A veteran space trader and his ship Vahana suffer a pirate attack and crash on Erebus. A hollow, hostile planet. With the captain injured, the ship’s computer must take control to survive, repair the vessel, and find a way to escape. Gameplay focus on exploration and frantic combat with shoot em up mechanics.
Game concept
- Working Title: Black Abyss
- Genre: isometric Exploration, Shooter/Metroidvania hybrid
- Target platforms: PC and Consoles
- Game length: 6-8 hours. Completionism 9-12 hours.
Creative Pillars
- Dual gameplay: isometric combat and exploration.
- A planet as a hostile living labyrinth, a technological graveyard.
- Human–machine relationship as the narrative core.
Narrative
Cassian Oneiros travels with his ship Vahana on his last journey before retiring. Unfortunately, he suffers a pirate attack and crashes into one of the deep craters of Erebus, a dying hollow planet that once served as a mining and scientific station and is now dimly lit by a dying sun. The ship, now trapped in the depths of the planet with Cassian unconscious, must act independently for the first time to protect its crew member and restore damaged systems in order to escape the planet before it collapses.
Narrative Themes
- Symbiotic relationships between human and machines.
- Exploration of Erebus. A hollow planet turned into a technological graveyard of an old civilization..
- A “last journey” as metaphor for endings and farewells.
Expanded narrative
Cassian Oneiros is a seasoned space trader, weary from a nomadic life. His relationship with his ship Vahana is almost symbiotic: after 40 years together, they know each other on an almost human level. The crash on the dead planet radically shifts their dynamic: Vahana becomes the protagonist for much of the game, while Cassian is reduced to an injured, comatose body.
The planet Erebus they crash on is not just any desert husk, but a world-shell, a once-living star system remnant consumed by its dying sun. Long ago, it was exploited as a mining station and abandoned laboratory, leaving behind layers of danger and mystery. This sets up four overlapping threats:
- Space pirates that are following and hunting Cassian and Vahana into the planet. They are salvage and vulnerable prey.
- Flora and fauna of the planet. There are some predatory and hostile creatures that inhabit the dying planet, desperate to survive.
- Forgotten technology and relics from the past left behind by the ancient civilisation that once inhabited the planet. Some will be helpful (ancient tools, energy devices), while others will pose a threat (surveillance systems, drones, unstable anomalies, experiments, mutations).
- The hostile geology itself: collapsing caverns, fissures, and electromagnetic storms.
The narrative core revolves around the relationship between Cassian and Vahana:
- At the start, with Cassian unconscious, Vahana “thinks out loud,” reflecting on memories of its captain while facing the challenge of acting alone for the first time.
- As Cassian slowly awakens, dialogues between human and machines emerge—raising questions of identity, companionship, and autonomy. Is Vahana merely a tool, or something closer to a partner?
- The climax pivots around whether Cassian and Vahana can escape together—or Vahana must sacrifice itself to save him.
Gameplay
Core Pillars
Vahana/Ship Phase
- Open landscapes where the ship can move in isometric perspective with twin-stick shooter controls.
- Ship starts severely limited after the crash (short thrusters, weak shield, basic weapon)
- Find objects and materials to fully recover Cassian and small ship's technology.
- Combat against pirates, creatures of the planet and decaying defense drones.
Cassian on Foot Phase
- The ship can land in places to let Cassian walk out the ship and explore in isometric perspective more closed environments and buildings inaccessible to the ship for puzzle-solving and new threads.
- Cassian starts with limited equipment (weapon, tools, suit). He will find new equipment to unlock new pathways.
- Hacking ancient systems to unlock new pathways for the ship.
- Limited encounters focused on stealth and survival.
Ship–Pilot Synergy
- You can switch between Cassian and Vahana in any moment. This create an indirect cooperation (e.g., Cassian is activating door systems while Vahana fends off attacks outside).
- What Cassian hacks, find and repairs enables new features for Vahana.
- What Vahana unlocks opens paths for Cassian.
Progression
Endings
Style and Atmosphere
- 6 different biomes to explore: primordial crater, the orchard, uncanny cliffs, sunken moors, sculpted cathedral, violet lake.
- Visuals: dark retrofuturistic aesthetic; contrast between bright technology, cracked landscapes, luminescent flora and deserted ancient ruins.
- Audio: Minimalist synth atmospheres, mechanical drones, and fragmented voice logs.
- Tone: Melancholic, introspective, tension.
