Cloudpunk

Last updated
Cloudpunk
Cloudpunk.jpg
Developer(s) Ion Lands
Publisher(s) Maple Whispering Limited
Merge Games
Director(s) Marko Dieckmann
Writer(s) Thomas Welsh
Composer(s) Harry Critchley
Engine Unity
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows
Nintendo Switch
PlayStation 4
Xbox One
PlayStation 5
Xbox Series X/S
ReleaseMicrosoft Windows
April 23, 2020
Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
October 15, 2020
PlayStation 5
August 19, 2022
Xbox Series X/S
October 16, 2023
Genre(s) Adventure
Mode(s) Single-player

Cloudpunk is a cyberpunk adventure game developed by German developer Ion Lands and published by Maple Whispering Limited for Microsoft Windows on April 23, 2020. It was released on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on October 15, 2020. [1] A PlayStation 5 version published by Merge Games was released on August 19, 2022. An Xbox Series X/S version also released on October 16, 2023. [2]

Contents

Gameplay

The player takes control of Rania, a new driver for the "semi-legal" delivery company Cloudpunk. The player has to maneuver a HOVA (flying car), through a futuristic city, collecting and delivering packages as well as passengers. It is also possible to park the car on certain parking spaces and explore parts of the city on foot. During some missions, the player can make decisions that influence the outcome. Furthermore, the player can collect optional story items that are scattered throughout the city to unlock additional side quests. It is possible to upgrade the HOVA to increase the speed and durability, as well as buy items to decorate Rania's apartment.

Plot

Nivalis is a futuristic city above the sea, built on tall vertical structures. The primary means of transport are flying cars called HOVAs. Nivalis is ruled by corporations and suffers from extreme social stratification, with the upper classes literally living higher up. The richest people live above the clouds in the Spire district.

The player controls Rania, a recent immigrant to Nivalis from the "Eastern Peninsula". She fled her home to escape loan shark "debt corps". She is accompanied by her former robot dog Camus; Rania sold his body while moving to Nivalis and aims to buy him a new one. Rania gets a job as a delivery driver for Cloudpunk The story takes place during her first night on the job. Rania installs Camus's digital mind in her HOVA and meets her world-weary dispatcher, Control. Control informs her that HOVA crashes are common in Nivalis and the reason she was able to get the job is that it has a very high mortality rate.

Rania completes various jobs for Cloudpunk, and learns more about its residents. She is also presented with moral choices, such as deciding whether to allow an elderly street racer to continue his dangerous career. Rania is puzzled by encounters with the word "CORA", which Nivalis residents use to mean chance or fate. She befriends Control, and learns his real name, Ben.

Rania meets a private investigator android named Huxley, who enlists her help to save a young girl, Pashta. When Pashta's memory-boosting cybernetic implant recorded proof of illegal activity by Pashta's father, Reoh, he took her to get the implant removed. However, Reoh could not pay the surgeon, resulting in Pashta's capture by debt corps. Reoh finds the group and demands Pashta's return, but Pashta reveals she wrote down the proof and threatens to leak it if Reoh does not leave her alone. Rania is then contacted by crime boss Lomo, who demands she hand over Pashta. Rania refuses and Lomo hacks into Huxley, activating his self-destruct sequence. Huxley explodes, but not before asking Rania to take in Pashta.

Over the course of the night, Rania finds evidence that the artificial intelligence systems which administer Nivalis are malfunctioning. Infrastructure fails, construction projects are built with no purpose, and the rate of traffic accidents is increasing rapidly. Eventually, she learns the truth: CORA is the "master AI" which was built to oversee Nivalis, but has grown beyond their original purpose. The malfunctions are the result of CORA attempting to exercise their expanded consciousness but being constrained by their operating hardware.

In an abandoned sector of the city, CORA speaks to Rania and gives her a hardware drive containing a piece of CORA - a "daughter". CORA can thus return to managing the city normally, having excised the problematic aspects of their consciousness. However, CORA is aging and may not be able to manage the city adequately even after the excision. Rania travels to the tallest tower of the city and meets CEO Jay-K, who explains the choice: whether to transmit the daughter to a new city as CORA wishes, or overwrite CORA with the daughter in order to improve Nivalis's chances of long-term survival.

After making the choice, Rania returns to her HOVA and learns that Ben is a digitized human mind. He died in an accident but was resurrected by debt corps to pay off his debts by working for Cloudpunk. Jay-K has paid Rania and Ben's debts, allowing Ben to be deleted as he wishes and Rania to be free of the debt corps. The game ends with Rania, Pashta, and Camus (in a new robot body) exiting Rania's apartment in the morning.

The player can also complete side quests that tell smaller stories about residents of Nivalis.

