Adrift
Developer(s)Three One Zero
Publisher(s)505 Games
Director(s)Adam Orth
Omar Aziz
Producer(s)Matteo Marsala
Designer(s)Tom Gerber
Sam Bass
Artist(s)Jason Barajas
Writer(s)Adam Orth
Composer(s)Adam Orth
Weezer
EngineUnreal Engine 4
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
PlayStation 4
ReleaseMicrosoft Windows
March 28, 2016
PlayStation 4
July 15, 2016
Genre(s)Adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Adrift is a first-person adventure video game developed by Three One Zero and published by 505 Games. It was released on March 28, 2016 for Microsoft Windows and July 15, 2016 for PlayStation 4. An Xbox One version of the game was planned but has been cancelled. The story follows an astronaut, who floats through the wreckage of a destroyed space station with no memory of the incident. Over the course of the game, players find clues that piece together the events of the incident, and attempt to repair the escape vehicle to return home.

Development began in 2013, following creator Adam Orth's resignation from Microsoft. The development team envision the game as a "first-person experience", purposefully avoiding violence. Orth compares the game to the upheaval in his life following his controversial comments about the Xbox One's DRM proposal.

Gameplay

First-person view of the player character floating through a damaged space station, with the Earth in the background.
Players float around the destroyed space station in zero gravity, maintaining sufficient oxygen levels by collecting oxygen tanks.

Adrift is played from a first-person view. In the game, players take control of Commander Alex Oshima,[1] floating and moving in any direction through the open environment,[2] which takes place in zero gravity.[3] The environment may be fully explored, but players will be restrained from exploring too far. One of the restraints is an oxygen limit, which players must monitor to avoid suffocation.[2] When running low on oxygen, players' vision becomes blurred; they must obtain an oxygen tank to stay alive.[4] Players move throughout five areas, completing a series of puzzles. Players are able to locate audio logs that will expand on the events of the incident;[2] the game is set in the year 2037.[5] Players will also find artifacts from the dead crew and must decide whether to return them to Earth.[3] The game is said to have two main objectives: to survive, and to return home safely.[6]

Development

The core development team of Adrift. From top to bottom: Adam Orth, Sam Bass, Matteo Marsala, Jason Barajas, Tom Gerber, and Omar Aziz.

The conception of Adrift was a direct result from the events that occurred to Adam Orth in 2013. When Microsoft's Xbox One was announced, it received controversy for its digital rights management that would require users to remain online to use the console. After seeing people quarrel over this, Orth—then a creative director at Microsoft—told them to "deal with it", which resulted in a mass of complaints leading to Orth's resignation from the company.[7][8] This led him to move from Seattle to Southern California. Orth noted that the game is a metaphor,[4] comparing it to the events in his life; both Orth and the player character find themselves in the middle of a disaster, and must "do the hard work to put things together".[2] He has stated that the game is about "action, consequence and redemption".[9] Orth wrote the story without any science fiction or supernatural themes in mind, stating that he "wanted to make stories and characters that hopefully resonate with people because they're not typical video game stories".[10]

Following his resignation from Microsoft, Orth approached his former colleague Omar Aziz with the idea of founding a new studio. Although initially hesitant,[4] Aziz agreed with the idea after hearing Orth's pitch for Adrift, and the two founded the development studio Three One Zero. After building a prototype for the game, Orth contacted and hired other former colleagues. The development team found that they were interested in developing Adrift due to its unique nature, setting it apart from first-person shooters. "I've gotten a lot of FPS fatigue over the years, having worked on them for many, many years I've gotten tired of them," said producer Matteo Marsala.[11] The team envision the game as a "first-person experience", making an intentional diversion from violence.[12] The game's development ultimately lasted approximately 13 months, with a core team of six developers. Throughout development, the team hired various contractors for a number of weeks in order to complete certain tasks, such as animation.[10]

The team noted that the "look" of the game was the biggest change that occurred during development. Orth compared the game's art style to the minimalist presentation of the 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey.[11] Orth also acknowledged the comparisons between Adrift and the 2013 film Gravity, stating that the game was conceived prior to the film's release. Upon watching the film, he felt confident that the two are "very different".[13] The team consider the game's scope and scale to be similar to Gravity, the immersion of the world similar to the Half-Life series, and the presentation and storytelling similar to Journey (2012).[14] Orth also admitted that he was largely inspired by the game Proteus (2013) while developing Adrift.[15] The game's logo was designed by graphic designer Cory Schmitz,[16] while the team hired Hogarth de la Plante as a prototype artist,[17] Dave Flamburis as a technical artist,[18] Oscar Cafaro as a concept artist[19] and Chad King as an environment artist.[20] The game's soundtrack was mainly composed by Orth, with contributions from the American band Weezer.[21] The game's sounds were recorded by Al Nelson of Skywalker Sound, at Skywalker Ranch. Nelson stated that he intended to "[tell] a story and [present] emotion with sound".[22]

The game was developed simultaneously for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.[23] It was released on March 28, 2016 for Windows,[24] and is scheduled to release on July 15, 2016 for PlayStation 4.[25][24] it was originally intended for release in September 2015, but was delayed to coincide with the launch of the Oculus Rift.[26] The game will feature Oculus Rift support, a feature that they intended since's the game's conception.[27] The original prototype for the game was developed for potential publishers by three people in ten weeks, using the Unity game engine.[17] The game's functionality was rebuilt for use with the Unreal Engine 4.[17]

Adrift was officially announced on June 4, 2014,[28] prior to the full gameplay reveal at The Game Awards on December 5, 2014.[29] A trailer for the game leaked a few days prior to E3 2015, in June 2015.[30] On June 12, 2015, Three One Zero announced a partnership with Top Cow Productions and Image Comics to produce a comic book series based on Adrift; the first issue was released on the same day. The series is written by Matt Hawkins, with artwork by Luca Casalanguida.[1]

