What would we do if we discovered intelligent beings in our universe? Sci-fi mystery adventure The Station asks this age-old question and follows it up with another: What would we do if those beings were also embroiled in civil war? In this case, humanity decides to send a small crew of three to observe the aliens from a safe distance on a stealth space station called the Espial. Things inevitably go sideways and we, the player, are sent in to recon the situation and locate the missing crew.
The Station immediately reminds me of Tacoma. It's fundamentally about exploring the Espial, repairing its damaged systems, and scouring for records and audio logs to determine what happened to the crew. There's also a neat augmented reality interface which embeds clues in the environment and records them as you progress. You can learn more about the Espial and this interface on this nifty lore site.
"Each room and space will have a unique moment to share if you look close enough," The Station's Steam page reads. "As the story unravels each detail will begin to fall into place. For the keen eye, a rich story awaits. What players discover will challenge their view of surveillance, imperialism and moral law."
It's not just exploration and listening, mind. There are quite a few puzzles as well. "The secrets on-board the station will resist being uncovered and you must rely on your ability to identify and solve intuitive but subtle problems," says The Station, the developer of the same name, adding that the Epsial itself "is a puzzle to be solved."
The Station is now available on Steam for $15.
Random characters kept swearing in Obsidian's font-obsessed murder-mystery when its procedural error system ran amok: 'Naughtiness abounded'
Eagle-eyed streamer spots that Roberta Williams' portrait in King's Quest 4 is based on her author photo on the back of the game box: 'I never noticed it before.'