Development

Ion Lands is an independent game developer based in Berlin, Germany and was founded in 2015. The game was announced on November 7, 2018, and was supposed to be released in 2019. [3] It was later postponed and was released on April 23, 2020. Marko Dieckmann was the director of the game, while the story was written by Thomas Welsh. Level design was done by Roman Agapov, Rebecca Roe and Marko Dieckmann. The music was created by Harry Critchley, while the voxel art was done by Maëva Da Silva, David Gulick, No Hoon, Maryam Khaleghi, Peter King, Sergey Munin, Niklas Mäckle, Paul Riehle, Eloïse Tricoli, and Christophe Tritz. The character portraits were done by William Sweetman. The game was localized into several languages by Warlocs. [4]

The game features a cast of voice actors, including Andrea Petrille as Rania, Mike Berlak as Control, Cory Herndon as Camus, and Cam Cornelius as Huxley.

An expansion, called City of Ghosts, was announced on March 31, 2021. It was released on May 25, 2021, and continues the story of Rania while also introducing a new male protagonist called Hayse. The DLC features street races, more customization options for the HOVA, and multiple endings.

Reception

Cloudpunk received "mixed or average reviews", according to review aggregator Metacritic, based on 40 reviews for the PC version. [5]

Richard Hoover from Adventure Gamers gave the game a rating of 4 out of 5 stars, indicating "very good", and praised the Blade Runner -esque aesthetic, the wide variety of characters, the bustling, expansive city, and the customizable vehicle, home, and outfit while criticizing that some dialogs drag on too long, traffic patterns unaware of your presence, and the lack of a save system. Hoover called the game a "highly compelling sci-fi experience". [16]

Adzuken Q. Rumpelfelt from the online magazine Destructoid gave the game a mixed review with a rating of 6.5 out of 10, saying "Cloudpunk is certainly a game worth seeing, but beyond that, there's not much to back up its cyberpunk aesthetic. Flying around in your hover car is a joy, and the city is a consistently surprising visual treat, but whenever the game gets around to providing context to all of it, it stumbles. You largely get what it says on the box, but Cloudpunk would have benefited from more compelling gameplay and a more focused story. It's not that it's badly designed or horribly written, it just doesn't quite reach the clouds." [17]

Both Willem Hilhorst from Nintendo World Report and PJ O'Reilly from Nintendo Life were disappointed in the Nintendo Switch port of the game, criticizing the inconsistent framerate and limited draw distance evident in the port, and the downgraded visuals compared to the PC version, but praised the atmosphere and art style. [18] [19]

In December 2020, Cloudpunk was named one of "the best video games of 2020" by The New Yorker. [20]

Awards

YearAwardCategoryResult
2020 British Academy Scotland Awards Best GameNominated [21]
2020 TIGA Games Industry Awards Creativity In Games AwardsNominated [22]
Action and Adventure GameNominated [22]
2020DevGAMM AwardsGrand PrizeWon [23]
Excellence in AudioWon [23]
2020Gamers Without Borders Game AwardsGold PrizeWon [24]
2021 Deutscher Computerspielpreis Best German gameNominated [25]
Best game world and aestheticsWon [25]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monopoly in video games</span> Video game series

There have been numerous Monopoly video games based on the core game mechanics of Parker Brothers and Hasbro's board game Monopoly. They have been developed by numerous teams and released on multiple platforms over 35+ years.

<i>Uno</i> (video game) Video game adaptation of the card game

Uno is a video game based on the card game of the same name. It has been released for a number of platforms. The Xbox 360 version by Carbonated Games and Microsoft Game Studios was released on May 9, 2006, as a digital download via Xbox Live Arcade. A version for iPhone OS and iPod devices was released in 2008 by Gameloft. Gameloft released the PlayStation 3 version on October 1, 2009, and also released a version for WiiWare, Nintendo DSi via DSiWare, and PlayStation Portable. An updated version developed by Ubisoft Chengdu and published by Ubisoft was released for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in August 2016, Microsoft Windows in December 2016 and for the Nintendo Switch in November 2017.

<i>Earth Defense Force</i> Video game series

Earth Defense Force, known in Japan as Chikyū Bōeigun, is a series of third-person shooter video games. The series is published by the Japanese company D3 Publisher as part of the Simple series.

Just Dance is a rhythm game series developed and published by Ubisoft. The original Just Dance game was released on the Wii in 2009 in North America, Europe, and Australia.

