NEO Scavenger

Last updated
NEO Scavenger
NEO Scavenger screenshot 02.png
Developer(s) Blue Bottle Games
Publisher(s) Blue Bottle Games
Designer(s) Daniel Fedor
Composer(s) Josh Culler
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux, Android, iOS
Release
  • WW: 15 December 2014
Genre(s) Role-playing, roguelike
Mode(s) Single-player

NEO Scavenger is a survival role-playing video game developed by Blue Bottle Games. The studio is led by Daniel Fedor, a former BioWare employee. In the game, the player controls a character that awakes in a cryonics laboratory in a ruined, post-apocalyptic world. The immediate objective of the game is to keep the character alive by finding food, clothing, and shelter, and caring for any illnesses that may befall him. Ruined towns can be scavenged for supplies, but doing so may draw the attention of nearby looters and raiders. Fighting for survival includes fending off attackers, and other beasts that may be hiding in the wastes. The developer had initially released a free browser-based demo, and tiered purchase options were available to access the beta and pre-order the final game. As of the final release in 15 December 2014, the demo and beta versions can no longer be accessed.

Contents

Plot

The game is set in a post-apocalyptic world. [1] In the game, Philip Kindred awakes from a cryosleep pod in a cryogenics lab, wearing nothing but a surgical smock, and with a hungry creature hiding nearby. [1] [2] [3]

Gameplay

The main world for the game. Players can scavenge towns and kill enemy bandits to fight for survival in the wasteland. NEO Scavenger screenshot 02.png
The main world for the game. Players can scavenge towns and kill enemy bandits to fight for survival in the wasteland.

NEO Scavenger is a post-apocalyptic outdoor survival simulation. [1] The player controls a character through a series of turns (each turn equals an in-game hour) played on an isometric map divided into hexagonal tiles. [1] During each turn, the character has a certain number of "moves". Each move makes the character hungrier, thirstier and more tired. [1] The objective of the game is to ensure the character's survival. [1] This requires that the player scavenge supplies from ruined settlements in the area. [1] Scavenging can be risky as it may alert nearby looters and raiders to the player's activities, [1] but it is necessary if the player wishes to survive in the wasteland; [1] clothes, weapons, food, and tools quickly become a necessity for the wandering player. [1] Recipes are available which require the player to gather certain items and combine them together to create other items. [4]

The player can suffer from a variety of illnesses including hypothermia, diarrhea, dehydration, and malnutrition. [1] Left untreated, the character could die. [1] Illnesses can be treated or avoided by using certain items in the game. [1] For example, to ward against hypothermia, the player should quickly obtain a pair of pants. [1]

Development

After leaving his job of seven years at BioWare, Daniel Fedor founded Blue Bottle Games and began working on his first independent project, NEO Scavenger. [1] The game is inspired by other games he played as a child, particularly tabletop role-playing games including Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, Rifts, and Shadowrun: "I loved the creative problem solving, character creation, exploration, and later, character development and interaction." [1]

PC Gamer's Tom Sykes compared the game to DayZ but without zombies and with a solitary player. [1] The game uses elements from roguelikes, adventure games, and role-playing games. [1] The developer tried to reduce the dependence on guns which typify the post-apocalyptic genre. [1] Although players need to fend off attacking monsters, situations in the game such as hypothermia or dehydration also require the player's immediate attention. [1]

Early versions of the game used a simple combat system that consisted of repeatedly clicking basic options such as "Use axe on looter" until either the looter or the player's character ran out of hit points. [5] This system was replaced with a significantly more complex system that allows for actions such as grabbing an attacker's legs to pull them to the ground if you are already down. [5] The winner of the fight is no longer based on hit points but on blood loss, shock, and other realistic causes. [5] The AI also received updates prior to a preview in July 2012: mutant creatures still act aggressively, but humans are less likely to risk themselves in a fight if the player character has nothing of value to take. [5]

Along with a free browser demo of the game, [4] the developer sold pre-orders that include beta access to raise funds to finish development. [1] The game was created using a number of different free programming libraries and tools: Flixel, FlashDevelop, TortoiseSVN, MySQL, Audacity, and Chevy Ray's AssetBatcher. [6] The game was entered in the 2013 Independent Games Festival competition. [7] The game was part of a Humble Bundle Weekly sale featuring games developed using Open Source tools. [8]

Reception

Responses to Neo Scavenger were generally favorable, with Metacritic calculating a score of 77 based on 7 reviews. [11]

IGN's Leana Hafer praised the game's storytelling and survival mechanics, but noted that the difficulty of these mechanics can get in the way of the player experiencing the story. [12]

PC Gamer's Tom Sykes said of the game, "Compared to other post-apocalyptic RPGs, NEO Scavenger feels like the real deal, with a central character who lives the harsh life of a wastelander rather than simply borrowing the aesthetic." [1]

Related Research Articles

<i>Wasteland</i> (video game) 1988 video game

Wasteland is a role-playing video game developed by Interplay Productions and published by Electronic Arts in 1988. The first installment of the Wasteland series, it is set in a futuristic, post-apocalyptic America destroyed by a nuclear holocaust generations before. Developers originally made the game for the Apple II and it was ported to the Commodore 64 and MS-DOS. It was re-released for Microsoft Windows, OS X, and Linux in 2013 via Steam and GOG.com, and in 2014 via Desura. A remastered version titled Wasteland Remastered was released on February 25, 2020, in honor of the original game's 30th anniversary.

