Telepaths Tree’s surreal FPS horror project, Inner Chains has had a troubled launch. Between repetitive gameplay, game breaking glitches, and a host of bugs, the title has already managed to garner a “Mostly Negative” review rating on Steam. Now the developers are playing “patch catch-up” to salvage their scores.
Inner Chains was funded on Kickstarter for $18,708 back in early 2016. Backers were quick to jump on the project that featured artwork inspired by Polish artist, Zdzisław Beksiński (NSFW), among others. Apart from the stunning visual style, the game boasted a suggestive and thrilling atmosphere. This was combined with a great soundtrack, and an unusual story. Unfortunately, when the game released without several common PC options, players were quick to cry foul.
Common issues include low FPS, lack of graphic settings, and unchangeable keybindings. Even players who manage to avoid the worst of the issues have still found fault with gameplay mechanics and lackluster storytelling. As soon as the game launched and player complaints began rolling in, the developers got to work on the first patch. In the 5 days it took for them to develop and release the patch the negative reviews were already rolling in.
Never Break The Chain
Some players were willing to reward Telepaths’ dedication towards fixing the game. A few were even willing to update their reviews once the patch was released.
Others, justifiably, wondered why the team hadn’t just delayed the game’s release until they’d managed to deal with the issues in a less public fashion.
Despite the frosty reception, the developers aren’t ready to call it quits yet. They have shifted their focus from creating the Linux supported stretch goal so they can continue working to fix the PC version. They made the announcement on Steam, telling users, “Technical issues and feedback from the community are the main focus at this moment and we are working around the clock in order to make Inner Chains meet your expectations.”
It’s not going to be easy to bounce back from such an unfavorable first impression, but the devs are clearly trying to set things right. Hopefully, with a few more patches, that will prove to be enough to turn the review tides back in their favor.
Might have jumped the gun on releasing this one when they did.