Hiroshima or 9/11? Replay Studios decides which was easier to escape from

Survivor ushers new breed of 'Reality Gaming'?

Posted by Staff
Replay Studios has today revealed information on a new, allegedly genre-busting title. Survivor, planned for PC and console release, will be a unique example of what Replay calls ‘Reality Gaming’. But despite the official website’s claim that “the highly original game concept has never been seen before”, SPOnG knows better, and this follows a path forged by the sadly under-rated SOS: Final Escape on PS2 (which is due for imminent re-release at a bargain £12.99).

So Survivor will see the player trying to escape from various apocalyptic scenes left in the wake of the most famous, and tragic, disasters from the last 100 years. Events from the sinking of the Titanic to Hiroshima and 9/11 will all be included, although obviously there’s no real link between each ‘mission’, with different characters starring in each.

The very inclusion of the World Trade Centre terrorist attack is bound to offend a great many people, but Replay makes the valid point that this game is entirely about rescuing people, saving human lives and surviving. As long as the likes of Conflict Desert Storm can sit atop the US charts, any such complaint about the lack of taste in Survivor wouldn’t necessarily seem fair. Indeed, the tentative inclusion of a Baghdad level, although potentially hugely offensive, could offer a perspective contrary to that militaristic approach favoured by most video games.

However, Replay has stated that the game will be fairly sensationalist in nature, and so it would seem to be treading a delicate tight-rope. If it can avoid making the scenarios too sinister and it delivers the GTA style freedom and unique gameplay it has promised, Survivor could be something hugely praiseworthy. Otherwise it might struggle to gain popular support.

At this early stage, Survivor has yet to find a publisher, and Replay is also looking for co-developers. If it can make it to release, it will be extremely interesting to see how the public responds to a title of this nature.
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Comments

PresidentEvil 6 Oct 2004 14:47
1/9
This is outrageous. A game like this should not be made.

If we proud upstanding Americans had meant anyone to to survive Hiroshima, we wouldn't have dropped an atomic bomb on them. We'd have parachuted in food, and bunches of flowers.

But we didn't... we nuked the bastards, and that makes us the only country who have the right to invade another country if we so much as suspect that they are thinking about making nucular weapons.

And if it turns out that they weren't thinking about making Nuclear weapons, we have the right to install a puppet guvment who will sell us as much oil as we need to keep driving around in massive gas-guzzling 4WD monsters, because that is our god-given constitutional right. This is our damned planet! If you don't like that... go live somewhere else you damned pinko.
LUPOS 6 Oct 2004 15:38
2/9
you forgot the part where we have the right to train terroist to terrorize other people and then we screw them over and act suprised when they attack us even though bill clinton told us they would and twarted them on two previous ocasions, even though he is a pinko and its his fault that 9/11 happened... and and the debt, he did that to, bastard!
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smudge40 6 Oct 2004 15:58
3/9
No mention of the Holocaust i see!

Could that be because Replay are a German developer?

Perhaps they could do a level where you have to survive the raid on Dresden where around 100,000 were killed.

Somehow i don't think either of them will be included.
Mecha Ghandi 6 Oct 2004 16:56
4/9
They might as whole go the whole hog and be done with it...

We need a level where you have to escape a school that's under attack from a loony student on a shooting rampage because he plays too many video games.
Joji 6 Oct 2004 22:04
5/9
The game sounds interesting but I feel it's stepping on Irem's SOS series a bit too much, with more stuff thrown in. SOS2 is also due soon, and I'm sure'll use more imagination than dragging up past stuff like 9/11, which with it only being a few years ago is a little insensitive to true victims of it. But like you pointed out the same could be said of Conflict Desert Storm series. I'd prefer something not based on a real event, sometimes.

Dragging up Hiroshima is also a bad idea since many survivors still remember it like yesterday. Just how many toes are Replay gonna step on and hurt to sell this game? Everyone's I suppose.

Very risky indeed. Should interesting to see what happens.
mattribute 6 Oct 2004 22:53
6/9
There will be a fair few people offended by it. These'll be the same people who pick up the Daily Mail every morning and read about how evil games are, and that they're destroying our youth. Yes, it features scenes from places of huge upset and tradgedy and yes they are still fresh in the minds of minds of people today. But, from what the developers are saying, it's all about saving people, helping people and being a good samaritan. Of course, it's the 'GTA' aspects which the developer promotes on its official website that has me worrying - they can't be too open ended and promote the killing of citizens, can they? As long as it stays positive, the Daily Mail will have nthing but baseless lies to report. Like usual, yeah?
Pandaman 7 Oct 2004 00:56
7/9
Congrats Replay Studios.

You've just made headlines. Mission Accomplished.
PresidentEvil 7 Oct 2004 10:03
8/9
Mecha Ghandi wrote:
We need a level where you have to escape a school that's under attack from a loony student on a shooting rampage because he plays too many video games.


What would be so wrong with that?

Those (typically god-fearing, bible-bashing, apple-pie eating) Americans are just exercising their first amendment right to express themselves, in combination with their constitutional right to own a gun.

And it's certainly not wrong that they should have an almost fanatical love of computer games, which are the decent, and reasonable output of corporate creativity.

It is wrong to villify these consumers (of games, of guns, of bullets) just because they make a few bad decisions.

Lets face it, If people were held responsible for their decisions, how would I have been allowed to illegally invade a foreign nation for regime change. How would I have ever been allowed to be president after going AWOL from the US Coast Guard? And if people are held accountable, how will the American public ever avoid burning in hell for letting a lying, cheating election thief into the Whitehouse?
AlexanderTitanic 30 Dec 2007 03:01
9/9
i dont find this outrageous, yes it was very sad that the wtc were bomb but it dosent mean that your player will bomb the tower, its called ''Survivor'' not terrorist. and its tells people and kids what happend, the only people who would do bad things on the wtc level are sick.

appart from that i thing this game will be good and very sad at the same time.
and the game is about helping people and saving them not killing the people.


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