Pleonexia
released on Jan 19, 2023
"Play as the fisherman of a quiet little sea-side town called Pleonexia. Relax as you fish and listen to the waves. As long as the townsfolk are fed, everyone will be happy and nothing will ever go wrong. Don't look under the surface." Brought to you by Portal Emulator. A black-and-white 2D point-and-click horror game about the life of a fisherman.
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Hell yes.
The protagonist is a fisherman, living alone in the town of Pleonexia. The people of Pleonexia are perpetually fixated on the fish the protagonist can provide. They exchange some measure of pleasantries, but their kindness mainly goes as far as how much food the fisherman can provide. In the attempts to wean them off the supply, the fisherman even starts overcharging them, but its to no avail. They’ll pay anything for that fish. The fisherman himself as very little choice in the matter. As the only resident allergic to fish, he’s able to resist the supernatural grip it has on the locals. His son, not so lucky, was given to the mayor in the hopes of finding a cure to this craving, in exchange for the money the fisherman acquires. Mayor earns several thousand for a day’s work, the fisherman keeps about $50.
The core gameplay loop focuses deeply on this struggle of survival. The fisherman has to wake up, give fish, go fishing, get enough sleep. The longer a fisherman goes without sleep, the more his stamina decreases. Fish will escape more easily. The easier the fish escape, the more likely it is the fisherman can’t provide fish for the villagers. The angrier the villagers get, the more likely the fisherman is to get murdered in the night. So, you have to schedule naps, fishing, and the delivery of food in a delicate tightrope. Its an increasingly effective grind, cementing dread and paranoia into every interaction. Turning away a villager will make them angry, but answering the register at all only stokes their rage further. Even so, too many refusals and that same locale’s eagerness to kill you rises dramatically.
Probably the best realized of the fishing horror I’ve been looking for. A strong plot with effective imagery and aesthetics. Fishing mechanics that add a challenge, but not complete impossibility. An experience that does genuinely create stress, but not so stressful that the game is paralyzing. The entire game is astoundingly well-crafted and it’s exactly the kind of game I was looking for.
The story itself ends up fairly straightforward, but its flow is so satisfying that I delighted in each day. The game is a tight hour, maybe less if you find a good rotation between naps and fishing. I fell into a few deaths before I caught onto a solid strategy, and the game provides enough checkpointing that you don’t have to worry too much about a restart. Just survive each day and maybe you can escape this increasingly dangerous town.
The protagonist is a fisherman, living alone in the town of Pleonexia. The people of Pleonexia are perpetually fixated on the fish the protagonist can provide. They exchange some measure of pleasantries, but their kindness mainly goes as far as how much food the fisherman can provide. In the attempts to wean them off the supply, the fisherman even starts overcharging them, but its to no avail. They’ll pay anything for that fish. The fisherman himself as very little choice in the matter. As the only resident allergic to fish, he’s able to resist the supernatural grip it has on the locals. His son, not so lucky, was given to the mayor in the hopes of finding a cure to this craving, in exchange for the money the fisherman acquires. Mayor earns several thousand for a day’s work, the fisherman keeps about $50.
The core gameplay loop focuses deeply on this struggle of survival. The fisherman has to wake up, give fish, go fishing, get enough sleep. The longer a fisherman goes without sleep, the more his stamina decreases. Fish will escape more easily. The easier the fish escape, the more likely it is the fisherman can’t provide fish for the villagers. The angrier the villagers get, the more likely the fisherman is to get murdered in the night. So, you have to schedule naps, fishing, and the delivery of food in a delicate tightrope. Its an increasingly effective grind, cementing dread and paranoia into every interaction. Turning away a villager will make them angry, but answering the register at all only stokes their rage further. Even so, too many refusals and that same locale’s eagerness to kill you rises dramatically.
Probably the best realized of the fishing horror I’ve been looking for. A strong plot with effective imagery and aesthetics. Fishing mechanics that add a challenge, but not complete impossibility. An experience that does genuinely create stress, but not so stressful that the game is paralyzing. The entire game is astoundingly well-crafted and it’s exactly the kind of game I was looking for.
The story itself ends up fairly straightforward, but its flow is so satisfying that I delighted in each day. The game is a tight hour, maybe less if you find a good rotation between naps and fishing. I fell into a few deaths before I caught onto a solid strategy, and the game provides enough checkpointing that you don’t have to worry too much about a restart. Just survive each day and maybe you can escape this increasingly dangerous town.