I should probably qualify my enthusiasm for Impact Winter by acknowledging how much I love snow-swept against-the-odds end-of-days survival games. The Long Dark is perhaps my favourite, however I'm really looking forward to what Mojo Bones and Bandai Namco are serving up here—particularly after reading Joseph Knoop's early impressions last week.
Impact Winter now has a launch trailer that's narrated by protagonist Jacob Solomon—"the leader of a makeshift team trying to survive the aftermath of a devastating asteroid collision"—wherein he sings the praises of automated drone-like companion Ako-Light.
That looks a little like this:
Due in six hours or so, as per its Steam page countdown, Impact Winter drops our Jacob into a self-proclaimed "immersive and unpredictably hostile world". This excerpt from Joseph's words speaks to that point and has me excited:
"It’s a daunting experience getting lost out in the snow, trudging for what feels like forever before you hit some sort of landmark. The world is persistent, and totally open in all directions from the get-go, so you’re likely to get lost more than once. I passed entire residential districts without realizing they were there, with nothing but an old paper map and my robot’s flashlight to guide me. The game feels like it’s daring you to push further while simultaneously yelling 'turn back!'"
Add that to its lovely hand-drawn Flame in the Flood-meets-Kentucky Route Zero-like visuals and I reckon this one could be onto something. But again, I'm a sucker for these 'uns.
Impact Winter arrives later today. More information can be found on its website.
