[KANDYMAN]

As much as I love Trilby's Notes, (I believe it to be one of the better games made in the last 12 months) there is a set of suspiciously large similarites between it and the game "the white chamber" released by Trophis Studio (http://www.studiotrophis.com/wc.php).

To start with you are completely trapped within a very limited environment, that used to be the living quaters for a large group of people (TN: Hotel, TWC: Space Reseach Vessel).

The environment keeps shifting between a nightmare world and the real one (Pretty much identical in execution, less control to do so is given to the players of TWC ie no stimulants, or tranqelisers).

You are haunted by flash backs and twisted versions of reality (again very familiar feel).

You collect severed bodyparts to make a "key" (YES this is the same in both games, only in Trilby's Notes its a human manequin, in The White Chamber it is actual severed human bodyparts [I love the the sound effect for the opening of the heads eyes].)

Your universe is controlled by a vicious malavelont power that is testing you for its own purposes. (TN: being set up by the "tall man"[a character whose soul is turned into an artifact of power through his painful torturous death]*, the pawn of a Lovecraftian demon, in an attempt to open a gateway into adimension of pain [that draws its influences heavily from the Hellraiser series]. And in The White Chamber you are being manipulated by one of the dead crew members, whose soul has passed "into" an ancient powerful artifact through his violently painful murder.)

*additional "the tall man" is also the name of the controlling evil character from the Phantasm series of scifi horror films. A character that walks between our dimension and his own raising the dead to serve as slaves and possibly an army to take over our world.
- - - - - - - - -

I just think there are a couple of similarities... thats all... How many "pop culture", and "cult classics" references am I missing from Yahtzee's current storyline??

But the main thing with The White Chamber and Trilby's Notes that struck me as weird was how close the game plots are to each other!

This post has been edited by KANDYMAN: 14 January 2007 - 07:01 AM

[David-kyo]

I believe that both TN and TWC were tributes to good ol' Silent Hill. However, I don't know much about TWC, as it is so fucking big that I could never download it.

[Egfu]

To start with you are completely trapped within a very limited environment, that used to be the living quaters for a large group of people (TN: Hotel, TWC: Space Reseach Vessel).

The environment keeps shifting between a nightmare world and the real one (Pretty much identical in execution, less control to do so is given to the players of TWC ie no stimulants, or tranqelisers).

You are haunted by flash backs and twisted versions of reality (again very familiar feel).

None of those elements are very original horror elements in the first place.

You collect severed bodyparts to make a "key" (YES this is the same in both games, only in Trilby's Notes its a human manequin, in The White Chamber it is actual severed human bodyparts [I love the the sound effect for the opening of the heads eyes].)

Yeah, I have to admit I got some serious White Chamber flashbacks when collecting the body parts in TN. Also, a bit off-topic... Weren't the "We won't need eyes where we're going" thing in TWC and DeFoe stealing that one guy's eyes in 7DAS both tributes to the movie Event Horizon?


And yeah, from what I've heard, both games are heavily inspired by Silent Hill 2. Although I haven't actually played that game.

[Blueskirt]

I don't know much about TWC, as it is so fucking big that I could never download it.

Ahem..

In my time we spend nights to download 300mb games on dialup and we woke up at 4am to milk the cows and we walked miles to go to school and we had to fight off dinosaurs on our way! Pffff spoiled kids nowaday!

[KANDYMAN]

None of those elements are very original horror elements in the first place.

Well yes they are familiar horror elements, its just the fact that they have all of them in common... try and come up with some more games, or films, that run as closely in parrallel as the elements in these two games do...

Yes reality shifts are something that pops up in horror on a reasonable basis, but not in that manner. Unless the main character is schitzophrenic or dreaming. Normally reality shifts are just little things, half glimpsed happenings when the other characters aren't looking. The way these two games submerge the character into an alternate reality until certain tasks are completed or triggered draws very strong parrallels.

Plus its an element that for me I hadn't seen in an adventure game before. I also haven't played silent hill. Tried to play number 4, once, I got bored.

Yeah, I have to admit I got some serious White Chamber flashbacks when collecting the body parts in TN. Also, a bit off-topic... Weren't the "We won't need eyes where we're going" thing in TWC and DeFoe stealing that one guy's eyes in 7DAS both tributes to the movie Event Horizon?
And yeah, from what I've heard, both games are heavily inspired by Silent Hill 2. Although I haven't actually played that game.

Oh yeah the I have to agree the eye thing is a definate event horizon homage. When I started watching event horizon I didn't know what i was in for... the eye gouged scene and the original transmission they recieve are two images that really stick with you.


Has anyone seen a movie called "Spirit Trap" with Bill Piper? Whilst watching the set up for the film I was very much reminded of 5 days a stranger. I don't mind it as a film, its not amazing or anything. But then any film that has mixed people going into an old mansion, or giant house, finding that there is no way in or out and is haunted by a possessing evil, is sure to remind you of 5 days a stranger.

