Heaven's Vault

Last updated
Heaven's Vault
Heaven's Vault cover.jpg
Developer(s) Inkle
Publisher(s) Inkle
Designer(s) Jon Ingold, Joseph Humfrey
Programmer(s) Joseph Humfrey
Artist(s) Laura Dilloway
Writer(s) Jon Ingold
Composer(s) Laurence Chapman
Engine Ink [1]
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch
ReleasePlayStation 4, Windows
  • WW: April 16, 2019
Nintendo Switch
  • WW: January 28, 2021
Genre(s) Adventure game
Mode(s) Single-player

Heaven's Vault is an archaeological science-fiction adventure game released by Inkle for Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 4 on April 16, 2019, and for Nintendo Switch on January 28, 2021.

Contents

Gameplay

In Heaven's Vault, the player takes the role of an archaeologist called Aliya Elasra who has a robotic companion called Six. [2] The game follows the course of their adventure as they 'sail' between the moons of the Nebula searching for a missing roboticist called Janniqi Renba. [3]

The player has to decipher and learn the hieroglyphic language of the Ancients, a lost civilization. [4] This involves finding and collecting inscriptions from ancient artifacts, sites and ruins and translating and discussing texts with other characters. [5]

The developers say that over a thousand words written in Ancient, the game's fictional language, can be found and say that its pictorial glyphs are inspired by Ancient Egyptian and Chinese writing systems. [6]

The player can choose their own route through the story and around the Nebula as it employs a non-linear approach to narrative storytelling, allowing the player to make choices that impact the plot. [7]

Reception

On its release, Heaven's Vault was met with "generally favourable" reviews from critics for Microsoft Windows, with an aggregate score of 76/100, and "mixed or average reviews" with an aggregate score of 71/100 for PlayStation 4 on Metacritic. [8] [9]

Music

Laurence Chapman composed the soundtrack for the game. Chapman recruited Brookspeare Music for recording the strings. He also added subtle synth pads as a reminder that Heaven's Vault is a science fiction game. [15] Richard Brooker from Brookspeare Music also mixed the soundtrack. [16]

Novelisation

In 2021, Inkle published two tie-in novels for the game, Heaven's Vault - I. The Loop and Heaven's Vault - II. The Vault. [17] Written by Jon Ingold, Heaven's Vault's writer, the books also follow the story of Aliya and Six, but feature a different plot to the game.

Accolades

YearAwardCategoryResultRef
2019 The Independent Game Developers' Association AwardsBest Role-Playing GameNominated [18]
2019 Golden Joystick Awards PC Game of the YearNominated [19]
2020 Writers' Guild of Great Britain AwardsBest Writing in a Video GameNominated [20]
New York Game AwardsOff Broadway Award for Best Indie GameNominated [21]
NAVGTR AwardsGame, Special ClassNominated [22]
MCV/Develop AwardsGameplay Innovation of the YearNominated [23]
Narrative Innovation of the YearNominated
Independent Games Festival AwardsExcellence in NarrativeWon [24]
16th British Academy Games Awards British Game Nominated [25]

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References

  1. ↑ "Press kit - Heaven's Vault". Inkle. Retrieved 2025-02-03.
  2. ↑ Hoon Chan, Khee (April 16, 2019). "Heaven's Vault review: an archaeology video game actually about archaeology". Polygon. Archived from the original on April 18, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  3. ↑ Warr, Phillipa (April 16, 2019). "HEAVEN'S VAULT REVIEW". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on April 19, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  4. ↑ O'Connor, James (April 16, 2019). "Heaven's Vault Review - Come Sail Away". Gamespot. Archived from the original on April 19, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  5. ↑ Bell, Alice (April 16, 2019). "Wot I Think: Heaven's Vault". Rock Paper Shotgun . Archived from the original on April 17, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  6. ↑ "'80 Days devs Inkle have opened Heaven's Vault' – Rock Paper Shotgun". Rock Paper Shotgun. 6 April 2019. Archived from the original on 16 April 2019. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
  7. ↑ Donlan, Christian (April 16, 2019). "Heaven's Vault review - a rich web of possibility". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on April 16, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  8. 1 2 "Heaven's Vault for PC Reviews". Metacritic . Archived from the original on 2019-06-07. Retrieved 2019-08-10.
  9. 1 2 "Heaven's Vault for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic . Archived from the original on 2019-06-19. Retrieved 2019-04-25.
  10. ↑ Donlan, Christian (2019-04-16). "Heaven's Vault review - a rich web of possibility". Eurogamer . Archived from the original on 2019-10-14. Retrieved 2019-08-10.
  11. ↑ Favis, Elise (2019-04-18). "Heaven's Vault Review – Unearthing Ancient Mysteries". Game Informer . Archived from the original on April 18, 2019. Retrieved 2019-08-10.
  12. ↑ O'Connor, James (2019-04-16). "Heaven's Vault Review - Come Sail Away". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2019-06-19. Retrieved 2019-08-10.
  13. ↑ Warr, Philippa (2019-04-16). "Heaven's Vault review". PC Gamer . Archived from the original on 2019-08-10. Retrieved 2019-08-10.
  14. ↑ Dingman, Hayden (2019-04-17). "Heaven's Vault review: In search of lost time". PC World . Archived from the original on 2019-04-19. Retrieved 2019-08-10.
  15. ↑ "Laurence Chapman's Unique Music For An Unusual Journey In 'Heaven's Vault'". WSHU. 2019-05-09. Archived from the original on 2022-12-07. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
  16. ↑ "Heaven's Vault (2019) PlayStation 4 credits". MobyGames. Archived from the original on 2022-06-01. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
  17. ↑ Director, Graham Smith Editorial; Smith, Graham (2021-11-18). "Heaven's Vault is now a two volume novel". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 2025-01-24.
  18. ↑ "2019 Winners". The Independent Game Developers' Association . 2019-11-07. Archived from the original on 2022-09-26. Retrieved 2020-01-08.
  19. ↑ "Golden Joystick Awards 2019". GamesRadar+ . Archived from the original on 2019-09-28. Retrieved 2019-12-06.
  20. ↑ "Writers' Guild Of Great Britain Awards Shortlist Announced". Broadway World. 2019-12-04. Archived from the original on 2019-12-06. Retrieved 2019-12-06.
  21. ↑ Sheehan, Gavin (2020-01-02). "The New York Game Awards Announces 2020 Nominees". Bleeding Cool . Archived from the original on 2022-02-06. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
  22. ↑ "2019 Nominees". National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers. 2020-01-13. Archived from the original on 2020-03-03. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
  23. ↑ Wallace, Chris (2020-02-14). "It's your last chance to vote for the MCV/DEVELOP Awards winners 2020". MCV/Develop . Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  24. ↑ "A SHORT HIKE WINS THE SEUMAS MCNALLY GRAND PRIZE AT THE 22nd ANNUAL INDEPENDENT GAMES FESTIVAL AWARDS". GlobeNewswire (Press release). 2020-03-18. Retrieved 2020-03-19.
  25. ↑ Stuart, Keith (2020-03-03). "Death Stranding and Control dominate Bafta games awards nominations". The Guardian . Archived from the original on 2022-04-03. Retrieved 2020-03-04.
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