Release Date: April 20, 2016
A first-person science-fiction adventure game and the debut project of Mindfield Games, an independent Finnish studio. The story of P.O.L.L.E.N. takes us to an alternative version of the 90s, when a combination of the American and Russian space programs resulted in a rapid progress in the field. The player assumes the role of a new employee of Rama Industries, a company that builds a base on one of the Saturn’s moons.
P.O.L.L.E.N. for PC and PS4 is a first-person science-fiction adventure game and the debut project of Mindfield Games, an independent Finnish studio.
P.O.L.L.E.N. takes us to an alternative version of the 90s. In the developers’ vision of the world, history took a different course thanks to the fact that president John F. Kennedy survived the attempted assassination. It launched a chain of events that lead to combining the American and Soviet space programs which, in turn, resulted in a rapid technology development in the field. A base on the Moon was established as early as 1970s, and the conquest of the Solar System became possible thanks to the discovery of antigravity that allowed affordable launching of objects into the orbit.
The player assumes the role of a new employee of Rama Industries, a corporation dealing with space exploration. Its latest project involves building a base on the surface of Titan, the largest moon of Saturn. A five-member group of astronauts is working on this undertaking but one of them dies as a result of an accident. The protagonist is hired to replace him. Upon arrival, we discover that the remaining crew disappeared and our employer was not entirely honest with us. In the campaign, we have to uncover what really happened in the base and find a way to escape this place.
P.O.L.L.E.N. is a thriller adventure game in which the action is observed from the first-person perspective. The gameplay focuses on exploration and puzzle-solving. The puzzles are logic and most of them can be solved in various ways. The highly-interactive environment provides lots of freedom in of overcoming obstacles and other challenges—the players can manipulate nearly all encountered machines, devices, and items.
P.O.L.L.E.N. for PC and PS4 is powered by the Unity engine. The game was designed primarily with the VR technology in mind, but it is also possible to play on a monitor and TV.
Platforms:
PC Windows April 20, 2016
PlayStation 4 cancelled
Developer: Mindfield Games
Publisher: Mindfield Games
Age restrictions: 12+
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System Requirements for P.O.L.L.E.N. Video Game:
PC / Windows
Minimum System Requirements:
Intel Core i3 3.3 GHz/AMD Phenom II X4 3.0 GHz, 4 GB RAM, graphic card 1 GB RAM GeForce GTX 650/Radeon HD 7870 or better, 8 GB HDD, Windows 7.
Recommended System Requirements:
Intel Core i5 3.9 GHz/AMD FX-8350 4.0 GHz, 8 GB RAM, graphic card 4 GB RAM GeForce GTX 970/Radeon R9 290X or better, 9 GB HDD, Windows 10.
Game Ratings for P.O.L.L.E.N. Video Game.
Pixel Dynamo: 7.5 / 10 by Melissa Vach
I can wholeheartedly recommend playing this game to anyone remotely interested in space or first person exploration games that are more focused on letting the player do what the player will. P.O.L.L.E.N stands up to Gone Home as a gaming experience, but early adopters of the Rift would be remiss to on experiencing this game in virtual reality.
Entertainment Buddha: 80 / 100 by David Creedy
Some of the best science fiction writing occurs when the author takes a world that the reader is familiar with, but changes some aspects to set the story. This doesn’t need to be some far-fetched imaginary science theory that we just need to accept though, for example in Isaac Asimov’s short story Nightfall, the setting is similar to current day, only the planet has multiple suns meaning that they never (in theory) experienced night time, the entire way of life revolves around this. P.O.L.L.E.N takes a similar approach.
GameGrin: 7 / 10 by Cat Swinburn
P.O.L.L.E.N. is a visually stunning and well crafted exploration game, and the detail that has been put into the small world by Mindfield Games is remarkable. The recognition that, as players, we don’t always need the game to hold our hands in order to progress is refreshing. But there feels like there could be so much more somehow.
Average score from votes.