I wrote a bunch of stuff while i played under the name of "Cactus" if you dev(s?) are interested in reading that since it was basically just me giving thoughts on my adventure
This is something I've always loved as a concept. The idea that you feel alone, but yet there so many people around you. And how you get to slowly uncover a story from many perspectives. Love it.
Subscribing for when someone hits 100. This is a game of transcendence and broken goshdarn radios that don't do nuth'n and doublesails that ruin your life forever.
The game keeps freezing on me with no way to unfreeze. I've had to restart the game 5 times within an hour, making it almost impossible to make any progress.
I'm using a UK QWERTY keyboard, and when I write a message on Linux I get foreign characters when I press non-alphanumeric keys. (SHIFT gives an upside down !). But this doesn't happen on Windows. Is anybody else experiencing this?
Great aesthetic. Bottle mechanic is also a ton of fun. I wrote some really stupid stuff lol. Unfortunately, the game crashed 26 minutes in for me. I really liked what I played, though!
I'm pretty sure it's a metaphore for saying that the journey/game has ended. Crosses can signify graves, and graves signify death. Therefore at the end, there is death. That's my best take on it.
I really love the game... it has an excellent atmosphere, and the bottle system is magical. One big complaint I have about the game, however, is that the boat tends to go too fast. There's no way to slow the boat down, besides frantically paddling backwards.
I don't remember the billboard saying write before the thing so I don't know if that's what it was or if it was something else but thanks for sending that video example.
If the billboard says 'write,' you tab to type a message.
If you get a billboard that says 'Password:[something],' then you have to take 100 parcels/discs to the red door to open it. It takes you to a platform with a computer and the password is used to extinguish all other life in your universe (every player has their own - the rain/bottles are interdimensional)
I personally like this game. I like the atmosphere, the way people can interact with each other, the smaller things to do while you wait for other bottles or can't think of what to write. It's great. It's an adventure atop a ship into the feelings of people unknown. My only problem was that the first time I played, I didn't realize there was something wrong, because I played for 45 minutes (I know, I should've realized sooner) and I only saw one other bottle. It was most likely a glitch, but it was very offputting and I hope something like this doesn't happen to other people.
I was really excited to finally play this game. I had been following its development during the previous weeks and had already formed some expectation of what this game was supposed to be. Suprisingly though my actual experience differed a lot from that.
I thought it would be more about the narrative the world was telling and that the messages would be a nice social component to keep the player from feeling too isolated, finding comfort in other peoples words. "The Things We Lost In The Flood" delivered on all of that.
However, confronted by those writing prompts the game offers to you whenever you decide to write a message and pull up that blank sheet of paper, I repeatedly felt like standing in front of a mirror. These prompts pose some of the hardest questions a person can ask himself. - If you allow it, that is. Of course this requires a certain level of openess on the player's part. Few people I know consider themselves ready nor are they willing to face subjects such as what they believe to be their greatest regrets in life. To me finding this wonderfully unexpected place to do that made me really happy.
The nice thing about it: you don't have to engage on that level with it. Other players choose to create poetry and art that might or might not be personal at all. Some use the little bottles to help others with tips on how to progress through the game.
All of them will have an engaging experience. The level of engagement might differ though.
A lovely message I happened upon in the vast loneliness of the neverending waters:
I personally decided to embrace the opportunity to "let go of something", as the prompt phrases it. It was a cathartic experience, I left a lot in those waters. While the anonymity encouraged me to share things that were very personal, at the same time I never felt alone with myself.
Great game. It's amazing how good collective spam control through destruction of bottles works so far. I just wonder whether or not I've really seen the end of the game. Would be nice to get a hint. Is the last word "alone"?
Only one word can describe it: inspirational. It can make no sense at a glance, but it makes sense in your eyes if you think about it as a part of ourselves. I have seen fear, sadness, hope, glory and angriness. All in a very different ambience from a mere forum or social media. Well job to the creator and to the composer.
it's very rewarding to read others' messages but it kind of pisses me off a little bit that there are no messages after like the first four screens. i spent probably an hour waiting for the end assuming that there'd be a higher concentration of messages there and it was just a grave. the messages are the point of the game no?
