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The Novelist launches on Steam today at a discounted price
The Novelist, Kent Hudson's indie game about a father juggling his familial responsibilities while trying to finish the greatest novel of his career, has launched on Steam today. You can grab it for $15 up until December 17, at which point it'll revert to its full $20 price. In The Novelist, you play a ghost inhabiting the summer home of the Kaplan family. You must watch them, learn about them and make decisions ultimately affecting their relationships with one another. Every choice has a cost and "there are no easy answers," the game's description reads. The Novelist, which is compatible with both PC and Mac, supports Steam Play – so if you pick it up for one platform, you own it on both.
The Novelist juggles career and family on December 10
Steam Greenlight winner The Novelist will launch on Steam next week, on December 10, for the special launch price of $15. After launch, it'll go up to $20. In The Novelist, you play as a ghost inhabiting the summer home of a family. The patriarch, Dan Kaplan, is currently juggling the needs of his wife and son while attempting to finish the book of his career. While watching the family, you learn about them, relive their memories and try to help them while staying out of sight. The Novelist will be available on both Mac and PC. All who pre-order through the game's site will receive the soundtrack, which will also be available for sale at launch.
Steam gives Satellite Reign, 7 Days to Die and others the Greenlight
The latest round of Steam Greenlight-approved games is headlined by a few Kickstarter successes, perhaps most notably the only-recently-funded Satellite Reign. The Syndicate Wars-inspired real-time strategy title achieved around $611K in backing, and now heads to Valve's portal alongside open-world zombie horror 7 Days to Die and 70s sci-fi god game Maia. 7 Days to Die even-more-recently achieved its Kickstarter goal of $200K and still has six days of its campaign to go, while Maia from indie dev Simon Roth, self-described as Dwarf Fortress meets Dungeon Keeper, was funded on Kickstarter late last year. Other highlights from the round of 15 include The Novelist, in which you play a ghost who observes and shapes the lives of a family, the re-release of 90s horror The 7th Guest, sci-fi janitorial sim (yes really) Viscera Cleanup Detail, and another Kickstarter success in Nekro, which mixes Diablo-style gameplay with the charming art of necromancy. We've got the full list of newly Greenlit games after the break.
The Joystiq Indie Pitch: The Novelist
It's not that there are too many indie games; it's that there aren't enough hours in a day to play all of them. The Joystiq Indie Pitch curates the best indies to play now and watch out for in the future. What's your game called and what's it about? The game is called The Novelist, and it deals with the question of what's more important in life: personal success or a loving family. You play as a ghost that observes the life of a novelist named Dan Kaplan, his wife, Linda, and his son, Tommy. As you learn about their lives you're presented with different situations that deal with the career vs. family question in some way, and you get to decide what they do. Your choices affect their relationships, shape their lives, and ultimately create a personal story. Will The Novelist have a tragically gruesome ending like The Shining, or is that just my own association run wild? I'm afraid that's just your imagination running wild. The idea of a writer alone in a house with his wife and son obviously has a lot in common with The Shining, but while I love that movie (and the book), The Novelist is an altogether more benevolent affair. There's no killing or violence in the game, although if you influence Dan to keep making decisions that are detrimental to his career or his family you can definitely create some ... depressing outcomes.%Gallery-188206%
The Novelist takes 'ghostwriting' to a new, emotional level
The Novelist stars three characters: Dan Kaplan, a father attempting to finish writing the most important book of his career; Dan's wife and their young son – and you won't play as any of these people. Instead, players control an omniscient presence in the family's summer cabin, able to watch their daily lives, read their thoughts, enter their memories and influence their actions. The only catch is that the ghost must stay out of sight. "It's up to you to decide how Dan's career and family life will evolve, but choose carefully; there are no easy answers, and every choice has a cost," The Novelist's description reads. "Dan's relationships – to his work, his wife and his son – react and shift in response to your choices. With a different sequence of events in every playthrough, The Novelist gives life to a unique experience each time you play. "The decisions you make will define the Kaplans' lives, but they may also tell you something about yourself." The Novelist is the brain child of Kent Hudson, who worked on AAA titles such as BioShock 2, Thief: Deadly Shadows, Deus Ex: Invisible War, The Bureau: XCOM Declassified, and maybe even more games with subtitles. He left the mainstream industry in 2011, and has been working on The Novelist ever since. We hope he wasn't working all the time, though – all work and no play make Kent a dull boy. The Novelist is due out on PC and Mac this summer, with pre-orders live now at a 25 percent discount ($15) via Hudson's site, with a Steam Greenlight page ready to roll.%Gallery-188206%
