Not sure if carrying out the last task was the right thing to do or not. It felt right to help put an end to what appeared to be suffering, but did I just damn everyone else? I'd love to know more about the world and the war.
That is a very interesting interpretation of the game. I made it vague on purpose so players could explore its meaning openly, and I am glad it could fuel your imagination like this. Thank you very much for playing! :-)
Thanks for playing, it was an interesting watch. And as we've briefly discussed over Twitter, there is a sequel (of sorts) coming soon, which will expand on the universe of the game, but not so much on the mechanics themselves. Hopefully you'll also enjoy this future title. :-)
Interesting that you should share this video with me even though you did not enjoy your time spent with the game. To your defense, it is a rather quirky experience, deliberately designed to be an alternative to typical horror games that are already available everywhere.
I appreciate that you kept your mind opened long enough to see it through, though. Thank you for playing. :)
I'd be happy to try one of your other games! I did like that this felt similar to Silent Hill PT, but the game just wasn't for me. If you'd like to suggest one of your other works, let me know!
Sorry for the late reply. Thank you for playing! You obviously took the time to look for all the small details, you're a very thorough player. I hope you found something enjoyable in my humble little title. :)
Hoo, I seem to be playing quite a few cryptic games lately.
Often when a game goes more cryptic, I find myself desiring just a bit more context to at least be able to make my own conclusions, but the lack of any real answers to what is going on here was actually very effective. Less effective was the photos themselves - while they make for a good teaser of what to come, I found it rather difficult to find and recognize the things they portrayed after the first one, and I saw no real indication of the gates being open until I just randomly noticed after walking around confused for a while. Some of the fault for that is my own, I realize, but giving some hint that a new area has opened up would be appreciated.
But that's about all the criticism I have for this - it's a hell of a spooky experience, and was really fun to play. Great work.
Hey! Thank you for taking some time to play my little experiment. What you're saying about the photographs is absolutely fair, too. I figured I could get away with it because the experience is so short.
The criticism mainly comes from being so intrigued I want to get ot the next part, so really it's a compliment to the rest of the game. Still, spending several minutes walking around in circles in one room may be a short break in a game that lasts many hours, but in a game that effectively lasts 10 minutes, it can make things feel like they are coming to a bit of a halt. But don't misunderstand me, it's a very minor gripe at worst.
Thank you for the kind words! Yeah, I have a strong preference for a more abstracted narrative, even in the games I play. I prefer nothing be all neatly laid out to me. Glad the game can find a like-minded audience.
'please' is considered a full game by itself, so no more work is planned to add to it. I have at least one more idea for a game/experience happening in the same universe, so maybe one day something will come from it. I'll make sure to properly identify it as a game in the same universe when / if it comes out.
Very Atmospheric and graphics are intriguing, but there was some stretching issues with the graphics, along with the story was mostly missing with the game. It's ambitious, and I'd like to see it a bit more developed, but it needs more narrative and more of a fear factor for sure. Keep up the good work!
Thank you for taking the time to play. Everything you've seen in the game (including graphics and abstracted narrative elements) was intentional and the game is considered complete as it is. Guess it just didn't jive with you, which, you know, it happens.
Yep, that sounds like my game. It does close by itself. Also, there is a meaning to everything you've seen in there. Thank you for taking the time to play.:)
Were you inspired by old school horror games such as Silent Hill? I completely get that vibe which I love. I honestly can't wait to see what you come out with in the future. Your game is the second one in this video.
Thanks for the neat experience! Please had great atmosphere that really had me feeling unnerved the entire time; the mechanical soundscape definitely gave me Silent Hill vibes. Great job!
Thank you for this game. A really atmospheric game that gave me chills while playing it. The audio was creepy and kept me on my toes. Other horror games trained me to be afraid of all the sounds around and your game pushed it further especially listening to the other rooms around me. The game is short enough to leave you with a scary impression. BEWARD OF THE SLUGS!
My partner and I played it in part of our Datenite series.
Interesting to see how the two of you seemed to have a slightly different opinion on the experience at the end. It is a bit of an artsy game, isn't it?
Thank you for making this game! Incredible, heavy, memorable atmosphere. Even though I wanted to know more, I think it was just the right length to keep the player hooked. I'm so interested in learning more about this haunting world. I would absolutely love to see more from you in the future! Again, amazing work!