That actually sounds like a bug. I haven't really seen anyone else mention it, but I've experienced it myself yesterday. Definitely going to be looking into this.
EDIT: This is potentially fixed now. Download the newest build from the downloads page and give me a shout if you're still having issues.
I don't want to be an asshole or anything but this is less than a game. It has no point, it has no story, the controls are MEH so.. overall I wouldn't really pay a single cent for this. If I want to speak to people I go chat online. There is no point in all of it. I went through multiple times, there is nothing. Some of those "drones" come, the radio is pointless, the stupid fake ending is pointless (you walk off the screen and fall into water and drown), there is no point for the grave, the big towering building (?), nothing. Also I was wondering if I would have just kept myself in place for an enternity by paddling backwards (which is a PAIN) until I get like 20-ish boxes (floppies?) if that changes anything, but I just didn't have the motivation whatsoever. That is the most dangerous thing in a game - when you have no motivation to even try something in it. I was interested in this but it was so much of a disappointment that I hardly find the words to describe it. And then others just sing odes of it like it's the next greatest thing. Yes, atmosphere is there but that is it! There is no graphics, no story, no actual gameplay elements, nothing! Seriously?!
I actually spent a lot of time thinking about this. While I understand your frustration, I believe it's related to a mayor problem that videogames as a genre are facing today: there is clearly a breach between two different conceptions of videogames.
What you're asking for, probably, won't be easily found on Itch.io, a community for people that abide to different ideas of what a videogame should be.
That being said, a game, in it's most traditional sense, has some clear characteristics down to it's core: rules, a condition of winning, and one of losing. (in between, and particularly, in videogames, you could think of gameplay, graphics, etc).
The main issue, I think, is that we are using the same word for two very different things. The Things We Lost in The Flood, as most games on Itch, is meant to be highly discursive, and that is reflected on all of it's aspects. You are asking for a different kind of media; one, that, sadly, is understandably linked to the one that is mostly featured here. My hope for the future is that these aspiring new media shall be analized for what it is, and not for what it "should" be, given that, obviously, it's roots are buried in the notion of traditional "videogames" (and, more importantly, "games").
Thanks a lot! And I completely agree. Videogames as art, as any form of reaching for meaning, thought and knowledge, should be enough to justify itself.
I loved The Things We Lost In The Flood, and I think it serves as a perfect example of what games can and should be: the best representation of meaning, given shape in the digital era. I will be checking out your future works!
That very same people that you say can't imagine anything "beyond a game in it's most primitive, literal form" are proof of this phenomena. There is a thing such as "two different conceptions, and comments like the one we have seen here are proof of that; it is observable. I would say that what doesn't exist is not "two conceptions", but two concepts. A concept, of course, makes the mind instantly think of structures and specifiicity, that is why I used "conceptions", to be a little more vague, because, of course, attempting to put every possible manifestation of videogames into two bags it's restrictive.
That being said, it's impossible not to notice some kind of divide. The very fact that the syntagma "indie game" exists, implies the logical fact that there is such a thing as "indie games" and, on the other side, "not-indie games". I don't, obviously, identify either one with a more "discursive" aspect just like that, but I think that indie games tend to gravitate towards that notions even more (with that I mean, a stronger emphasis on a given concept, a discourse, than on any other possible element).
My idea, simply put, is that people that make indie games generally try to make games that means something, that reveal aspects of ourselves (the subject) and the world that makes both feel renewed. I'm not trying to diminish any possible manifestation of art in videogames; i'm simply celebrating all of it's vast array of posibilities (triple A games of course can also do that, but I don't think it's the case the majority of times, and that is why I work with generalisations and not absolutes).
