The Swapper | Claymation Puzzle Sci-fi Platformer

TychoCelchuuu

http://www.youtube.com/watch?d&v=7DMp1uc6aJQ


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http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=fBnKkTQn1x0

The Swapper is a sidescrolling puzzle game where you can clone yourself and inhabit the clones to solve puzzles. It's claymationy.



It looks really pretty. It is one of the games funded by the Indie Fund and it has been in development a while (since at least 2009).



It is coming to Steam on May 30th. The story is written by Tom Jubert, the writer for stuff like Penumbra and FTL and Binary Domain.



Check out the game's blog for updates from the developers. Here are their tips for getting ready for the game:

- Isolate yourself for long periods of time. This will acclimate you to your new, desolate environment and help ward off space dementia.
- Practice solving puzzles by pushing all buttons, levers, blocks and switches you come across in your day to day. If this causes trouble, just swap to one of your clones and leave the old one behind!
- Oh, be sure to start cloning yourself. That part is also important.
- Wear your space suit daily, including during rigorous physical exercise, sleeping and eating. You need to be familiar and nimble with your equipment on.

So yeah try that shit.

Linespider5

There really ought a be more claymation games. I'd swear that there's only ever been, like, less than twenty ever even made.

Sterica

Claymation is really, really expensive.

I mean, that goes for stop-motion animation in general.

Linespider5

Oh, no doubt. The difficulty of it just makes me want to see it even more.

jothki

It'll eventually get easier, once computers get good enough to properly simulate it.

Zenitram

This looks cool as hell.

TychoCelchuuu

Gameplay from PAX:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=6BLdChpUP5I#!

TychoCelchuuu

via @Iolo I found this article at The PA Report about the game.

iolo

via @TychoCelchuuu I found this thread.

InkSplat

Any info on controller support? It doesn't look too fast paced, so it seems like right analog for aiming clones should work pretty well?

Sterica

Steam doesn't list Big Picture nor any controller support, but it also doesn't list a price so...I dunno.

InkSplat

According to the Steam Community Forum for the game, there's no controller support. Which is a pity. Looking forward to some impressions though.

Magic Pink

jothki wrote: »

It'll eventually get easier, once computers get good enough to properly simulate it.

I don't ever want to see computer simulated claymation.

TychoCelchuuu

Rock Paper Shotgun review.

TychoCelchuuu

I have found the most pointless YouTube video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2eUE4JAP-s&feature=youtu.be

cooljammer00

It's a moving screenshot. If they could put it as a desktop background they would.

TychoCelchuuu

Back in my day we called those ".gifs" but I guess the kids these days have to do everything on the You Tubes.

Ragnar Dragonfyre

Rorus Raz wrote: »

Claymation is really, really expensive.

I mean, that goes for stop-motion animation in general.

It's also very tedious and time consuming.

When I began my education in animation, I really wanted to get into stop-motion animation until I actually tried it. Ugh. Animating is difficult enough as is without the constant upkeep on keeping a character armature from falling apart mid-production. Admittedly, nowadays if you have the resources, you can get your armatures molded through 3D printing... but if you're doing it old school with wires and clay? It takes a ton of patience.

http://www.scarletstarstudios.com/blog/archives/2009/02/coraline_puppet_technology_with_photos.html

http://www.slashfilm.com/laika-3d-color-printers-create-stopmotion-animated-movie-paranorman-50-learned-set/

Stop-motion animators have my utmost respect.

cooljammer00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2jqKiVHS6x4

Cantido

Ragnar Dragonfyre wrote: »

Rorus Raz wrote: »

Claymation is really, really expensive.

I mean, that goes for stop-motion animation in general.

It's also very tedious and time consuming.

When I began my education in animation, I really wanted to get into stop-motion animation until I actually tried it. Ugh. Animating is difficult enough as is without the constant upkeep on keeping a character armature from falling apart mid-production. Admittedly, nowadays if you have the resources, you can get your armatures molded through 3D printing... but if you're doing it old school with wires and clay? It takes a ton of patience.

http://www.scarletstarstudios.com/blog/archives/2009/02/coraline_puppet_technology_with_photos.html

http://www.slashfilm.com/laika-3d-color-printers-create-stopmotion-animated-movie-paranorman-50-learned-set/

Stop-motion animators have my utmost respect.

I bought this game so hard at the sight of that trailer. The textures of the environment are absolutely breathtaking.

Also, this discussion got me thinking about Ardaman Studio's works (Wallace and Gromit, Flushed Away.) What's to stop them from using CGI and then tinkering with the framerate to give it a Stop Motion effect? Or am I confusing stop motion animation with stop motion models? After all, Swapper moves at 60 FPS but the models are obviously clay.

EDIT - I'm in love with this game. The puzzles, the visuals, the utterly depressing mood are all brilliant. This is a must have.

