PENUMBRA
A downloadable game for Windows, macOS, and Linux
PENUMBRA
An ever-expanding world hides behind an underground obelisk. Few know its secrets, however you're not the first. Make your way through several puzzles using the notes left behind. Be careful not to disturb the guardian of the dark wood and the spirit who lives in the labyrinth. You are never trapped as long as you keep moving.
Hope you enjoy! I had a lot of fun making this :)
Status | Released |
Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux |
Rating | Rated 4.3 out of 5 stars (64 total ratings) |
Author | Adam Kehl |
Genre | Puzzle, Action, Adventure |
Made with | Blender, Adobe Photoshop, Unity, Audacity, Adobe Illustrator |
Tags | 3D, Atmospheric, Difficult, Experimental, First-Person, Horror, Singleplayer |
Average session | A few minutes |
Inputs | Keyboard, Mouse |
Accessibility | Color-blind friendly, Configurable controls, Interactive tutorial, Textless |
Links | Portfolio |
Download
Development log
- MacOS UpdateFeb 11, 2019
- Minor Bugs and FixesFeb 09, 2019
- Press Kit Download & LicensingFeb 05, 2019
- MacOS ReleaseFeb 04, 2019
- Initial LaunchFeb 03, 2019
Comments
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Great job. As a fellow solo dev I know what it’s like to get your project over that final finish line. Trippy game and a lot of great features. Good luck on your other games!
Thank you!! <3
Yo! It's like if Anti Chamber was a horror game! I love impossible geometry! Very well done!
LOVE the concept!! i gotta learn how to make things appear/disappear like that
ok I am desperate where are the 10 coins, or is it just a red haring
Wonderful game. I love every detail of the scenarios and the sensations through all the experience!!! The topics and atmospheres made me trip so hard.
I have a question tho, what is the music that sounds when walking to this big building right before the entrance, at the pond next to the lion statue and the candles? Sounds like a traditional drum and kyoto joyful music, I HAVE THIS IN MY BRAIN AND shazam couldn't recognize it. could you tell me the author, where I can find this track?
Thank you. Loved your game.
I loved the game so much, such a trippy atmosphere and mind bending nature !! had a lot of fun playing it ! you can check out my reaction video below,
Loved the playthrough!! Glad you enjoyed it :)))
最高
extremely great!
Amazing Game, great work!
Thank you!
It was amazing, I hope I would be able to create such game one day, keep it up👍
Always available if you ever have any questions! Just keep at it and thanks for the nice comment! :)
Going crazy, 10 coins needed and only 7 found!
Hey, j'ai fait une petite vidéo sur ton jeu, l'ambiance est superbe, je me suis chié dessus...Mais superbe expérience ^^
Sugoiiiiiii
Wow. That was absolutely amazing, I loved every second. It'd be awesome if you could make more of this, maybe a bigger game. I'd be happy to buy it if it had more playable content. It gets the big double thumbs up from the Fool.
Loved it! I saw Markiplier play it and knew I had to give it a try. Thanks for putting it out on Mac!
The looping feels a lot like PT, but it's not just a looping hallway simulator like every game that's a clone of it. Not being forced to go through the same environment again and again just to see what's changed is a nice deviation from the norm.
The horror element is definitely there, but it's not a jump scare simulator, either. Rather than being scared- particularly with the spider area- I felt more dread than terror, and that's what most PT inspired games are lacking. Horror can't be whittled down to just scares; there's a spectrum, and too many games out there look for something that can only startle. Penumbra is a good example of the other end, where dread dominates.
As for the environment, I have to admit that I'm a fan. The snow area is a bit dull for my tastes, but it was palatable. What really excited me was seeing the cave open up to the jungle open up to the asian landscape. The transition was very smooth, and the fact that it felt believable helped to offset the "shock" of how it is you leave the environments to go onto the next.
I was disappointed to have the game end so early. I would've loved to have explored the areas more than I got a chance to, and that's another good sign. Leave your audience wanting more, not gasping in relief that the experience is over.
That's a solid 10 from me.
Wow, thank you so much for such a great comment! I'm flattered and also glad that my game isn't some cheap PT knockoff. The fact that you want to play more makes me really happy, and I'm glad you enjoyed the game so much! I would love to get your take on my next game when it comes out.
Aw, I tried to play it. However, my sad little potato couldn't run my screen recorder and the game at the same time.
btw I am also a solo dev and it's really commendable that you finished a full project. It's really hard.
