Poolscape

this game lies to you from the get go. it makes you think that "oh cool, its going be a chill Backroomsisk type game with you exploring indoor pools with retro music!" Turns out, its literary just "The Backrooms" but with ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ pools! I wouldn't be this angry it didn't lie to me with it's trailer making me think it's going to more chill and less suspenseful. Otherwise, it was a really well made game, I just hate false advertising

didn't realize the psx style could lend itself so well to the dream pools concept, but this game does an AMAZING job of blending the two aesthetics in a way that doesn't detract or diminsh one or the other. it's equal parts eery, unsettling, beautiful, and entrancing. i very much dig the direction this game goes in, and am really looking forward to the dev's upcoming cosmic horror game too. good stuff :D EDIT: i played their previous title, "GORE," and i'm a fan now. w games.

Атмосферний симулятор ходіння по лімінальних локаціях з басейнами і графікою в стилі першої соньки. Є кілька рівнів що відрізняються тематично, але всі здаються дуже прямолінійними й не виникало відчуття, що заблукав. Загроз теж ніяких не було.

Poolscape is a wonderful addition to the Liminal Space genre that stands out with it's own identity. It's well crafted, immersive, and executes the feeling of being lost in a liminal space while giving the concept a new dimension with it's '90s PS1 era aesthetic. - Visuals: It's charming, cozy, and unique with occasional subtle horror elements. - Audio: Each level includes appropriate music and ambience that further enhances the experience, which supports a strong sense of discovery. - Mechanics: As you can expect, it's approach to mechanics is pretty straight forward. Explore each level and take in the feeling of being lost in a liminal space. If you explore thoroughly, you may even find some secrets! - Story: While there isn't a story per se, there are a variety of notes that share the writer's perspective of the level they're found in. These notes enforces that the player isn't experiencing this alone and leaves you wondering if the others ever found their way out, which adds a dynamic feeling to the overall experience. - Concept: This game stands out from the usual photo-realism we see in the Liminal Space genre, which is refreshing. While photo-realism has it's place, Poolscape's approach to it's visuals gives the liminal experience a new dimension. It effectively emulates PS1 era aesthetics and it's emphasis on being slower paced allows the player to truly immerse themselves. Additionally, photo-realism tends to convey cerebral horror in most cases but Poolscape's approach is to present the player with more of a calming nostalgic feeling rather than overt dread. - Performance: Poolscape's performance is very solid. I didn't experience any bugs, glitches, crashes, or any other issues related to performance. - Settings; The game presents an acceptable level of settings from having an FPS cap, Colorblind Mode, and Volume Sliders while including tooltips for what each setting affects. Poolscape is an excellent game and I highly recommend it!

Poolscape is a medley of a few different takes on the idea of 'poolrooms'. You access each area via water slides from a hub, and return there after each trip. Some of the areas are pretty nice (Dreampools) and some are dull (Megastructure) so it's a mixed bag. Although Poolscape is better than many attempts at liminal spaces in games, largely thanks to having environments that are mostly pleasant to look at, it makes the same mistake that a lot of them make - it doesn't understand what makes a liminal space effective. The reason that liminal spaces are eerie isn't because they're huge and weird. A huge, weird space just feels gamey and artificial. That has its place in games, of course, but it's not eerie if that's all you're doing. What makes a liminal space eerie is that it's so very close to being like a real place, but a tiny bit off. That's why empty malls and the like feel unsettling - they're normal, mundane places that are usually teeming with people, but being deserted makes them feel 'off'. So it is with a good poolroom. The game Pools is, of course, the classic example. When you first start wandering around, it's basically just like a leisure centre. I went to loads of places like that as a kid. Pretty soon the total lack of people makes it feel a little odd. Then the fact that every time you turn a corner there are just more rooms and more pools. Then you see things that are very slightly out of place - a seat in a place that no one would choose to put a seat, for example. It feels like a real place. It's so similar to places I've actually been. But small things are not quite right. It's almost there but somehow just...not. *That's* what makes a liminal space work. You can certainly go weird, but you need to ramp up to it gradually. If you go straight to big, weird spaces that couldn't possibly exist then it just feels like a game level and there's no tension or discomfort. Poolscape has some decent environments to wander around and look at, as long as you understand that this is basically a ride - a passive stroll along a defined path, looking around you at the sights. But it is *not* tense, eerie, or disquieting. There are a couple of moments that hit that 'this reminds me of somewhere I've been, but why is that table in such an odd place?' note, but those moments are rare enough that I have to assume they're accidental. Poolscape, like so many of these games, thinks that white tiles and inflatable ducks were what made Pools effective. That aesthetic can be pleasant and nostalgic, and that nostalgia what carries this game, but it's not why Pools was so good. The almost-real eeriness and a slow build in tension were why Pools was good, and that's a much harder thing to pull off than just slapping water and tiles on some rooms. Especially when you don't even understand that that's what you're aiming for. Poolscape is 90 minutes of looking at environments, some pretty and some boring. I don't regret wandering through it but I also don't feel I would have missed out if I hadn't. It does a better job than most other Pools-y games that miss the mark, but it *does* still miss the mark.

Poolscape est un walking sim liminal basique sur le fond mais la forme est un peu différente de ce que l'ont voit souvent, il reprend des graphismes Rétro. C'est good vibe mais ayant fait bcp de liminaux je le trouve assez plat, il donne pas cette ambiance qu'on retrouve sur les liminaux classiques tel que pools, liminalcore, liminal waters etc, sa donne plus une ambiance à la Interior world (mais faut le dire vite ce dernier est bien plus intéressent que poolscape) le jeu propose plusieurs niveau directement accessible dans l'ordre que l'ont veux ( il faudrait que le dev rajoute un truc pour voir si on a déjà fait le niveaux...) Sinon concernant les niveaux eux même - si on écarte l'esthétique retro sympathique c'est assez vide je trouve, il se passe pas grand chose esthétiquement parlant par rapport à des liminaux plus classique, c'est dommage. Sans pour autant être mauvais, pour une personne qui cherche de la vrai ambiance backroom je recommande pas, le jeu donne pas ce feeling. Il faudrait aussi que le joueur puisse ajuster sa vitesse parce que le perso est un poil trop lent je trouve aussi . Je met le jeu en "pas recommandé" parce qu'il correspond pas forcément à ce que je recherchais mais pour ceux qui cherchent un walking sim chill sans le coté ambiance backroom c'est pas mauvais.