Ice-Pick Lodge raised $333,127 on Kickstarter to remake the 2005 story-driven survival adventure title, Pathologic. Originally released to critical acclaim in Russia, the game went on to gain an international fanbase despite some serious flaws. With a fall release on the horizon, Ice-Pick has opened up the game’s first playable teaser, Pathologic: The Marble Nest, to everyone.
Alpha access backers have been able to download and play this proof-of-concept slice of Pathologic since December 2016. The Marble Nest features a limited number of mechanics and its own self-contained plot to show off some of the atmosphere and set-pieces of the game.
The lack of optimization and polish means the experience plays more like a pre-alpha build. Even so, it gave both the developers and alpha backers a better idea of how different in-game systems would work together for the final product.
Dying To Try It
Beta backers were given access to The Marble Nest in February before the flood gates opened for everyone else. Ice-Pick has stated that they aren’t working to update this early experience. Instead they are taking what they learn and improving the actual game.
Now they’ve expanded their reach further hoping to gain more insight beyond their cloistered community. Ice-Pick posted an update encouraging backers to share the game demo with a wider audience.
“You’ve mostly liked The Marble Nest—but let’s face it, as backers, you are likely to take most of the things we do in good faith, be patient with us and understanding of our choices. The rest of the world won’t. Which is why we want to subject our dear little game to the harsh trial of the open gaming world.”
Pathologic: The Marble Nest is available now through the Pathologic Steam page. Just click on “Download Demo” and play it now, for free. Afterwards, visit the Pathologic forums and share your thoughts with the developers.
Alpha and beta backers who have already played The Marble Nest will have access to an updated patch. The patch fixes a few known issues and (as is traditional with game development) breaks a few others.