Basically everyone is right in a way. I was expecting this to be more... Contenty? Still, it started as a game and played out as a game but then it didn't go nowhere. Probably this is the main reason I had that opinion. As the Oracle said: Everything that has a beginning, has an end. Now this game didn't have the literal end one would expect. If I sounded "salty" it's because it was so great until I met the non-existent "end".
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Didnt understand and the game is very weird
I wrote a bunch of stuff while i played under the name of "Cactus" if you dev(s?) are interested in reading that since it was basically just me giving thoughts on my adventure
how can i see all the messages in one archive?
the game is amazing with beautiful graphics. however it would be nice to be able to write back on a note to respond.
it's such a touching game
navis
leaG810
umbra
Sadly not working on Mac OS Catalina:
happens to me too when playing on a Macbook Air. Sad because it used to be able to work but in these past few months it's stopped working.
actually it does work on catalina, in fact im playing it as we speak. How I got mine to work is:
1. Open terminal
2. Right click the app "The things we lost in the flood" and click on "Show package contents"
3. You'll see a folder called Contents. Double click on "Contents" and then "MacOS".
4. into terminal type "chmod +x " and drag and drop the file in the MacOS folder into terminal.
5. Press enter in Terminal and you should be good.
If you have any questions please let me know, I'd be glad to help.
This is something I've always loved as a concept. The idea that you feel alone, but yet there so many people around you. And how you get to slowly uncover a story from many perspectives. Love it.
Subscribing for when someone hits 100. This is a game of transcendence and broken goshdarn radios that don't do nuth'n and doublesails that ruin your life forever.
The game keeps freezing on me with no way to unfreeze. I've had to restart the game 5 times within an hour, making it almost impossible to make any progress.
same as me
Weird! The game just stops dead?
What OS are you running?
I'm using a UK QWERTY keyboard, and when I write a message on Linux I get foreign characters when I press non-alphanumeric keys. (SHIFT gives an upside down !). But this doesn't happen on Windows. Is anybody else experiencing this?
yes, i also have this problem
I got the the red door but was unable to enter it, is there a certain set of steps i have to do in order to enter or is it closed off on purpose?
Thankyou for the surreal journey!
fantastic little game, but as some people have mentioned... well, months ago now, I don't get any more bottles after the first few screens
I guess it is because no people online
is it just me who notices that the guy is... ehem... anatomically correct?
O_O.... that's.. thats a ... sandwich he's keeping for later.
Great aesthetic. Bottle mechanic is also a ton of fun. I wrote some really stupid stuff lol. Unfortunately, the game crashed 26 minutes in for me. I really liked what I played, though!
It was a wonderfull, atmospheric experience.
Hey A question, what do I do at the place with the crosses? I tried going to the other side but it just doesnt let me?
I'm pretty sure it's a metaphore for saying that the journey/game has ended. Crosses can signify graves, and graves signify death. Therefore at the end, there is death. That's my best take on it.
its a nice thought, but this isn't the case.
Just drag your boat across the screen and the game will continue.
wow, it tried to be philosofical and stuff but just ended up being wrong lmao
If you interact with the pile of dung, you get clothes.
ha! I stumbled upon the cross, walked over it to the right, vanished and drowned obviously. :-D
"Beat" the game, ended the world (un[OMIT]ed it). A shame the monoliths have no purpose nor are visible on the ground.
This is a really calm and cute game, I really love it.
I really love the game... it has an excellent atmosphere, and the bottle system is magical. One big complaint I have about the game, however, is that the boat tends to go too fast. There's no way to slow the boat down, besides frantically paddling backwards.
Double Sail is "can't interact with anything" mode.
I keep dying of my boat going too fast :(
The Art Style looks amazing!
Made a video
its really nice to be honest..but..what is the password?
What's the password for?
Crashed a little while after I threw the switch. Is that normal?
it's not! Apologies.
Which OS are you on?
Windows 10
Where do you use the passwords?
Tab to write messages.
That's not what I meant. I found a billboard with a sequence of numbers and letters, so I was wondering if they have a use, and where to use it.