(Potential spoilers ahead?) The ending seems to have both people and slugs appearing in the Repairs room. I kind of get the impression that by terminating the source of energy for the people they lost a valuable resource, and by freeing the slugs from their conditions the creatures are either more available to contribute to war or post-war tensions or they have a scapegoat for their sufferings at the hands of people, and neither party is happy. In the ending, the fact that both slugs and human figures are invading the player character's personal space, which was formerly a "safe space" of sorts because it was the only space in the game really where creepy stuff doesn't happen, was very unnerving and cool.
When I saw the ending, whether it's really happening or it's just a representation of the situation, it gave me the impression that it's about the pressure on the player's character from both the people and the slugs for setting this irreversible chain of events into motion. In saying "please" the world frees itself of responsibility; from their reasoning, the character didn't have to obey and made their own choices about the situation, and therefore the world is safe to place the blame on the player character because of politeness being a veil for manipulation in this case. That's only one perspective on the ending, and I'm sure there's many more - there's definitely a lot to think about. I'd be really interested to hear your perspective on the ending.
Also, I'm so fascinated by the sound design in this game, which conveys volumes of what low-poly can't. It absolutely stands out as part of the experience. It made me so jumpy. That haunting wailing coming from a door upstairs or the awful groans coming from the machine - how did you do that? Would you be willing to briefly go into your process on recording and processing these sounds? I'm really interested in hearing about how sound designers do what they do, and this game is a great example of effective sound design.
Again, thanks so much for sharing this game! You've got me hooked. Can't wait to see some more!
Hey, thank you for putting in all that thought into a little something I made. It's great to see it generate so much enthusiasm. :-)
About the ending, I hesitate on commenting too much about it. I found that reading players' interpretation of it was very interesting and revealed aspects of the game to even myself. I have a 'canonical' meaning to it (I always have, for all of my projects), but people's point of view about it reveals stuff about my own process and ideas, and I kinda like it.
I guess the one hint I could give about what I intended to do with the ending is that, yes, it is about the war. I suppose this much was obvious. The protagonist has been part of the war effort happening before the game, which explains in part why they are 'good' at 'repairing' heavy machinery.
Sound wise, it's a result of a few processes. I am very picky about the sounds I use. Even good sound libraries have sometimes subpar sounds, so it really comes down to being patient and look for the right sound (prioritizing the quality of the recording). If I can't find a quality sound for what I am looking for, I look for alternate sounds that might evoke the original intention (like using a washing machine or creaking wood floor sounds for some of the machines heard in please). I would recommend my personal go-to soundbank Zapsplat for audio work, it's free (they recently changed their free policy for .mp3 files only, which is fine by me. You've heard mostly .mp3 sound files converted to .wav in please and it did a decent job) and they have a good selection.
Some sounds I can't find online I record on my own. I have an old Zoom H2 recorder at home (a carryover from my radio reporting days) and it is great for recording all sorts of things, in surprisingly high quality. For example, the groaning in the main power machine was recording by myself while laying down in bed under the covers (to muffle the echoes). So yeah, a big part of the creepiness of the groans is my performance, I guess? I really played around with my head, jaw and throat positioning, to get an uneven, surreal voice, to the point where it almost made me sick. I stopped recording voices earlier than I thought because I couldn't go on.
Last thing about sound design : never use the sound as-is. Always modify it / equalize it first. Make it your own. It'll unify the soundscape, give a single personality to the whole project. Add a slight reverb, down/up-pitch it, mix two sounds together (or three! or four sounds!), play with the volume, add a filter to make it sound like it's coming through a wall, etc. For example, my voice performance was tweaked, down-pitched, and mixed with machine loops to the point where it became unintelligible. I wanted players to have a double-take moment where they went 'wait, is that a voice?'. Each time you go back down to the machine it's a new voice sample loop that is used, evolving from just groans to clearer pleas.
I use a mix of Audacity, Sony Soundforge and Ableton Live for sound editing (yeah, Live is a DAW, not an audio editing software, but some of its plugins and its warping capabilities are top-notch).
Some indie creators stick to the low-poly aesthetics in visuals and low-fi slightly-bit-crushed sounds to really go deeper into the 32bit feel. I can appreciate the results, but I believe high-quality audio over the low-poly look fits just as well together and helps with the interpretation of the visual elements. To my personal tastes, immersion starts with the soundscape.
Thank you for playing! I think you're the first one to realize the thing in the machine was asking for something. I believe you've understood more of the story than you think! :-)
Thanks, this game was really cool. I loved all the scifi and surreal elements about this, and it had a very interesting conclusion. I imagine that the war that was talked about had something to do with the thing in the machine, can't say exactly what through. Anyway thanks again for making an awesome game!
