This is really rough, but it sounds like Jay is going through some stuff after what I am sure has been quite a whirlwind few years. The industry is rough, and finding a space for a niche that he fills, I do wonder how the sales would go when contractors and publishers are taking cuts.
I hope he gets some time and makes something new that soothes his soul.
Really bummed about this cancellation. However, if you’re looking for other games in this genre of narrative desktop / interface games there are several upcoming games to look forward to at least.
Description: Our algorithm has chosen you for inclusion in the DECRYPTO project. Your job is simple: we send encrypted texts, you decipher them. Loyalty and diligence will be rewarded with upgrades and customization options for your system. Disobedience and sabotage will be punished.
Description: A detective-like puzzle game set in a 90s operating system. Rummage through forgotten files, abandoned games and outdated software. Face your fears to find the reason behind a teenager’s disappearance.
Description: lily’s world XD is a psychological horror game where you investigate a young girl’s computer. Channel your inner 2000s teen as you read her old conversations, customize her blog, and look through her embarrassing selfies. That is, until you find messages addressed to you…
Description: You’re stuck inside an abandoned video game, haunted by its own digital decay. In oneway.exe, uncover the mystery of UNTITLED.exe, its three developers, and the evolving Internet eras that once shaped their friendship.
Description: Pony Island 2: Panda Circus is a phantasmagorical voyage through time, myth, divinity, and video games. Escape the lordly deities of the underworld with your soul, and your sanity, intact. This is not a game about ponies.
Description: VICE Undercover is a point & click narco-thriller set in an alternate 1980s Miami - where every choice matters. You play as undercover agent Vida, and for one hour per day, you’re taking control over a cartel-run computer using Amigo OS, a fully-functional 1980-inspired operating system.
However, Dreamsettler was the one I was most looking forward to, which is a real shame it’s cancelled.
The Roottrees are Dead (Steam)
A genealogical mystery straight out of 1998. Scour the early Internet for clues, uncover hidden connections, and piece together the family tree behind the secretive Roottree Corporation.
The Operator (currently free on Epic Games)
Welcome to the FDI. As our newest Operator, your role is to use your detective skills to assist our field agents and investigate mysterious crimes. Use cutting-edge FDI software to dig for clues, solve puzzles, and uncover the truth.
Her Story (Steam)
A woman is interviewed seven times by the police. Search the video database and explore hundreds of authentic clips to discover her story in this groundbreaking and award winning narrative game. (Also has a follow-up called Telling Lies that I liked a lot less.)
Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You (Steam)
Big Brother has arrived - and it’s you. Investigate the lives of citizens to find those responsible for a series of terror attacks. Information from the internet, personal communications and private files are all accessible to you. But, be warned, the information you supply will have consequences. (Also has a follow up called Orwell: Ignorance Is Strength that I liked a lot less.)
I don’t know how these compare to Hypnospace Outlaw, but they’re all definitely “interacting with a fake computer desktop” games. (And thanks, I’ll look into your recs too, I’m always looking for more stuff like this)
If anyone hasn’t played Hypnospace Outlaw? Do it. It is genuinely one of the best gaming experiences I have ever had. Went from “I’ll give this a go before I hop in the car” to “I have pre-check. I can probably get to my gate on time…”
If you haven’t heard about it? The premise is that you are a moderator for effectively geocities back in the 90s/00s. And your first (?) assignment is to investigate a kindergarten teacher who is accused of using copyrighted materials. And it escalates from there.
And it kind of escalates from there with a cast of characters that you mostly interact with through seeing what they posted on their websites and messages to each other. And it is a ridiculously heartfelt game that truly loves and understands its source material in a way that so few “nostalgia cash ins” actually do.
We have truly lost something Beautiful with Dreamsettler being binned.
EVE will always have a place in my heart. At my peak I had 4 accounts and was one of the directors of a corp. It also meant I was putting in about 3-4 hours a day on weekdays and more on weekends.
It’s a bummer. Eve is special but CCP hasn’t seem intent on running a healthy game in over 10 years at least. I’m not sure if it was PA or their choice to launch a Vr game I always wanted to try that. And I do think they should pursue the mixed game approach. Playing Dust back in the day with friends and piloting a destroyer to do orbital bombardments was something special.
I digress I hope Eve and CCP are ok in the long run.
I quit long before that. I don’t even remember what my last straw was. I still follow the news occasionally and now that it’s free to play I log in like once a year just to look.
I dont blame you for that being the change that made you win EvE, I also think fondly of that era, but also recognize that MMO players in 2025 would have hated the old game. The timegating of skills made it so characters had value, now they dont, people do and the shifting dynamics in 0.0 have come to reflect that (See the N+1 problem and the attempts to claw back an out of control ISK faucets).
I do think the game is in a healthier place, but thats only been over the last year or so.
It also somewhat helped curb alts. You couldn’t just have an alt that did a thing in day.
But the isk and resource faucets were a problem from day one. It’s a resource hoarding game and it became too safe.
That era to me was also filled with clever scams and IMO as CCP made it safer for people it took a lot of magic out of the game. You used to have to be smart and attentive to play. Now it throws warnings at you for all sorts of things. Or got rid of some very fun mechanics (like pos bowling and lofty wars)
I also used to love spending 2m to war dec a corp. I would have dozens of wars going. And it wasn’t like small corps. It was fun to war dec all the big alliances at once with your little 5 man corp.
CCP Games Inc made the following statement regarding today’s announcements: “Interested parties should contact CCP Legal and provide offer details as well as proof of financing in the form of account statements in PLEX or ISK equal or greater to the stated offer. No lowballs. I know what I got.” /s
There are probably better owners than Pearl Abyss, so in a sense that could be a reason for hope. Though I don’t know how much of a hand they have had with all the crap CCP have failed with over the years. Peak EVE was so amazing, but I honestly have no real idea how or if it’s possible to get back to that.
Yeah it’s convenient to blame Pearl Abyss for everything wrong with EVE, but truthfully CCP were making moves of dubious quality way before they got bought up by them.
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