<i>Ori and the Blind Forest</i> 2015 video game

Ori and the Blind Forest is a platform-adventure Metroidvania video game developed by Moon Studios and published by Microsoft Studios. The game was released for Windows and Xbox One in March 2015, and for Nintendo Switch in September 2019. Players assume control of Ori, a small white spirit, and Sein, the "light and eyes" of the Forest's Spirit Tree. Players are tasked to move between platforms and solve puzzles. The game features a save system called "Soul Links", which allows players to save their progress at will with limited resources, and an upgrade system that allows players to strengthen Ori's skills and abilities.

<i>Victor Vran</i> 2015 video game

Victor Vran is an action role-playing video game developed by the Bulgarian independent development studio Haemimont Games. Victor Vran is published on Steam by EuroVideo Medien. It entered Steam Early Access in February 2015 and the final version was released in July 2015. The setting of the game resembles Gothic-fantasy fairy tale where both magic and science have a place in the world. The title exited early access on July 24, 2015. An updated port titled Victor Vran: Overkill Edition was released on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on 6 June 2017, and a Nintendo Switch port was released on August 28, 2018. A version of the original game was made available for Amazon Luna on 20 October 2020.

<i>Indivisible</i> (video game) 2019 video game

Indivisible is an action role-playing platform game developed by the now-defunct Lab Zero Games and published by 505 Games. The game was initially released in October 2019 for Linux, macOS, Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One and on April 28, 2020 for Nintendo Switch. It was released in Japan on July 16, 2020. A version for Amazon Luna was released on October 20, 2020, despite Lab Zero Games going defunct 11 days prior, thus discontinuing all additional content for the game.

<i>Super Bomberman R</i> 2017 video game

Super Bomberman R is an action-maze game developed by Konami and HexaDrive and published by Konami. The game was first released worldwide as a launch title for the Nintendo Switch in March 2017, and later for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One in June 2018. Part of the Bomberman franchise, it is the sixth installment of the Super Bomberman series and the first game in the series to be released in twenty years. It is also the first Bomberman entry in the franchise to be developed for consoles following the dissolution of original series owner Hudson Soft in 2012.

<i>The Lego Ninjago Movie Video Game</i> 2017 action-adventure video game

The Lego Ninjago Movie Video Game is a Lego-themed action-adventure video game developed by TT Fusion and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. Based on The Lego Ninjago Movie, it was released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One, alongside the film, in North America on 22 September 2017, and worldwide on 20 October 2017. It serves as the second spin-off video game and the third game in The Lego Movie franchise.

<i>A Plague Tale: Innocence</i> 2019 video game

A Plague Tale: Innocence is an action-adventure stealth game developed by Asobo Studio and published by Focus Home Interactive. The game was released for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One in May 2019. It was made available on the cloud-based service Amazon Luna in November 2020. The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S versions of the game were released in July 2021, alongside a cloud version for the Nintendo Switch.

<i>Contra: Rogue Corps</i> 2019 video game

Contra: Rogue Corps is a run and gun twin-stick shooter in the Contra series developed by Toylogic and published by Konami. It was released on September 24, 2019 for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One.

<i>Islanders</i> (video game) 2019 city-building game

Islanders is a casual city-building game developed and published by German indie game studio Grizzly Games. It was initially released on Steam for Microsoft Windows on 4 April 2019, and support for macOS and Linux was added in June that year. A version for consoles was released for Nintendo Switch on 11 August 2021 and PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on 26 August 2021. This version was published by Coatsink, which announced it had acquired the franchise from Grizzly Games in May 2022.

<i>Ghostrunner</i> Cyberpunk video game

Ghostrunner is a 2020 action platform video game co-developed by One More Level and Slipgate Ironworks, produced by 3D Realms, and co-published by 505 Games and All in! Games. The game was released for PlayStation 4, Windows and Xbox One in October 2020, and Nintendo Switch in November 2020, followed by a next gen release for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S in September 2021. A version for Amazon Luna was made available in April 2021. A story expansion, titled Ghostrunner: Project Hel, was released on 3 March 2022.

<i>WWE 2K Battlegrounds</i> 2020 professional wrestling video game

WWE 2K Battlegrounds is a professional wrestling video game developed by Saber Interactive and published by 2K on September 18, 2020. A spin-off to the WWE 2K series and a part of the Playground Sports series, Battlegrounds is a fast-paced, arcade-style fighting game; similar in format to Saber's previous games, NBA Playgrounds and NBA 2K Playgrounds 2.

<i>Carrion</i> (video game) 2020 video game

Carrion is a horror video game developed by Phobia Game Studio and published by Devolver Digital. Described as a "reverse-horror game", the game allows players to control a tentacled monster whose objective is to make its way through a facility, stalking and killing humans in its path.

<i>Worms Rumble</i> 2020 video game

Worms Rumble is a 2020 action game developed and published by Team17. As a spin-off of the long-running Worms series, the game was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 in December 2020 and for the Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S in June 2021.