Only one other person on this forum has mentioned that the Chzo demon seems lovecraftian... I mean its got all the hallmarks. It devours souls, is trapped far from where it wishes to be (despite its awesomely extreme power), has the look and feel of a tentacled deep sea ocaen beast and has an unpronounceable name.

This post has been edited by KANDYMAN: 14 January 2007 - 09:03 AM

[Gobbler]

Has anyone seen a movie called "Spirit Trap" with Bill Piper? Whilst watching the set up for the film I was very much reminded of 5 days a stranger.

Same goes for playing Nocturnal Illusion. Though the feeling is a bit... er~hem... different.

[David-kyo]

Ahem..

Blueskirt, do you know what irony is?
(Hint: Not like "goldy" or "bronzy".)

[Yahtzee]

I have never played TWC. As people have said, the similarities can be explained by both games being inspired by Silent Hill. The body part collecting in TN was intended as a general pastiche of ridiculous locking mechanisms in survival horror.

[KANDYMAN]

Yahtzee:- thats cool, I just thought that the styles and objectives seemed similar enough to at least discuss possible joint genisis points. I've never played Silent Hill otherwise I probably wouldn't be as surprised. (Oh and could you tell Sarah that her more favourite Frankland cousin has lost her phone number. )

This post has been edited by KANDYMAN: 14 January 2007 - 08:01 PM

[CJ Marren]

Have to say, I played 'The White Chamber' a good while ago and I never realised the similarities with Trilby's Notes 'til now.

Nothing more to add really, but TWC is well worth a download... graphics are amazing and it is genuinely freaky throughout.

[Remnant]

Ugh... should I even bother downloading TWC?

And in The White Chamber you are being manipulated by one of the dead crew members, whose soul has passed "into" an ancient powerful artifact through his violently painful murder.)

You better not have ruined it. I get extremely paranoid skitz about people ruining crap. I almost hit a jerk/mate for starting to tell me about the final episode of 24 (season 5 - the best!).

Actually, don't tell me if you've ruined it, I wanna find out for myself.

Has anyone seen the movie Saw? Someone told me the ending, but I still saw it, and was mighty impressed =D (probably because by that time I had completely forgotten about the ending until it was upon me, which made it very very impressive)

[Egfu]

Well yes they are familiar horror elements, its just the fact that they have all of them in common... try and come up with some more games, or films, that run as closely in parrallel as the elements in these two games do...

Well, uh... I have to admit I'm not such a big horror fan, anyway.

Ugh... should I even bother downloading TWC?
You better not have ruined it. I get extremely paranoid skitz about people ruining crap. I almost hit a jerk/mate for starting to tell me about the final episode of 24 (season 5 - the best!).

Actually, don't tell me if you've ruined it, I wanna find out for myself.

It's worth a shot. The puzzles aren't that great, but it has a very strong story and a constant disturbing atmosphere.

[Ninja Duck]

It's worth a shot. The puzzles aren't that great, but it has a very strong story and a constant disturbing atmosphere.

I played WC yesterday, and I'd say the opposite about the puzzles and the story. The story didn't make a bit of sense (Okay, so, there's this thing in the chamber, and it's... bad? What?). It was the constant puzzles that kept the thing going.

I have to agree that the atmosphere was as disturbing as it was constant, but it wasn't as disturbing as TN. In WC the story is more linear so you always have a puzzle to focus (or divert?) your attention on, and there were too many times in TN when you were left lost and wondering what to do next, afraid that the world will change back into Hell every time you enter a room to look for clues.

[Egfu]

I played WC yesterday, and I'd say the opposite about the puzzles and the story. The story didn't make a bit of sense (Okay, so, there's this thing in the chamber, and it's... bad? What?). It was the constant puzzles that kept the thing going.

I have to agree that the atmosphere was as disturbing as it was constant, but it wasn't as disturbing as TN. In WC the story is more linear so you always have a puzzle to focus (or divert?) your attention on, and there were too many times in TN when you were left lost and wondering what to do next, afraid that the world will change back into Hell every time you enter a room to look for clues.

Spoilers ahoy.

I thought some of the puzzles were a little illogical. I mean, what kind of a person goes around collecting severed body parts, even chopping some off the corpses lying around, although they don't actually know what to do with them? Also, the way you progress through the game was kind of weird. You solve a puzzle, which usually triggers a vision at some part of the ship without any reason at all. I guess that attributes to the disturbing feeling that you're just a pawn in someone else's game, but it just felt too random at times. Unlike in, say, TN, where these visions were actually well integrated to the story.

But I thought the story was pretty interesting, just because you don't have any idea what was going on most of the time. I know I was pretty interested in finding out why you were there and what was up with those visions.

Sorry if this post seems rushed, but I'm in a hurry here.

This post has been edited by Egfu: 16 January 2007 - 07:02 AM

[Icey]

(Know I lost the opening, but still)

Nocturnal Illusions, YES!!!