Yep, that's what I mean. Have you noticed that picking up a bottle sometimes changes day to night or vice versa?
EDIT: Either of these things, or are you talking about something else?
I don't remember the billboard saying write before the thing so I don't know if that's what it was or if it was something else but thanks for sending that video example.
If the billboard says 'write,' you tab to type a message.
If you get a billboard that says 'Password:[something],' then you have to take 100 parcels/discs to the red door to open it. It takes you to a platform with a computer and the password is used to extinguish all other life in your universe (every player has their own - the rain/bottles are interdimensional)
Whoa, thanks guys for making it. I loved that trip !
Интересная игра, с непонятным сюжетом, но было интересно играть =)
I personally like this game. I like the atmosphere, the way people can interact with each other, the smaller things to do while you wait for other bottles or can't think of what to write. It's great. It's an adventure atop a ship into the feelings of people unknown. My only problem was that the first time I played, I didn't realize there was something wrong, because I played for 45 minutes (I know, I should've realized sooner) and I only saw one other bottle. It was most likely a glitch, but it was very offputting and I hope something like this doesn't happen to other people.
I was really excited to finally play this game. I had been following its development during the previous weeks and had already formed some expectation of what this game was supposed to be. Suprisingly though my actual experience differed a lot from that.
I thought it would be more about the narrative the world was telling and that the messages would be a nice social component to keep the player from feeling too isolated, finding comfort in other peoples words. "The Things We Lost In The Flood" delivered on all of that.
However, confronted by those writing prompts the game offers to you whenever you decide to write a message and pull up that blank sheet of paper, I repeatedly felt like standing in front of a mirror. These prompts pose some of the hardest questions a person can ask himself. - If you allow it, that is. Of course this requires a certain level of openess on the player's part. Few people I know consider themselves ready nor are they willing to face subjects such as what they believe to be their greatest regrets in life. To me finding this wonderfully unexpected place to do that made me really happy.
The nice thing about it: you don't have to engage on that level with it. Other players choose to create poetry and art that might or might not be personal at all. Some use the little bottles to help others with tips on how to progress through the game.
All of them will have an engaging experience. The level of engagement might differ though.
A lovely message I happened upon in the vast loneliness of the neverending waters:
I personally decided to embrace the opportunity to "let go of something", as the prompt phrases it. It was a cathartic experience, I left a lot in those waters. While the anonymity encouraged me to share things that were very personal, at the same time I never felt alone with myself.
Such an amazing concept to a game. really loved the art style with a eerie vibe to it. Feel free to check out my video on the game
Great game. It's amazing how good collective spam control through destruction of bottles works so far. I just wonder whether or not I've really seen the end of the game. Would be nice to get a hint. Is the last word "alone"?
Hi all, Is there a way to save the state of the game? Each time I start the app I wake up at the island again. Did I miss the manual?
Only one word can describe it: inspirational. It can make no sense at a glance, but it makes sense in your eyes if you think about it as a part of ourselves. I have seen fear, sadness, hope, glory and angriness. All in a very different ambience from a mere forum or social media. Well job to the creator and to the composer.
Everyone should play this game at least once.
This game is extremely underrated
Unless it is extremely new
And it seems to be
i love it, how everything turned out, the idea, the graphics, the soundtrack, and as baltarose said, you.
I wrote a post about it on my blog.
Thank you so much!
it's very rewarding to read others' messages but it kind of pisses me off a little bit that there are no messages after like the first four screens. i spent probably an hour waiting for the end assuming that there'd be a higher concentration of messages there and it was just a grave. the messages are the point of the game no?
That actually sounds like a bug. I haven't really seen anyone else mention it, but I've experienced it myself yesterday. Definitely going to be looking into this.
EDIT: This is potentially fixed now. Download the newest build from the downloads page and give me a shout if you're still having issues.
Oh are there supposed to messages after the first few screens? I didn't get any either.
