Stasis (video game)

Stasis is a 2015 science fiction horror point-and-click adventure game developed by The Brotherhood. Viewed from an isometric perspective, the game requires interactions with computers, combining items and puzzle solving. The game was released on 31 August 2015 for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X, with Linux and mobile devices planned for future release.

Stasis
Developer(s)The Brotherhood
Publisher(s)
Producer(s)Nicolas Bischoff
Designer(s)Christopher Bischoff
Composer(s)Mark Morgan
Daniel Sadowski
EngineVisionaire
Platform(s)Linux, Microsoft Windows, OS X
ReleaseAugust 31, 2015
Genre(s)Graphic adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

The game centers around the main character John Maracheck who awakes from Stasis aboard an abandoned spaceship. Maracheck must unravel the mysteries aboard the spaceship Groomlake to find his missing wife and daughter, before the spaceship plunges further into Neptune's methane clouds.[1]

The game has been compared with the science fiction horror film, Event Horizon, and the psychological horror adventure game Sanitarium.[2][3][4][5]

Plot

John, his wife Ellen and daughter Rebecca are put into cryogenic stasis bound for Titan. John awakens alone aboard the Groomlake, finding the whole crew dead. Exploring the ship he learns that it is a medical frigate run by the Cayne Corporation for illegal research on unwilling victims. His primary companion is scientist Te'ah, who contacts him by radio. From a variety of PDAs he learns that senior scientist Dr. Malan created project SEED, designed to create supersoldiers by reactivating dormant human genes through torturous experimentation and forced impregnations, resulting in the creation of animalistic and vicious mutant humans referred to as 'hybrids'. Several of these hybrids escaped and butchered the crew, skinning them for their subdermal tags to allow them to roam the ship freely. Concurrently, a ravenous fungus and insect infestation crippled numerous ship systems. John is eventually captured by Malan, who kills his daughter in revenge for John sabotaging the ship's oxygen gardens.

Reaching the escape deck, John shatters a portal and vents Dr. Malan into space, before falling and breaking his leg. Reluctantly, Te'ah acknowledges she engineered the hybrids' escape and destruction of the Groomlake, in order to find Ellen, in who bone marrow Te'ah has implanted genetic material containing all of Malan's research, which Te'ah plans to sell in vengeance against Cayne Corporation for the murder of her husband. John tricks the ship security systems into killing Te'ah, ruining the last stasis pod in the process. John reprogrammes the escape shuttle to take his wife away from the ship. In an epilogue, it appears Ellen has been dead all along.

Gameplay

The game adopts the classic point-and-click system to allow interactions with the environment and utilises PDA data to help unravel aspects of the story.

Music

The game's soundtrack has been composed by Mark Morgan, with additional by Daniel Sadowski.

Development

The game was part funded through a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign, raising $132,523 in December 2013. By that time, the game had already been in development for three years by The Brotherhood, a three-man team based in South Africa. This allowed for an alpha demo of the game to be released alongside the campaign.[6][7]

Tarryn Van Der Byl of IGN interviewed Stasis creator Chris Bischoff on October 16, 2014, who listed the influences of the game from the films Alien and Event Horizon to gameplay aspects from Dead Space.[3] A Beta was launched on August 8, 2015 for backers. The game has been officially released in August 2015.[1]

Cayne, a prequel to Stasis, was released for free in January 2017.[8]

STASIS: BONE TOTEM, a full game sequel to the game, was released in May 2023[9] to generally favourable reviews.[10]

Reception

The game received generally positive reviews, with a score of 79 out of 100 on Metacritic.[11] Rock Paper Shotgun was positive towards the game in their review, saying "Despite some characterisation wobbles and a somewhat perfunctory final mile, STASIS is the best adventure game I’ve played in years. It’s also one of the most impressive horror games I’ve played lately."[12] Destructoid awarded it 8.5 out of 10, saying "STASIS is a game that is not to be missed by anyone craving an eerie and sinister experience."[13] IGN Africa awarded it 9 out of 10, saying "The Brotherhood's debut game is as brilliant as it is profoundly disturbing."[14]

References
  1. Nunneley, Stephany (2015-08-07). "2D isometric sci-fi horror game Stasis will finally be released this month". VG247. Retrieved 2015-09-07.
  2. "Stasis shows sci-fi horror from a different perspective". Destructoid.com. 10 August 2015. Retrieved 2015-09-07.
  3. Tarryn van der Byl (2014-10-16). "Preview Stasis: rAge 2014: In Stasis, no one can hear you scream". Za.ign.com. Retrieved 2015-09-07.
  4. Matulef, Jeffrey (3 December 2013). "Isometric point-and-click horror adventure Stasis awakens on Kickstarter". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  5. Meer, Alec (19 May 2014). "Sanitawesomium: STASIS Isn't Standing Still". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  6. Christopher Bischoff (2013-11-04). "STASIS - 2D Isometric SciFi Horror Adventure Game". Kickstarter. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
  7. Miklós Szecsei (2013-11-27). "South African made STASIS brings the isometric horror". IGN. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
  8. Chalk, Andy (23 January 2017). "Cayne, the free horror adventure from the makers of Stasis, comes out tomorrow". PC Gamer. Future plc. Retrieved 3 April 2017.
  9. "Save 25% on STASIS: BONE TOTEM on Steam". store.steampowered.com. Retrieved 2023-09-20.
  10. "STASIS: BONE TOTEM". www.metacritic.com. Retrieved 2023-09-20.
  11. "STASIS for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2015-09-07.
  12. Meer, Alec (2015-09-01). "STASIS review PC". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved 2015-09-07.
  13. "Review: STASIS". Destructoid.com. 2015-08-31. Retrieved 2015-09-07.
  14. "Stasis - Review - Mad science | IGN Africa". Za.ign.com. 2015-08-30. Retrieved 2015-09-07.
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