That Night, Steeped by Blood River

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That Night, Steeped by Blood River
That Night Steeped by Blood River Cover.jpg
itch.io cover art
Developer(s) Taylor Swietanski
Engine Unity
Platform(s) Windows, Mac
ReleaseWindows
  • WW: 13 November 2020
Mac
  • WW: 22 November 2020
Mode(s) Single-player

That Night, Steeped by Blood River is a 2020 video game created by independent developer Taylor Swietanski for Windows and Macintosh. The game received a positive reception from critics, with reviewers praising the game's surrealism and visual design. Following release, the game received a nomination for the Nuovo Award at the 2021 Independent Games Festival.

Contents

Gameplay

Screenshot of gameplay in That Night, Steeped by Blood River That Night Steeped by Blood River Screenshot Screenshot.png
Screenshot of gameplay in That Night, Steeped by Blood River

That Night, Steeped by Blood River is a experimental game and walking simulator played in first-person perspective where players explore rooms and buildings to solve puzzles. [1] [2] Its design is abstract and surrealistic, with doors leading to spaces with completely different designs, and shaders that dramatically shift the colors and design of spaces from room to room. [1]

Development

That Night, Steeped by Blood River was created by American independent developer Taylor Swietanski, a game design graduate at Drexel University in Philadelphia. [3] [4] Swietanski started development with the aim to create an abstract, non-linear game that would elicit "emotions", "feelings or energies" from the player, naming these objectives as an "emotional beat sheet". [3] [4] Describing the game as a "personal" work that was "cathartic and emotionally laborious", Swietanski used her "painful real-life experiences and dreams" as a reference point for in-game settings and events. [4] The game was designed using Unity and Probuilder, with Swietanski using LMMS and FMOD for the game's audio, and PhotoShop for the visual assets. [4]

Reception

Describing the game as "one of the most interesting-looking games I can remember", John Walker of Kotaku praised the game's "unique" aesthetic and "excellent" soundtrack, comparing it to the visual design of The Sentinel and "trippy" educational illustrations from the 1970s. [1] Natalie Clayton of Rock Paper Shotgun similarly described the game as "gorgeous", highlighting its "ephemeral, anxious mood", "effortlessly stylish transitions" and evocations of liminal spaces. [5] Clayton also extolled the game's "stark colors and shimmering worlds" for PC Gamer as an example of independent games with experimental visual design. [6] Describing the game's visual presentation as a set of "eye-searing abstractions", Steven Ngyuen of Fanbyte commended the game's "calm and contemplative" music, and "ethereal" atmosphere. [7] Softonic stated the game's "unique approach to storytelling sets it apart in the genre, providing an engaging experience that resonates with those who appreciate narrative depth". [8] Game designer and researcher Pippin Barr and historian David Wolinsky discussed That Night, Steeped by Blood River, with Barr stating the game was "wonderfully psychedelic". Wolinsky felt that the game "doesn't feel that experimental" and "forced progression in a really rigid way", stating its mechanics "drag you back into this place where you're playing it as a game rather than experiencing it as a dream". [9]

Accolades

That Night, Steeped by Blood River received a nomination for the Nuovo Award at the 2021 Independent Games Festival. [10] [11]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Walker, John (27 November 2020). "That Night, Steeped By Blood River Looks Like Nothing Else You've Played". Kotaku. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  2. ↑ "That Night, Steeped by Blood River – Review". PixelDie. 3 December 2020. Archived from the original on 30 May 2023. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  3. 1 2 Keeling, Oma (6 March 2021). "Interview: Taylor Swietanski, creator of 'THAT NIGHT, STEEPED BY BLOOD RIVER'". GlitchOut. Archived from the original on 25 December 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Couture, Joel (14 June 2021). "Making the stunningly-unique THAT NIGHT, STEEPED BY BLOOD RIVER". Game Developer. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  5. ↑ Clayton, Natalie (21 November 2020). "That Night, Steeped By Blood River is a long night of anxious vignettes". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  6. ↑ Clayton, Natalie (12 March 2022). "In celebration of 'ugly' games". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 20 April 2025. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  7. ↑ Scaife, Steven Nguyen (1 June 2022). "The Best Indie Games You Didn't Play in 2020". Fanbyte. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  8. ↑ "Explore Intrigue in That Night Steeped by Blood River". Softonic. 27 February 2025. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  9. ↑ Pippin Barr & David Wolinsky (22 April 2025). "GAMETHING: That Night, Steeped by Blood River" (Podcast). Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  10. ↑ "2021 Finalists and Winners". Independent Games Festival. 2021. Archived from the original on 6 August 2025. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
  11. ↑ Knoop, Joseph (8 May 2021). "Genesis Noir, Spiritfarer, and Paradise Killer Lead IGF Award Nominations". IGN. Archived from the original on 7 September 2022. Retrieved 22 August 2025.
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