How would you react if you woke up in a base on a new, unexplored planet? Your ship’s wrecked, your gear’s scattered all over the place, and you’ve got no information as to why you’re here. Welcome to Corpse of Discovery.
Corpse of Discovery is an exploration and adventure game that seeks to explore our values and motivations. That sounds pretty deep, and just a hint in-your-face, but it doesn’t sound like that’s how it’s going to play out. You’ll play an astronaut, exploring beautiful, procedurally-generated worlds and searching for answers. Each uncharted planet, each mission will reveal a different understanding of what has taken place and why you are there at that moment.
Your task in this game is to accomplish tasks that benefit the Corps. Brave the intense weather conditions and environmental hazards to map each planet and acquire resources; your ultimate goal is to get home to your family, and you need to stay resourceful and driven to get there.
The trailer shows that you’ve been separated from your family by your work for the Corps. This draws from the experience of Corpse of Discovery’s creative director Chip Sineni, who examined what a challenge it is to strike a balance between work and personal life. He wanted to spend more time with his family while the game was in development, so he brought them onboard; you’ll find traces of them in the voiceovers and imagery.
What this all comes down to is challenging players to answer: “What sacrifices will we make to be successful?”
Corpse of Discovery is being brought to us by Phosphor Games, the folks behind critically-acclaimed games Dark Meadow and Horn, and it will be coming soon to PC.