As expected after a few non-moving screenshots and some of those positively primitive runes otherwise known as “words,” developer Ice Water Games has elected to release a trailer of upcoming survivalthing Eidolon. And oh what a trailer it is. It really does look like a gloomier, more traditionally “game”-like Proteus, riddled with gnarled scraps of our culture’s smoldering past for good measure. Like a butterfly all done up in goth makeup, this one’s beautifully serene but it’s also got moods. See snippets of hunting, gathering, and exploration below.



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For all of that ear-and-eye-pleasing niceness, there’s more at play here than meets the eye. Por exemplo:

“You will be dropped into the dreary and mystical Western Washington circa 2400 c.e. with a bow, fishing rod, and little to guide your way. Awaiting you is a vast landscape filled with wildlife, edible plants, and the historical artefacts of our now-dead culture – journals, newspapers, zines, brochures, transcripts, and more. You must spend your fleeting moments moving through this place, collecting what was left behind, and piecing together what happened to these people, both from a historical perspective and from a much more personal one.”

Yep, this one actually takes place in the distant future – with all humans dead for some horrible reason, as is our tendency when large swathes of time pass and nobody’s looking. Cliched though that setup might be, it’s a fascinating spin to put on a game that’s otherwise about beauty, nature, and, er, being alive.

Eidolon will be out sometime toward the middle of 2014. Is it to your liking, oh Dread Discernlords of Realm RPS?