Dang! You could try running at a lower resolution to see if it helps. And thank you! Love to hear from other solos, just keep at it! Don't give up. :)
I'm really happy I found this game. Firstly, it reminded me how much I love first-person puzzle games.
But more than that, it gives me optimism. I always wanted to make such a game, but always felt like a one-person team would never be able to achieve that. You have proven that assumption wrong. I've been messing about with Unity waiting for an idea to do something with. Maybe I'll have a try at this idea I've been sitting on for so long.
PS. I liked the spider level. I think it could be tweaked (e.g. making it shorter and the spider more aggressive to compensate), but overall that idea was decent.
Wow, thank you so much. I didn't realize creating something by myself could have an impact. Go for it! I believe in you. What worked for me was creating things sequentially, e.g. finishing the snowy tent area and moving on to the first level, second, third, elevator, mask forest, lake, etc. (Also why the spider area wasn't as polished and tested since I did it last and in a hurry.)
Now this is what I call quite interesting.
Thanks for making it.
Absolutely! Really glad you enjoyed it and I loved your video! :)
This was really good experience! Love it
Loved the video and really glad you had fun! Your playthrough was really thoughtful and I liked how you looked at every detail and talked about it. Means a lot! :)
Wonderful game! I really like the pace and it's intriguing! There is another game called Penumbra though and I thought the beginning was also similar, however your game is unique. Great work, thanks for making it available for free :D
Thank you so much! I wanted as many people to enjoy it as possible! Glad you enjoyed it and that it wasn't too fast or slow for you. Thanks for stopping by! :)
EDIT: Omg I love your rating hahah
Thanks for playing, glad you liked it! You solved the stairway puzzle really fast, nice job!!
Playing this game was so bloody surreal, it was amazing and really impressed me! I didn't like, however, the maze. I couldn't understand what I was doing wrong, which let me to quitting the game.
You can find my playthrough in this 3 Random Games video I did.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3USZZm86TsI
Haha glad you liked it! Yeah, I hate the maze part too no worries. I realize that the sign with the spider probably shouldn't have an eyeball on it. It was supposed to mean the spider can't see you when you're under the overhangs, but a lot of people thought it meant don't look at the spider. Thanks for playing though! :)
Exactly what I thought! "Don't look the spider!"
amazing game! i really love the style/puzzles, never play game like this before. Great job!
Glad you enjoyed it!! :)
Loved this game. I really love the whole something isn't there but you turn around or going a different direction(IDK what it is called) mechanic. It's something I don't see very often but I love it everytime. Keep up the great work and I can't w
ait to see what's in store.
Same! Always thought why not take my favorite part/mechanic and start there. Glad you liked it! :)
This game was amazing, just the way the game loads smoothly while you walk is just amazing. Well Done.
Aw thanks so much, all the kind words mean a lot. Watching videos like yours makes all the effort worth it 100 times over! :)
Thanks for playing! :)
This game definitely took my brain for a ride! I've got to be honest, I solved some of the puzzles without realising I'd even done it! But that doesn't diminish the overall experience for sure.
I didn't know what kind of game I was diving into at first, but as soon as everything started coming together I felt like I'd become part of the game, and every time I made it beyond a tough screen I felt accomplished. The final maze with the spider was definitely a change of pace but once I got the hang of his moves I don't think it was too bad!
There were lots of things that raised questions for me... like pretty much the whole concept! Where were we? Why did this happen? How did we get out and why did we loop back round again? My poor brain will probably never nail down an answer, but I urge you to keep making games like this because I had a blast!
Thank you for the fun, and keep up the awesome work! =)
Thanks for the kind words, I'll definitely continue development on it! Glad you had fun solving the puzzles and beating the game. Hopefully I'll be able to elaborate more on all the concepts and ideas for the game that I wasn't able to fully realize for the game jam. Really glad it piqued your interest though, glad to hear :)
Whewwww! My heart is racing! This is amazing for something made in a Jam. I felt a genuine joy of exploration which turned into genuine horror haha. Very Lovecraftian almost.
Absolutely fantastic!
Two of the best feelings while playing games in my opinion! Glad you had fun exploring the little world I made. :)
the game was lovely. not sure if it was intentional or not but i really liked the whole vibe of invisible beings being there. kinda like the spiritual world from spirited away.
Thanks for playing! All the Ghibli films are such good resources to draw inspiration from. Glad you noticed!