I don't understand greek, but you guys sounded very passionate. 'Please' is an unusual game and you played it all the way through nonetheless. Thank you for playing!
Didn't understand much, since I don't speak polish, but you made me smile with your imitation of the violin sound through the door. Thank you for taking the time to play something I made.
Thank you for playing. You seemed to be more afraid of being scared than anything else, which is an interesting position to voluntarily put yourself through. Glad I could help with that, too.
Enough elements of the story are in the game, but I deliberately left it vague to amplify the mysterious tone. I'm thinking of expanding the lore of the game with maybe a sequel / other game in the same 'universe'.
this game made me INCREDIBLY uncomfortable...I wish I knew what I just experienced. Interesting game tho, I'd recommend it to other scardy cats like me
Thank you so much!! You did an awesome job with this game. The atmosphere was so unsettling but I couldn’t stop until I reached the end. I hope you make more soon!
← Return to interactive experience
Comments
Log in with itch.io to leave a comment.
Not sure if carrying out the last task was the right thing to do or not. It felt right to help put an end to what appeared to be suffering, but did I just damn everyone else? I'd love to know more about the world and the war.
Very atmospheric and creepy, job well done!
Great game didnt know what to expect tbh i was worried i would get chased or something lol. Please @ 10:33
That is a very interesting interpretation of the game. I made it vague on purpose so players could explore its meaning openly, and I am glad it could fuel your imagination like this. Thank you very much for playing! :-)
A short, but sweet little ditty. Has an interesting mechanic and nice build up towards the end. Would love to see this expanded on.
Thanks for playing, it was an interesting watch. And as we've briefly discussed over Twitter, there is a sequel (of sorts) coming soon, which will expand on the universe of the game, but not so much on the mechanics themselves. Hopefully you'll also enjoy this future title. :-)
Super Nice game, i love the immersion
Thank you very much! I am currently working hard to have some more of the 'please' universe available before the end of the year.
I have SO many questions about what the hell was happening but that didn't take away from how great this is!!
interesting game! However, I wasn't sure what message the game was trying to deliver. Could you please clarify that?
I heard great things about this game through your twitter and thought I'd try it out.... I am glad I did.
In this video, I play it and it's the third game.
What a wonderfully strange and unsettling experience.
Thanks! :-D
More might be coming soon... I won't tell...!
Heyo I played your Game! It starts at 11:33
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIyTUBYJmDc
Interesting that you should share this video with me even though you did not enjoy your time spent with the game.
To your defense, it is a rather quirky experience, deliberately designed to be an alternative to typical horror games that are already available everywhere.
I appreciate that you kept your mind opened long enough to see it through, though. Thank you for playing. :)
I'd be happy to try one of your other games! I did like that this felt similar to Silent Hill PT, but the game just wasn't for me. If you'd like to suggest one of your other works, let me know!
GREAT
Sorry for the late reply. Thank you for playing! You obviously took the time to look for all the small details, you're a very thorough player. I hope you found something enjoyable in my humble little title. :)
(Your game begins at 32:04)
Hoo, I seem to be playing quite a few cryptic games lately.
Often when a game goes more cryptic, I find myself desiring just a bit more context to at least be able to make my own conclusions, but the lack of any real answers to what is going on here was actually very effective. Less effective was the photos themselves - while they make for a good teaser of what to come, I found it rather difficult to find and recognize the things they portrayed after the first one, and I saw no real indication of the gates being open until I just randomly noticed after walking around confused for a while. Some of the fault for that is my own, I realize, but giving some hint that a new area has opened up would be appreciated.
But that's about all the criticism I have for this - it's a hell of a spooky experience, and was really fun to play. Great work.
Hey! Thank you for taking some time to play my little experiment.
What you're saying about the photographs is absolutely fair, too. I figured I could get away with it because the experience is so short.
The criticism mainly comes from being so intrigued I want to get ot the next part, so really it's a compliment to the rest of the game.
Still, spending several minutes walking around in circles in one room may be a short break in a game that lasts many hours, but in a game that effectively lasts 10 minutes, it can make things feel like they are coming to a bit of a halt.
But don't misunderstand me, it's a very minor gripe at worst.
This was an interesting concept and the ending was very strange, which I loved :3
Glad you liked it despite (or because of...?) the strangeness. :)
Speedran this:
Very good work hope there will be a full release of this game.
The sound effects in the game are fantastic! Be prepared to be creeped out by many, many things! 😁
nice atmosphere and storytelling, also the atmosphere given by the topology based on the viewpoint is nice
Thank you for the kind words! Yeah, I have a strong preference for a more abstracted narrative, even in the games I play. I prefer nothing be all neatly laid out to me. Glad the game can find a like-minded audience.
