A decision has to be made, you can't stay where you are forever, I tell myself. Splash around all you want, but at some point you'll have to take action.

Jump out and choose your path: eight doors, eight routes, eight destinations. To start, you can choose between eight winds that you will neve hear blow: Tramontane, Grecale, Levant, Sirocco, Ostro, Libeccio, Ponente or Mistral. From north to east, passing through the south and reaching the west. Cardinal points, geographical references, cultural conventions. The decision is difficult, as there are no appreciable differences. In front and behind, also to the sides, identical buildings with open doors. I follow one of the lines of red buoys, any of them, they all seem the same. I move towards other constructions that line up towards the horizon.

At the edge, deep waters cut the way. But looking to one side, stepping stones promise to cross without getting wet. I accept the challenge, I will jump from rock to rock until I reach the other side. Being so clumsy, I fear falling, and that’s exactly what happens. Sinking to the bottom, I keep crossing, as if nothing had happened. I walk like a diver: my steps are slower, my vision is blurrier, the sound is denser.

To reach the next island you have to climb a great wall of concrete blocks. It seems difficult, sometimes I stumble and get stuck between sharp masses. It’s a matter of persistence: you will eventually emerge. A new temple, but with a single door. This time, its sharp inner star points at me and expels me outside. I decide to go on, keeping my course.

Again, the journey is waterlogged until the next island, hexagonal in shape. One entrance and one exit, between them, a star that pushes you through. The concrete blocks have diverse shapes, with isomorphic criteria: it seems that they adapt to the geometry of what they protect. I am on the pentagon island and a five-pointed star appears. Inside, there is no way out. Further on, the four blades of a cube and the three triangles of a prism arrive. In the distance, both to the left and right, port and starboard, the pattern repeats itself. The same sequence in those options you left behind.

Finally, one last effort. I haven't checked the compass for a while, but in any case, this will be my north. It seems easier, I'm almost there.This sun seems never to set, a beautiful sunset decorates the scene. A fluffy lifebuoy awaits me, floating rigidly, claiming its use. I missed it already. I dive in headfirst…

Controls

MOVE with WASD/Arrows keys or Gamepad Left Stick
LOOK moving Mouse or Gamepad Right Stick
JUMP pressing Space key or Gamepad A button
QUIT pressing Escape Key or Gamepad X button

GamePlay

Recorded by Like Life Games for 4 minutes and 35 seconds, on June 7, 2024 at 8:44 AM.

Some tips: Choose your north and move forward in a straight line. It's easy to stumble, but from the bottom, with some added difficulty, you can still reach your goal. Each stage is just a milestone and nothing more; there's no need to overthink it. For you are water, my friend, and to water you shall return.

MakingOf

Deploy a sequence of polygons on sandy ground, ordered by their number of sides. Starting with an octagon and ending with a triangle, including the intermediate pentagon, hexagon, pentagon, and square. Raise a wall that elevates them a few meters.

Place a golden star in the center with as many points as the sides of the polygon containing it. Make it spin and cover it with constructions generated from the same geometric shape. Top it off with another star, this time silver, that fits its points with the vertices of the building.

Put a floating torus at each end and connect all the islands with a path of stones extruded from the corresponding polygonal profile. Surround each of the islands with a cluster of concrete blocks whose legs are derived in turn from the same geometry they encompass.

Replicate the sequence of islets radially, in 45-degree increments, coinciding with the four cardinal directions and their intermediate points. Mark the average distance between each of the wind arms with small floating icosahedrons.

Fill the ocean with water and let the sun rise.

Specs

To run this game, you'll need a Windows PC equipped with a Full HD monitor and a GPU that supports Ray Tracing. We apologize for this requirement, but dynamic lighting plays a vital role in the game's visual experience.