Cantido

I'm stuck on a puzzle. EDIT - picture changed

If I had more clones this wouldn't be a problem, but you have to lose two just to open the gate.

EDIT EDIT - Okay I got it, but I have a huge warning for players who reach at least 124 orbs. There is a point of no return...

I got a bad ending with no way to go back after you land the space station.

Using the swapper on the astronaut who is ordered to leave you behind leads to an abrupt ending with no way to rewind. Selecting Continue just plays the credits again.

Sterica

Aardman fell to the dark side and their last two or so films have been cgi.

cooljammer00

Rorus Raz wrote: »

Aardman fell to the dark side and their last two or so films have been cgi.

Well CGI is much harder to put into a warehouse that gets set on fire.

Dranyth

Yeah, I finished this earlier tonight, pretty sweet game. I'll have to play through it again to get the other ending and I guess find all the super secret rooms/consoles for the achievements. Though I have a guide for it, no way I'm trying to find those things by myself, just glancing at the guide, they're hidden insanely for the most part.

Did anyone find Log #13? As far as I can tell, it doesn't exist.

Edit: And just finished my second runthrough to get the super secrets and get the other ending, took about 2 hours, roughly. I noticed that there are some other missing logs, very strange.

Cantido

Uhh...Does this game have more than two endings?

The credits list an antagonist voice but I didn't find any antagonist.

1. In my first playthrough I stole the body of the rescue team worker to GTFO.
2. In the second playthrough I stayed behind and jumped to my death while the Watchers' try and figure out what death is.

Neither one really gives closure with what is going on with the Watchers or the Head.

EDIT - Okay, the Watchers seem pretty content in the end but they were still wigging out because of Doctors Dennett and Chalmers.

Maybe it's possible to invade the Head like Chalmers said?

Guitar Hero Of Time

Beat this. Not quite as in love with it as others seem to be, but it is a very well done game.

Took about 3~4 hours to beat. I was hoping that more mechanics would open up as the game went, but that only sort-of happens. Didn't care much for the story.

Definitely worth playing.

Cantido

Heh, I don't think I could handle any more mechanics. But that ending left me craving an Act 3.

Instead, its making me crave playing Portal 2 again, or perhaps it's co op, which I never played.

cooljammer00

You...you should play Portal 2's coop.

azith28

Magic Pink wrote: »

jothki wrote: »

It'll eventually get easier, once computers get good enough to properly simulate it.

I don't ever want to see computer simulated claymation.

Don't be so negative...look at the semi-recent kerby's epic yarn game...it had some very amazing textures that looked pretty damn impressive. I bet they could do the look of clay pretty well.

azith28

I hit a room kinda early on and while i dont really want a flat out solution to it, i just want to know if its doable yet.
if you really dont need any upgrades, then please share a hint.

Are there any kind of items that enhance your abilities that will be neccesary to solve any puzzle you encounter? The room im talking about is just a simple two level room, upper level is red mist with an orb at the end, lower level is purple mist with a pressure plate all the way at the end.

The purple mist is acting i think as both blue and red, and due to some odd beams on the ground, my clones get destroyed when i send them in to hit the pressure plate (which turns off the blue mist above). Since it seems i must use my main guy to stand on the pressure plate, yet i cant make a clone on the upper level it has me wondering if i need some new ability.

Cantido

Heh, you described like three rooms that left me begging for mercy. Take a steam screenshot and post the gallery link and I'll see if I can give a hint or two.

Also, you have everything you need from start to finish. You collect two components in the mining area at the beginning and there are no upgrades of any kind.

azith28

What are the two upgrades? I know about the first one that lets you swap places but whats the second?

Dranyth

He just means the clone creation gun itself, then the component that makes it the Swapper. There are no other 'upgrades', all puzzles are doable when you get to them.

BradicusMaximus

I can't even play the damn game. Crashes on startup

Cantido

Oh, also, there's just two endings with no way to go back and view the other. There is no third that I was speculating on. The whole things just leave me craving just a bit more. Both endings are chilling though.

I was expecting an Act 3 regarding the Head Watcher, but nope.

azith28

I figured that puzzle out. I'm only able to play it for like 30 minutes at a time before something calls me away, but its really good.

Cantido

And for those unwilling to play twice, both endings made it to Youtube. View at your own risk.

TychoCelchuuu

50% off on Steam during a flash sale right now.

TychoCelchuuu

On sale for $5 at the new Humble Store! 10% goes to charity. You get a Steam key!

TychoCelchuuu

Attention weirdos who didn't buy this in the Steam sale, it's cheap on Steam again.

maximumzero

TychoCelchuuu wrote: »

Attention weirdos who didn't buy this in the Steam sale, it's cheap on Steam again.

Don't you call me a weirdo.