Reception

The game received generally mixed reviews upon release according to review aggregator Metacritic.[31][32]

References

  1. 1 2 Orth, Adam (June 12, 2015). "ADR1FT Comic Book Series Released". Three One Zero. Archived from the original on June 14, 2015. Retrieved June 13, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Totilo, Stephen (February 10, 2014). "Adam Orth Is Turning His Personal Disaster Into A Beautiful Game". Kotaku. Gawker Media. Archived from the original on July 15, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  3. 1 2 USA Today Staff (June 11, 2014). "Video games' future is vast". USA Today. Gannett Company. Archived from the original on March 14, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 Cecente, Brian (February 20, 2014). "Breathing lessons: How Adam Orth turned social disaster into triumph". Polygon. Vox Media. Archived from the original on June 23, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  5. ↑ McCaffrey, Ryan (March 13, 2015). "Adr1ft 9-Minute Developer Commentary – IGN First". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on June 14, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
  6. ↑ Rath, Arun (June 21, 2014). "On Display At Video Game Showcase: A Struggle For Diversity". NPR. Archived from the original on June 5, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  7. ↑ Nutt, Christian (February 10, 2014). "Adam Orth turns his personal challenge into a new game experience". Gamasutra. UBM plc. Archived from the original on August 1, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  8. ↑ McWhertor, Michael (November 6, 2013). "Ex-Microsoft creative director Adam Orth on dealing with internet hate and toxicity". Polygon. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  9. ↑ Tach, Dave (June 12, 2014). "What is Adrift?". Polygon. Vox Media. Archived from the original on June 27, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  10. 1 2 Takahashi, Dean (June 10, 2015). "How Adam Orth turned a career disaster into a moment of inspiration with Adr1ft (interview)". GamesBeat. VentureBeat. Archived from the original on June 16, 2015. Retrieved June 13, 2015.
  11. 1 2 Cecente, Brian (November 28, 2014). "How first-person shooter fatigue led to the serene beauty of Adrift". Polygon. Vox Media. Archived from the original on June 28, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  12. ↑ Watts, Steve (June 26, 2014). "How Adrift could be Oculus Rift's secret weapon". Shacknews. Archived from the original on June 5, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  13. ↑ Giardana, Carolyn (June 11, 2014). "E3: IS Virtual Reality The Next Revolution In Entertainment". The Hollywood Reporter. Lynne Segall. Archived from the original on May 9, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  14. ↑ Valdes, Giancarlo (June 22, 2014). "To infinity and beyond: VR games embrace space travel and innovation at E3 2014". GamesBeat. VentureBeat. Archived from the original on April 16, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  15. ↑ Orth, Adam (March 11, 2015). "Adr1ft Creator Adam Orth on Gravity Comparisons, #DealWithIt Fiasco - IGN First" (Interview). Interviewed by McCaffrey, Ryan. IGN. Ziff Davis. Event occurs at 36:07. Archived from the original on June 14, 2015. Retrieved June 13, 2015.
  16. ↑ Orth, Adam (October 29, 2014). "ADR1FT and Cory Schmitz". Three One Zero. Archived from the original on August 5, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  17. 1 2 3 Orth, Adam (July 12, 2014). "Development Progress: Puzzle Design and Iteration". Three One Zero. Archived from the original on March 8, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  18. ↑ Orth, Adam (June 19, 2014). "ADR1FT Technical Artist Dave Flamburis". Three One Zero. Archived from the original on September 25, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  19. ↑ Orth, Adam (June 18, 2014). "ADR1FT Concept Artist Oscar Cafaro". Three One Zero. Archived from the original on September 26, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  20. ↑ Orth, Adam (June 17, 2014). "ADR1FT Environment Artist Chad King". Three One Zero. Archived from the original on December 15, 2014. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  21. ↑ Hatfield, Daemon; Altano, Brian (March 7, 2015). "9 Things We Learned About Adr1ft". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  22. ↑ Orth, Adam (August 4, 2014). "ADR1FT Sound Designer Al Nelson". Three One Zero. Archived from the original on May 29, 2015. Retrieved June 13, 2015.
  23. ↑ Orth (June 25, 2014). "ADR1FT and the reality of virtual reality". Three One Zero. Archived from the original on September 25, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  24. 1 2 Yin-Poole, Wesley (January 7, 2016). "First-person astronaut game Adr1ft launches on PC in March". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on January 8, 2016. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
  25. ↑ Matulef, Jeffrey (July 8, 2016). "Adr1ft floats to PS4 next week". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on July 9, 2016. Retrieved July 9, 2016.
  26. ↑ Devore, Jordan (September 24, 2015). "Adr1ft will be an Oculus Rift launch game". Destructoid. Archived from the original on September 25, 2015. Retrieved September 25, 2015.
  27. ↑ "E3 2014: Virtual reality isn't for everyone". CBS News. CBS. Associated Press. June 12, 2014. Archived from the original on March 13, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  28. ↑ Matulef, Jeffrey (June 4, 2014). "Adam "#dealwithit" Orth's space survival sim Adr1ft picked up by 505 Games". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on June 14, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
  29. ↑ Skipper, Ben (December 6, 2014). "Adri1ft: first persons pace-set exploration game debuts at The Game Awards". International Business Times. IBT Media. Archived from the original on June 16, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
  30. ↑ Matulef, Jeffrey (June 10, 2015). "Space survival sim Adr1ft lands in September on PC, PS4 and Xbox One". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on June 11, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
  31. ↑ "ADR1FT for PC reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  32. ↑ "ADR1FT for PlayStation 4 reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
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