I don't want to be an asshole or anything but this is less than a game. It has no point, it has no story, the controls are MEH so.. overall I wouldn't really pay a single cent for this. If I want to speak to people I go chat online. There is no point in all of it. I went through multiple times, there is nothing. Some of those "drones" come, the radio is pointless, the stupid fake ending is pointless (you walk off the screen and fall into water and drown), there is no point for the grave, the big towering building (?), nothing. Also I was wondering if I would have just kept myself in place for an enternity by paddling backwards (which is a PAIN) until I get like 20-ish boxes (floppies?) if that changes anything, but I just didn't have the motivation whatsoever. That is the most dangerous thing in a game - when you have no motivation to even try something in it. I was interested in this but it was so much of a disappointment that I hardly find the words to describe it. And then others just sing odes of it like it's the next greatest thing. Yes, atmosphere is there but that is it! There is no graphics, no story, no actual gameplay elements, nothing! Seriously?!
Salty
why are you being an *arsehole then... if you "dont want to be an asshole"
I actually spent a lot of time thinking about this. While I understand your frustration, I believe it's related to a mayor problem that videogames as a genre are facing today: there is clearly a breach between two different conceptions of videogames.
What you're asking for, probably, won't be easily found on Itch.io, a community for people that abide to different ideas of what a videogame should be.
That being said, a game, in it's most traditional sense, has some clear characteristics down to it's core: rules, a condition of winning, and one of losing. (in between, and particularly, in videogames, you could think of gameplay, graphics, etc).
The main issue, I think, is that we are using the same word for two very different things. The Things We Lost in The Flood, as most games on Itch, is meant to be highly discursive, and that is reflected on all of it's aspects. You are asking for a different kind of media; one, that, sadly, is understandably linked to the one that is mostly featured here. My hope for the future is that these aspiring new media shall be analized for what it is, and not for what it "should" be, given that, obviously, it's roots are buried in the notion of traditional "videogames" (and, more importantly, "games").
I try to avoid justifying myself, but this is a great take - and far more eloquent than I could ever put it.
I'm not precious over the nomenclature. If this doesn't tick all the boxes to qualify it as a "game", then so be it.
It is however, something. It exists.
Thanks a lot! And I completely agree. Videogames as art, as any form of reaching for meaning, thought and knowledge, should be enough to justify itself.
I loved The Things We Lost In The Flood, and I think it serves as a perfect example of what games can and should be: the best representation of meaning, given shape in the digital era. I will be checking out your future works!
That very same people that you say can't imagine anything "beyond a game in it's most primitive, literal form" are proof of this phenomena. There is a thing such as "two different conceptions, and comments like the one we have seen here are proof of that; it is observable. I would say that what doesn't exist is not "two conceptions", but two concepts. A concept, of course, makes the mind instantly think of structures and specifiicity, that is why I used "conceptions", to be a little more vague, because, of course, attempting to put every possible manifestation of videogames into two bags it's restrictive.
That being said, it's impossible not to notice some kind of divide. The very fact that the syntagma "indie game" exists, implies the logical fact that there is such a thing as "indie games" and, on the other side, "not-indie games". I don't, obviously, identify either one with a more "discursive" aspect just like that, but I think that indie games tend to gravitate towards that notions even more (with that I mean, a stronger emphasis on a given concept, a discourse, than on any other possible element).
My idea, simply put, is that people that make indie games generally try to make games that means something, that reveal aspects of ourselves (the subject) and the world that makes both feel renewed. I'm not trying to diminish any possible manifestation of art in videogames; i'm simply celebrating all of it's vast array of posibilities (triple A games of course can also do that, but I don't think it's the case the majority of times, and that is why I work with generalisations and not absolutes).
Basically everyone is right in a way. I was expecting this to be more... Contenty? Still, it started as a game and played out as a game but then it didn't go nowhere. Probably this is the main reason I had that opinion. As the Oracle said: Everything that has a beginning, has an end. Now this game didn't have the literal end one would expect. If I sounded "salty" it's because it was so great until I met the non-existent "end".