Comments - Kastanok

Second this call. Developer commentaries are always a great and much welcome feature. I find it's the best way that I, as a games design student, learn how industry and such really work.

My fault it was taken down. I'd tweeted the previous release date and Dan Punchbeck replied that it was out of date and removed it from this page.

So the release date is now '2011'.

My entire first play through. ... oy.

I guess this is a fairly common reaction, and a fantastic result in the experiment to use ambiguous representations of hazardous entities. No face, no body, no shouted threats, no... anything, really, and the player has no reason to believe physical violence can effect it.

Not both at once? Hmm, maybe he'd had a big lunch.

Dan Pinchbeck gives an excellent guest lecture about games research and study to the IT University of Copenhagen. From about 25 minutes onwards he discusses thechineseroom and their projects.

Really quite long - think it's about 1h30m

I can't believe I forgot about this... was so excited right up until the day of release then heading to university blew it right out of my mind.

Very very interesting bit of experimentation in this mod, and some plain brilliant mind-fuckery. All extra peculiar because it always felt like Dr. Grayson was talking to me personally. Full review available at: Keysakimbo.blogspot.com

Fascinating read at 1.30am when you can't sleep.

I would love to see something in a similar vein to Dear Esther or Korsakovia or a series of similar experiences worked into a 4-6 hour structure. Could definately see it as a series of 'chapters', exploring the minds and/or memories of patients in a mental hospital, using the hospital as a kind of hub. If I was doing it, I'd have to be forcibly restrained from inserting Psychonauts and Twelve Monkeys references.

'Existentially bludgeoning an invisible zombie with an identity crisis' - and there's the pull-out quote.

"What I'm concerned about is that this new memory you are trying to make, or what you remember, this is just not real, Christopher, it didn't happen, and this, what you have built, this is really worrying."

Screw with my head, why don't you - my name is Christopher! *Checks for his eyes* Phew, still there.

Anyway, looking forward to this. Mostly its Ben Andrew's concept art that grabbed my attention.

--SPOILERS--

It *could* be the muddled ramblings of a dying man gone insane with grief over having, drunk behind the wheel, caused the death of his love. He exiles himself to this remote windswept island in the Outer Hebrides and, in his last journey across it, recounts to himself the events that led him to that point. Injury becomes imagery, imagery becomes metaphor, metaphor becomes reality and all is confused and one.

But for you it should not be what we think that matters. What do you think the story is? Or is the memory more important than the literal meaning?

People interested in the overhaul's design should also check out the concept artist's DA account, with a load of lovely Dear Esther images - Ben-andrews.deviantart.com

Just walk, walk and listen. So long as you keep hearing new... thoughts, you're on the right track.

And it brought an old hand like me back to Dear Esther, to enjoy it all over again :) And now I know about the re-make (or whatever you want to call it) and am following the progress on Robert Briscoe's blog - so score!

Voted! Sorry to say voting for Dear Esther hadn't crossed my mind until I received the email, even though it's permenantly stuck on my Steam Favourites list.

Good luck!

Mind-blowing stuff. Dear Esther has had a profound effect on me - it's like listening to poetry. Touches the soul.

It is refreshing to have the freedom to get a little lost. I thought the length was about right. I would just love to see more like this about.

A couple of minor niggles, mainly that sometimes it wasn't clear whether a path was traversable or not and a few over-stretched textures. Otherwise great stuff. Best voice over in a game and one of the best soundtracks I've heard