Perception on Kickstarter: An Echolocation Nightmare

When the term “nightmare” is used to describe echolocation, there may be those who find that offensive.

When the term “nightmare” is used to describe echolocation, there may be those who find that offensive. When it’s in relation to the horror game being produced by The Deep End Games, however, it’s more than appropriate. Perception is currently seeking funding on Kickstarter, and promises a new way of viewing the world using sound as a guide. The problem here is that the main character’s sounds aren’t the only ones that can create a visual, and by the time the player sees it, it may already be too late…

Like Devil’s Tuning Fork , the method for navigation by the main character (Cassie) is echolocation. Cassie is exploring the past, bit by bit, in order to exorcise her own nightmare demons – a tall order for anyone, let alone a person who is blind. Sound passes over objects and gives them shape, showing the life (in whatever form it may take) of a house that has featured heavily in Cassie’s dreams for quite some time. After countless unconscious interactions with The Presence in this mansion, Cassie discovers that there is a very real estate called Echo Bluff which conforms to her “dream home” to a startling degree. Not being the sort to rest on her laurels, Cassie decides to see if her dreams were prophetic. Spoiler alert: Not only do her nightmares come to light (so to speak), but even with her acute hearing – which allows her to see nearly impeccable details in her environment – evasion and hiding are Cassie’s only weapons against The Presence, as well as other creatures which come out when provoked.

Tapping with her cane produces sight for Cassie.

In Perception , puzzles must be solved in order to progress through Echo Bluff, and each solution will reset the entire house’s demeanor, creating new challenges which require different techniques to continue to prevail. Making too much noise draws out The Presence, but as sound is required to see, sometimes cheating the system is the best course of action. Possessing a sharp wit, Cassie still requires the player’s help to navigate the halls and find all of the pieces of her personal nightmare (through the history of the house, as it so happens), so she can put it behind her once and for all. The developers on this project include folks who’ve worked on Bioshock , Bioshock Infinite , and Dead Space for both console and PC, and their goal of $150,000 is to ensure the best possible experience for the player while covering the expenses inherent in creating such an ambitious project.

The howling wind reveals Echo Bluff’s estate.

Backers of the Perception Kickstartercan receive rewards from a digital wallpaper download at the $5 tier, a copy of the game on Steam at $20, and a top-tier $3000 pledge will net you a chance to hang out with the dev team while they go on haunted adventures (a pub crawl in Salem, MA, and a visit to their favorite haunted farm/scream-park), though travel expenses aren’t included. With 1,294 current backers (as of this writing), and $54,105 in pledges, The Deep End Games team is already a third of the way to their goal, with 27 days left in their campaign.

Follow The Deep End Games on Twitter @ TheDeepEndGames. A Tumblris under construction, but might possibly house information once production gets into full swing. Perception ‘s prospective release date is early 2016, provided they receive enough funding to continue on their current development schedule. Currently, it is only slated for Windows, but Mac and Linux will be implemented at a $175,000 stretch goal.