Hello ! I had a great time playing this game, even thought my ventilator was about to die while playing it haha! I love this ambiance that you can feel from the beginning of the game, those "enigmas" if i can say are pretty cool, and it gives you that satisfaction feeling as soon as you manage to pass a step. It was a great experience overall!
Have you considered participating in our Game developers World Championship ? The competition is totally free and with winning prizes ! Our mission is to support and reward the Indie game developer community.
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Haha glad you had fun playing! Will definitely look into entering it, and I'm glad you messaged well in advance of the deadline. I'd love to clean it up and extend it, taking into consideration the feedback people have left. Thanks for stopping by! :)
My pleasure! Good luck in the competition!
This game is great I haven't dove into it for long but I have 3 problemos 1. A Menu, Make a s menu when you press escape and like a settings thiing and put audio and video stuff in there and Quit and Resume, 2. This one goes kind of with no. 1 and that is like quality levels, this game doesnt run well with a potato I'd be delighted if i could get atleast 3 so I can get a smoother expirence, and 3. Saving, Checkpoint like things would be nice but to have like 3 game slot things would also be great. I am no critic but those features would be amazing.
Thanks for leaving feedback! When you open the game, try choosing the lowest resolution available in the dropdown settings. I made quite a few performance-related mistakes (i.e. too many lights, expensive shaders, and large triangle count) that will all be done correctly in the next project. If you want to add me on Twitter or Discord I could send a custom build with performance fixes to test out. As far as checkpoints and saving, that will be implemented in the next one as well. This was meant to be played through in one sitting (10 minutes). I'll add a menu though, some people have had issues with hitting escape and it closing when they were close to the end.
Thank you for the fast response and I would like to see more of these types of games, keep doing what your doing.
I feel like a genius now :P
Loved the video! A lot of people have said they thought the staircase puzzle note looks like a certain symbol as well haha. In response to your ending comments: Of course!! Thank you for playing it. :)
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for playing and you're one closer to 10k subs! :)
I thought this was really cool!
I loved the way things kept shifting. For a while, I was really on my toes. It really felt like anything could happen for a moment. The only part I didn't like was the maze. I felt the spider stopped being threatening. Maybe adding some other threat to the maze would have made it more effective? That's just my opinion though, so take it with a grain of salt, obviously.
I do wish there was more to it, but it makes sense given that it's a game jam game.
If this is what you make for a game jam, I'd love to see what you could make given more time!
Thanks for playing! I'll work more on making those kinds of areas better for the actual game. Thanks for the nice feedback :)
When you made the Penumbra game, did you by any chance take inspiration from the Penumbra series such as Overture?
Had no idea they even existed until someone pointed out the name and similar beginning. The only Amnesia I ever played was the one made by The Chinese Room called Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs. The idea of having the pillar underground was inspired by 2001: A Space Odyssey. The name came from a famicon design by Dylan Wells that I loved.
Played this for a 3 free indie horrors and I gotta say, it was really good. I usually get a LOT of bad indie horrors but yours really restored my faith in the indie horror community! Good on ya. I give an in-depth review in my video below
Haha you're too kind. Really glad you enjoyed it! I think the tools available to game developers are more abundant and better than they were and that might be why we're seeing such great games popping up. Thanks for playing, and thanks for the feedback. :)
Absolutely. However a lot of dev don't take the time to learn to use the engines well enough to make better games and you definitely know what you're doing so far!
Wow, thank you! Fake it til you make it, am I right? Haha I have a LOT to learn. Making the game run well was by far the hardest thing to do for this project.
Yeah, optimization is always difficult, but once you know how, it gets easier. Keep on making stuff though, i'm gonna be checking in for your next project or updates.
A very interesting non-euclidean puzzle adventure with a few horror bits to top it off. It was weird, but kept me engaged through to the end. The visuals were also quite good given the confines of a game jam. Some scenes were actually pretty screenshot-worthy, which is very rare for game jams. Anyways, looking forward to seeing more of your work in the future! Sharing my video here for anyone else who's interested by the screenshots and looking for more.
Absolutely! Share away. That thumbnail made me laugh, that's a pretty bold statement hahah. Really enjoyed the video, especially how you judge it like any other game. Thanks for playing :)
Certainly different! I would love to see more done with this, but was quite enjoyable!
Thanks! Glad you had fun. Hopefully there will be more to play in the future! Thanks for playing :)
An interesting little game. We enjoyed it very much.
Here is a short video we made while playing:
Glad you guys enjoyed the game! Thanks for playing :)