Is there going to be a full game out of this or from the world that you created?
because I loved this and would love see more of the world that you created
'please' is considered a full game by itself, so no more work is planned to add to it. I have at least one more idea for a game/experience happening in the same universe, so maybe one day something will come from it. I'll make sure to properly identify it as a game in the same universe when / if it comes out.
It was... something!
Played:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WS3-IJa9Kos
That's an interesting username you got there...
Sorry, I didn't knew about you when I made my channel. :)) Still, hope you appreciate my gameplay. :D
The atmosphere was great.
Thank you for playing, and for the kind word. :)
Very Atmospheric and graphics are intriguing, but there was some stretching issues with the graphics, along with the story was mostly missing with the game. It's ambitious, and I'd like to see it a bit more developed, but it needs more narrative and more of a fear factor for sure. Keep up the good work!
Thank you for taking the time to play. Everything you've seen in the game (including graphics and abstracted narrative elements) was intentional and the game is considered complete as it is. Guess it just didn't jive with you, which, you know, it happens.
have no clue wat the ending was all about and then after it just closed by itself
Yep, that sounds like my game. It does close by itself. Also, there is a meaning to everything you've seen in there. Thank you for taking the time to play.:)
Were you inspired by old school horror games such as Silent Hill? I completely get that vibe which I love. I honestly can't wait to see what you come out with in the future. Your game is the second one in this video.
Thanks for the experience! I love it :D
Thanks for the neat experience! Please had great atmosphere that really had me feeling unnerved the entire time; the mechanical soundscape definitely gave me Silent Hill vibes. Great job!
I would imagine the protagonist ate corned beef as well, good guess about the game's universe! XD
Thank you for taking the time to play!
I watched Markiplier playing it and came to say it's very scary and terrifying! Great job :D
Thank you for the kind words! It's good you found it terrifying! XD
And yeah, Markiplier enjoyed it as well, which was a great surprise to me.
My partner and I played it in part of our Datenite series.
Interesting to see how the two of you seemed to have a slightly different opinion on the experience at the end. It is a bit of an artsy game, isn't it?
yea, i experience something else while she had a whole other experience. maybe because i was controlling the game but overall, really liked it.
Thank you for making this game! Incredible, heavy, memorable atmosphere. Even though I wanted to know more, I think it was just the right length to keep the player hooked. I'm so interested in learning more about this haunting world. I would absolutely love to see more from you in the future! Again, amazing work!
(Potential spoilers ahead?) The ending seems to have both people and slugs appearing in the Repairs room. I kind of get the impression that by terminating the source of energy for the people they lost a valuable resource, and by freeing the slugs from their conditions the creatures are either more available to contribute to war or post-war tensions or they have a scapegoat for their sufferings at the hands of people, and neither party is happy. In the ending, the fact that both slugs and human figures are invading the player character's personal space, which was formerly a "safe space" of sorts because it was the only space in the game really where creepy stuff doesn't happen, was very unnerving and cool.
When I saw the ending, whether it's really happening or it's just a representation of the situation, it gave me the impression that it's about the pressure on the player's character from both the people and the slugs for setting this irreversible chain of events into motion. In saying "please" the world frees itself of responsibility; from their reasoning, the character didn't have to obey and made their own choices about the situation, and therefore the world is safe to place the blame on the player character because of politeness being a veil for manipulation in this case. That's only one perspective on the ending, and I'm sure there's many more - there's definitely a lot to think about. I'd be really interested to hear your perspective on the ending.
Also, I'm so fascinated by the sound design in this game, which conveys volumes of what low-poly can't. It absolutely stands out as part of the experience. It made me so jumpy. That haunting wailing coming from a door upstairs or the awful groans coming from the machine - how did you do that? Would you be willing to briefly go into your process on recording and processing these sounds? I'm really interested in hearing about how sound designers do what they do, and this game is a great example of effective sound design.
Again, thanks so much for sharing this game! You've got me hooked. Can't wait to see some more!
Hey, thank you for putting in all that thought into a little something I made. It's great to see it generate so much enthusiasm. :-)
About the ending, I hesitate on commenting too much about it. I found that reading players' interpretation of it was very interesting and revealed aspects of the game to even myself. I have a 'canonical' meaning to it (I always have, for all of my projects), but people's point of view about it reveals stuff about my own process and ideas, and I kinda like it.