<i>The Age of Decadence</i> 2015 video game

The Age of Decadence is a role-playing video game for Microsoft Windows developed by Iron Tower Studio, led by the pseudonymous "Vince D. Weller". Set in a low-magic, post-apocalyptic world inspired by the fall of the Roman Empire, the game aims to return to the 'golden era' of role-playing games by emphasizing choices and consequences and providing multiple solutions to quests.

<i>Jagged Alliance 3</i> 2023 video game

Jagged Alliance 3 is a tactical role-playing video game developed by Haemimont Games and published by THQ Nordic. The game was released for Windows on July 14, 2023. The game was also released for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S on November 16, 2023. It is the first mainline entry in the Jagged Alliance series since Jagged Alliance 2 (1999).

Survival games are a subgenre of action games which are often set in hostile, intense, open-world environments. Players generally start with minimal equipment and are required to survive as long as possible by finding the resources necessary to manage hunger, thirst, disease and/or mental state. Many survival games are based on randomly or procedurally generated persistent environments; more recently, survival games are often playable online, allowing players to interact in a single world. Survival games are generally open-ended with no set goals and often closely related to the survival horror genre, where the player must survive within a supernatural setting, such as a zombie apocalypse.

<i>World of the Living Dead</i> 2014 video game

World of the Living Dead(WoTLD) : Resurrection was a real-time zombie survival strategy browser game developed using OpenStreetMap to provide the underlying game world, with in-depth gameplay features to make a browser-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game accessible on desktop, tablet and mobile devices.

<i>Family Guy Online</i> 2012 video game

Family Guy Online was a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) based on the animated television series Family Guy. Developed in partnership between Canadian studios Roadhouse Interactive, A.C.R.O.N.Y.M. Games and 20th Century Fox, Family Guy Online was a free-to-play game that used the Unity game engine. The game originally launched into public beta on April 17, 2012. On December 21, 2012 the developers announced that the game would not be developed beyond beta status and service was permanently terminated on January 18, 2013.

<i>Fortnite: Save the World</i> Co-op sandbox survival game developed by Epic Games

Fortnite: Save the World is a cooperative hybrid-third-person looter shooter tower defense sandbox survival video game developed and published by Epic Games, part of the game Fortnite. The game was released as a paid-for early access title for macOS, PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One on July 25, 2017, with plans for a full free-to-play release announced in late 2018. Epic eventually opted to move the game to pay-to-play in June 2020. The retail versions of the game were published by Gearbox Software, while online distribution of the PC versions is handled by Epic's launcher.

Infestation: Survivor Stories was an open world zombie video game developed by Hammerpoint Interactive and published by OP Productions. Infestation: Survivor Stories features both first-person and third-person shooting perspectives. The game offers players the option of killing zombies or playing against other users (PvP).

Rust is a multiplayer survival video game developed by Facepunch Studios. It was first released in early access in December 2013 and received its full release in February 2018. Rust is available on Windows and macOS. Console versions for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One developed in conjunction with Double Eleven were released in May 2021. Rust was initially created as a clone of DayZ, a popular mod for ARMA 2, with crafting elements akin to those in Minecraft.

<i>The Forest</i> (video game) 2018 first-person survival horror video game

The Forest is a survival horror video game developed and published by Endnight Games. The game takes place on a remote heavily forested peninsula, where the player character Eric LeBlanc must fight off cannibalistic monsters, while searching for his son Timmy after a plane crash. The game features nonlinear gameplay in an open world environment played from a first-person perspective, with no set missions or quests, empowering the player to make their own decisions for survival. Following a four-year long early access beta phase releasing in 2014, the finished game was released for Windows in April 2018, and for the PlayStation 4 in November 2018. The game was a commercial success, selling over five million copies by the end of 2018. A sequel game, Sons of the Forest, was released in Early Access for Windows on February 23, 2023.

<i>Nether</i> (video game) 2013 video game

Nether is a first-person multiplayer survival game for Windows. It was developed by American studio Phosphor Games, and was first available on October 29, 2013. Nether became popular in late 2013, when many YouTubers such as Markiplier were uploading videos of them playing the game. Nether has often been compared to other similar sandbox survival games such as 7 Days to Die and Rust, and contained early Extraction Shooter genre features, such as 'safe zone' hubs to safely extract the loot acquired in session into 'stashes'.

