Earlier this week, post-apocalyptic adventure game Shardlight released on PC and Steam and GOG. Wadjet Eye Games is no stranger to dark and dystopian adventures such as their 5 part Blackwell series and their critically acclaimed game, Gemini Rue. The publisher/developer has been making adventure games on the PC since 2006 and with the release of their 16th game they don’t seem to be slowing down any time soon.
Shardlight zeroes in on Amy Wellard, a government grunt who is working for shadowy oligarchy. These aristocrats have complete control of all resources ever since the bombs fell. They dole out food and water to the public in declining rations based on wealth. Disease and death are common among the impoverished and the oligarchy keeps the rich in check by offering vaccines for absolute fidelity. And while Amy works for those in power for a shot at the horrifying ‘vaccine lottery’, she secretly hopes to find a cure out in the rubble of a dying world.
This adventure has all of the gameplay elements that Wadjet is known for; item collection, logical and fair puzzles, and immersive dialogue options. Characters and backgrounds are have the usual attention to pixelated detail like Gemini Rue and the game features voice talent from Shelly Shenoy (Amy) and Mike Pollock (Pop/Max Huber).
Shardlight is currently available through Wadjet Eye Games’ site, on Steam and on GOG. And while it usually retails for $14.99 USD for a limited time the adventure game has been discounted 10% for launch. Only the Steam page has an cutoff for the deal on March 15th but it’s probably safe to say that applies to the other two distribution methods. So if you want to grab this dystopian, sci-fi undertaking, you might want to do so soon before this deal perishes due to the plague.