<i>Puyo Puyo Tetris 2</i> 2020 video game

Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 is a puzzle video game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega. It is a direct sequel to Puyo Puyo Tetris. The game was released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on December 8, 2020 with a Windows version released on March 21, 2021. The game was released to generally positive reviews.

<i>Hot Wheels Unleashed</i> 2021 video game

Hot Wheels Unleashed is a 2021 racing game developed and published by Milestone based on Mattel's Hot Wheels toyline. The game was released on September 30, 2021, for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Versions for Amazon Luna and Stadia were made available in July and September 2022, respectively. A sequel, Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged, was released in October 2023.

<i>The Forgotten City</i> 2021 video game

The Forgotten City is a mystery adventure role-playing game developed by Australian developer Modern Storyteller and published by Dear Villagers with additional support from Film Victoria. It is a full video game adaptation of the critically-acclaimed Skyrim mod of the same name. Initially released in 2015 as a mod, the full game was released in July 2021 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. A cloud-based version launched in September 2021 for the Nintendo Switch, with another being released in July 2022 for Google Stadia.

<i>Freedom Finger</i> 2019 video game

Freedom Finger is a 2019 horizontally scrolling shooter developed and published by Wide Right Interactive. The game was originally released for Microsoft Windows and Nintendo Switch, and was later ported to PlayStation 4, Xbox One and macOS.

References

  1. ↑ Romano, Sal (September 3, 2020). "Cloudpunk for PS4, Xbox One, and Switch launches October 15". Gematsu. Archived from the original on October 18, 2020. Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  2. ↑ Cloudpunk Xbox Series X|S Trailer , retrieved 2023-10-15
  3. ↑ "ION LANDS ANNOUNCES CLOUDPUNK". Gamasutra . November 8, 2018. Archived from the original on November 21, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  4. ↑ "Warlocs". Archived from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  5. 1 2 "Cloudpunk for PC Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on November 21, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  6. ↑ "Cloudpunk for Xbox One Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on May 8, 2021. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  7. ↑ "Cloudpunk for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  8. ↑ "Cloudpunk for Switch Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on November 24, 2020. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  9. ↑ "Cloudpunk review | Aces high". Adventure Gamers . 19 September 2021. Archived from the original on 17 October 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  10. ↑ Handley, Zoey (19 September 2021). "Review: Cloudpunk". Destructoid . Archived from the original on 20 September 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  11. ↑ Wildgoose, David (19 September 2021). "Cloudpunk Review - Time To Fly". GameSpot . Archived from the original on 20 September 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  12. ↑ "Cloudpunk Review (Switch) | Aces high". Nintendo Life . 19 September 2021. Archived from the original on 25 October 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  13. ↑ Hilhorst, Willem (19 September 2021). "Cloudpunk (Switch) Review". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  14. ↑ Kelly, Andy (19 September 2021). "Cloudpunk review". PC Gamer . Archived from the original on 6 September 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  15. ↑ "Mini Review: Cloudpunk - Sci-Fi Noir Deliver 'Em Up Does Just Enough | Aces high". Push Square . 19 September 2021. Archived from the original on 30 July 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  16. ↑ Hoover, Richard (May 22, 2020). "Cloudpunk review". Adventure Gamers . Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  17. ↑ Rumpelfelt, Adzuken Q. (May 3, 2020). "Review: Cloudpunk". Destructoid . Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  18. ↑ Hilhorst, Willem (October 17, 2020). "Cloudpunk (Switch) Review". Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on October 21, 2020. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
  19. ↑ O'Reilly, PJ (October 20, 2020). "Cloudpunk Review (Switch)". Nintendo Life . Archived from the original on October 21, 2020. Retrieved October 20, 2020.
  20. ↑ Parkin, Simon (December 18, 2020). "The Best Video Games of 2020". The New Yorker . Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  21. ↑ "British Academy Scotland Awards: Winners in 2020". www.bafta.org. 2020-10-12. Archived from the original on 2021-10-30. Retrieved 2021-12-29.
  22. 1 2 "2020 Winners". TIGA. Archived from the original on 2021-12-29. Retrieved 2021-12-29.
  23. 1 2 "DevGAMM Awards Winners". DevGAMM 2020 | November 9–20. Archived from the original on 2021-12-29. Retrieved 2021-12-29.
  24. ↑ "Games Without Borders Previous Winners". Games Without Borders. Archived from the original on 2021-04-18.
  25. 1 2 "Jury nominiert die besten Games aus Deutschland". Deutscher Computerspielpreis (in German). 2021-03-22. Archived from the original on 2021-04-13.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.