At first glance, Cloudpunk seems like many of the futuristic, cyberpunk titles released in the last few years, but a closer look at the reveal trailer shows off a game that looks like something special. Players take on the role of Rania on her first night as an employee of Cloudpunk, working to deliver packages across the massive city of Nivalis.

Watching the trailer sparks feelings of nostalgia because Cloudpunk does not only look right at home in the cyberpunk genre, its art style, buildings, vehicle, and atmosphere all look to have heavy inspiration from the Bladerunner series. Even listening to the trailer music sounds as though it were composed by Greek electronic musician Vangelis, the man responsible for the iconic sounds of the first film. The result is an environment that draws the player in with seemingly no effort at all.

As an employee of a mostly legal delivery operation, Rania will need to explore much of the sprawling city. Players will be able to move easily thanks to their hover car but will also need to step out on foot to get in for a closer look at certain locations.

The main premise of the game’s narrative is still under wraps, but players will need to explore carefully to unravel the mysteries of a world filled with corporate conspiracy, hackers, and rogue AI. The developer states that players will make decisions that, “will have a lasting impact on the inhabitants of Nivalis”, and so it appears that choices made will have immediate and long-term consequences throughout the game.

Early playthroughs of the test build have been overwhelmingly positive. This past November at EGX in Berlin, players had the opportunity to dive into the action in an early development build. The best part of the game is how open the world seems, even with the overcrowded cities of the future. Since the city is made up of thousands of buildings that tower high up into the clouds, players can really explore to their heart’s content not only horizontally, but vertically as well.

With PAX East right around the corner in late February, players will once again have the chance to try out the newest development builds for Cloudpunk, and given what we have seen so far, and progress is sure to continue impressing players.

So far it isn’t completely clear if there is any form of combat in Cloudpunk, or if the game is primarily aimed at being exploratory in nature. The trailer reveals that players will interact with a diverse cast of characters, and that through dialogue players will advance the story to advance, but beyond that, the makeup of the gameplay is up in the air.

If the gameplay does in fact lean more towards building a strong narrative through exploration and investigation, the game may end up feeling much like the 1997 point and click Blade Runner game by Westwood Studios.

Source: Steam

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