<i>The Flame in the Flood</i> 2016 video game

The Flame in the Flood is a roguelike survival adventure video game developed by The Molasses Flood. The game was developed for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Xbox One. A PlayStation 4 version was released on January 17, 2017. A Nintendo Switch version was released on October 12, 2017.

<i>Escape from Tarkov</i> 2017 multiplayer first-person shooter game

Escape from Tarkov is a multiplayer tactical first-person shooter video game in development by Battlestate Games for Microsoft Windows. The game is set in the fictional Norvinsk region in northwestern Russia, where a war is taking place between two private military companies. Players join matches called "raids" in which they fight other players and bots for loot and aim to survive and escape.

<i>Scorn</i> (video game) 2022 video game

Scorn is a survival horror adventure game developed by Ebb Software. The game is inspired by the works of visual artists H. R. Giger and Zdzisław Beksiński. The game was released on 14 October 2022 for Microsoft Windows and Xbox Series X/S. It was also subsequently released for PlayStation 5 on October 3, 2023. It is played from a first-person perspective and has a biopunk theme.

<i>Wolcen: Lords of Mayhem</i> 2020 video game

Wolcen: Lords of Mayhem is an action role-playing dungeon crawler video game developed and published by Wolcen Studios and released for Windows in February 2020 and for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in March 2023. The dark fantasy-themed game progresses across a three-act storyline in which players explore procedurally-generated maps to battle hordes of monsters and collect valuable loot.

<i>Othercide</i> 2020 video game

Othercide is a horror-theme tactical role-playing video game developed by French independent video game development studio Lightbulb Crew and published by Focus Home Interactive. The game was released for Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on July 28, 2020. The game later released for the Nintendo Switch on September 10 that same year. It had received generally positive reviews upon release.

<i>Tribes of Midgard</i> 2021 video game

Tribes of Midgard is an action role-playing survival video game developed by Norsfell Games and published by Gearbox Publishing. The game was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on July 27, 2021, and was released for Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S on August 16, 2022.

<i>Expeditions: Rome</i> 2022 video game

Expeditions: Rome is a tactical role-playing game developed by Danish developer Logic Artists and published by THQ Nordic. It is the third game in the Expeditions series, which includes Expeditions: Conquistador and Expeditions: Viking. It was released for Windows on January 20, 2022. The game is an RPG that combines gameplay in local, tactical battles with other types. In the game, the player controls a legatus who investigates the death of their father and travels throughout the Roman Republic and nearby nations as they expand Roman influence across the world.

<i>V Rising</i> 2024 video game

V Rising is a 2024 action role-playing survival game developed by Stunlock Studios and published by Level Infinite. It was first released in early access for Windows in May 2022 before officially releasing two years later, with a PlayStation 5 version that released on June 11, 2024. Within a week, it had surpassed one million sales.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Sykes, Tom (Jan 2013). "NEO Scavenger". PC Gamer UK . No. 248. Future Publishing. p. 28.
  2. ↑ Blue Bottle Games. NEO Scavenger (0.954b ed.). Scene: Items Screen. hospital wrist strap labeled "Philip Kindred"
  3. ↑ Hollingworth, David (Mar 16, 2012). "NEO Scavenger - browser games get old-school". PC & Tech Authority. Retrieved Dec 31, 2012.
  4. 1 2 Smith, Adam (Mar 13, 2012). "Scavenging Angels: NEO Scavenger". Rock, Paper, Shotgun . Retrieved Dec 31, 2012.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Tarason, Dominic (July 28, 2012). "School Of Hard Knocks – 'Neo Scavenger' Takes Survival Seriously". Indie Game Mag. Archived from the original on May 28, 2013. Retrieved Dec 31, 2012.
  6. ↑ Blue Bottle Games. NEO Scavenger (0.954b ed.). Scene: Credits. Free Tools that made N.E.O. Scavenger possible: Flixel, FlashDevelop, TortoiseSVN, MySQL, Audacity, ChevyRay's AssetBatcher
  7. ↑ "NEO Scavenger entrant". Independent Games Festival . Retrieved Dec 31, 2012.
  8. ↑ "Humble Weekly Bundle" . Retrieved March 31, 2014.
  9. ↑ https://www.metacritic.com/game/neo-scavenger/critic-reviews/?platform=pc
  10. ↑ https://www.ign.com/articles/2014/12/22/neo-scavenger-review
  11. ↑ "NEO Scavenger". www.metacritic.com. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  12. ↑ Hafer, Leana (2014-12-22). "NEO Scavenger Review". IGN. Retrieved 2024-09-17.

Further reading

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.