Game developer and publisher Wadjet Eye recently announced the newest installment in their successful Blackwell series: Blackwell Epiphany. The last game in this phantasmal series was 2011’s Blackwell Deception, following the story of everyone’s favorite redhead medium as she solves the mysteries of the deceased. Blackwell Epiphany will be the fifth Blackwell game to be made since the series began in 2006 and is expected to be released in the Fall of 2013. This game appears to be taking a darker, more noir-like approach with the new and increasingly polished art.
This game represents a continued resurgence of the adventure genre in the PC and indie market as major publishers continue to look elsewhere on consoles. The tide is turning however, as games like The Walking Dead earn game of the year awards across the board and developers like Double Fine see success with crowdfunding and digital releases like The Cave. Meanwhile, sales data for business as usual with popular genres continue to decline. Sooner or later, publishers are bound to give gamers what they want for their own survival.
The Adventure Game Studio community has been an oasis for original adventure games through their decade-long absence from popular gaming culture. Wadjet Eye Games in particular has been very supportive of these dedicated fans and has seen success from being so. The company was nominated for best new studio at the Game Developers Choice Awards for The Shiva in 2007. As a publisher, they’ve had a streak of successful adventure games recently, highlighted by Resonance, developed by another successful adventure game maker: XII Games. For more information about Blackwell Epiphany, check out the insightful interview over at Indie Statik.
Story and screenshots from the announcement are below:
“The story
A dead man’s soul cries out against the force of a ferocious blizzard. He cries for help. He cries for answers. Then he screams as he is torn apart like damp tissue paper.
This wasn’t the first time, and it won’t be the last.
The police are powerless to stop it, so the duty falls to the only who can. What force could be so powerful – and so malevolent – that it would destroy the very core of a life in order to get what it wants?
Rosa Blackwell and Joey Mallone mean to find out, even if it means risking themselves in the process.”