I guess the one hint I could give about what I intended to do with the ending is that, yes, it is about the war. I suppose this much was obvious. The protagonist has been part of the war effort happening before the game, which explains in part why they are 'good' at 'repairing' heavy machinery.
Sound wise, it's a result of a few processes. I am very picky about the sounds I use. Even good sound libraries have sometimes subpar sounds, so it really comes down to being patient and look for the right sound (prioritizing the quality of the recording). If I can't find a quality sound for what I am looking for, I look for alternate sounds that might evoke the original intention (like using a washing machine or creaking wood floor sounds for some of the machines heard in please). I would recommend my personal go-to soundbank Zapsplat for audio work, it's free (they recently changed their free policy for .mp3 files only, which is fine by me. You've heard mostly .mp3 sound files converted to .wav in please and it did a decent job) and they have a good selection.
Some sounds I can't find online I record on my own. I have an old Zoom H2 recorder at home (a carryover from my radio reporting days) and it is great for recording all sorts of things, in surprisingly high quality. For example, the groaning in the main power machine was recording by myself while laying down in bed under the covers (to muffle the echoes). So yeah, a big part of the creepiness of the groans is my performance, I guess? I really played around with my head, jaw and throat positioning, to get an uneven, surreal voice, to the point where it almost made me sick. I stopped recording voices earlier than I thought because I couldn't go on.
Last thing about sound design : never use the sound as-is. Always modify it / equalize it first. Make it your own. It'll unify the soundscape, give a single personality to the whole project. Add a slight reverb, down/up-pitch it, mix two sounds together (or three! or four sounds!), play with the volume, add a filter to make it sound like it's coming through a wall, etc. For example, my voice performance was tweaked, down-pitched, and mixed with machine loops to the point where it became unintelligible. I wanted players to have a double-take moment where they went 'wait, is that a voice?'. Each time you go back down to the machine it's a new voice sample loop that is used, evolving from just groans to clearer pleas.
I use a mix of Audacity, Sony Soundforge and Ableton Live for sound editing (yeah, Live is a DAW, not an audio editing software, but some of its plugins and its warping capabilities are top-notch).
Some indie creators stick to the low-poly aesthetics in visuals and low-fi slightly-bit-crushed sounds to really go deeper into the 32bit feel. I can appreciate the results, but I believe high-quality audio over the low-poly look fits just as well together and helps with the interpretation of the visual elements. To my personal tastes, immersion starts with the soundscape.
This was a very interesting game. Thanks for making it. I had a good time playing through it.
Thank you for playing!
I think you're the first one to realize the thing in the machine was asking for something. I believe you've understood more of the story than you think! :-)
Thanks, this game was really cool. I loved all the scifi and surreal elements about this, and it had a very interesting conclusion. I imagine that the war that was talked about had something to do with the thing in the machine, can't say exactly what through. Anyway thanks again for making an awesome game!
Ok it was ok, i loved the pixelate thing ... You can watch the game after 1:04:30 in our live stream
I don't understand greek, but you guys sounded very passionate. 'Please' is an unusual game and you played it all the way through nonetheless. Thank you for playing!
Great creepy atmosphere and weird style. Love it! (playthrough in polish language)
Didn't understand much, since I don't speak polish, but you made me smile with your imitation of the violin sound through the door.
Thank you for taking the time to play something I made.
Haha that's awesome :) Keep up the good work!
This experience was really creepy and interesting! I really loved the ending and wanted to get out sooo bad.
Thank you for the kind words!
Yeah, you're not supposed to like it in there. :P
Very well made!
Thank you for playing. You seemed to be more afraid of being scared than anything else, which is an interesting position to voluntarily put yourself through. Glad I could help with that, too.
Cool concept, love those short experiences! <3
Also thanks so much for supporting Linux, much appreciated. =)
It's because I am developing with Unity, there's an easy option to output to Linux. It's a wonder not many devs take advantage of that, too.
This game was really intriguing! I wish I knew what everything means though because I am really curious.
Enough elements of the story are in the game, but I deliberately left it vague to amplify the mysterious tone. I'm thinking of expanding the lore of the game with maybe a sequel / other game in the same 'universe'.
this game made me INCREDIBLY uncomfortable...I wish I knew what I just experienced. Interesting game tho, I'd recommend it to other scardy cats like me
That was fun to watch, your reactions are great! Sorry if it freaked you out. Also, I think the "Chell No!" pun is great, keep it!
Thank you so much!! You did an awesome job with this game. The atmosphere was so unsettling but I couldn’t stop until I reached the end. I hope you make more soon!