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Far: Lone Sails

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FAR: Lone Sails
Developer(s)Okomotive
Publisher(s)Mixtvision[a]
EngineUnity
Platform(s)
ReleasemacOS, Windows
May 17, 2018
PlayStation 4, Xbox One
April 2, 2019
Nintendo Switch
August 18, 2019
Android, iOS
October 22, 2020
Genre(s)Adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Far: Lone Sails (stylized as FAR: Lone Sails) is an exploration adventure videogame developed by the Swiss development company Okomotive. The game was released for Windows and macOS in May 2018, for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in April 2019, for Nintendo Switch in August 2019, and for Android and iOS in October 2020. A sequel, Far: Changing Tides, was released in March 2022.

Gameplay

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A cross-sectional view of the vehicle with sails raised, with a sunrise in the background.
Screenshot from FAR: Lone Sails showing the cross-sectional view of the player's vehicle

In FAR, the player controls the driver of a large vehicle as they search through a post-apocalypse setting.[2][3] The game's vehicle has been modified a number of times.[4] The game is played from a side-scrolling perspective, with the vehicle interior seen as a cross-section. To control the vehicle the player must move around inside it, operating stations and pressing buttons to perform various functions that keep the vehicle moving, such as engaging the engine or filling the boiler with fuel sources found over the course of the player's journey.[3][5] The various parts of the vehicle can take damage, requiring the player to stop and extinguish fires and repair damaged systems. They are also required to solve puzzles in the world to allow the vehicle to pass and collect upgrades for it.[6][7] The game has no enemies, though the player-character can die due to environmental hazards, and will restart at the last checkpoint.[8]

While the game starts with a burial scene,[5] the rest of the background story is intentionally vague, with the developers intending for the player's curiosity to motivate them to explore. The landscapes passed during the game show the ruins of a technologically-advanced civilization, and a world where the oceans have dried up, leaving massive ships scuttled on dry beds and bouts of extremely hazardous weather.

Development and release

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FAR began in 2015 as the Bachelor's degree student project of lead developer Don Schmocker at the Zurich University of the Arts. During his master's degree he continued the development together with his fellow student Goran Saric. They founded the game studio Okomotive in February 2017 and expanded the team with other students and friends from University.[9] Schmocker was inspired by Strandbeests, the book Stephen Biesty's Incredible Cross-Sections, The Straight Story, and games such as Journey and LittleBigPlanet when designing FAR. Looking to take a new approach to the use of vehicles in video games, the developers aimed to create a game where the player was dependent on their vehicle, forming an emotional attachment to it over the course of the game.[4] The game is developed in Unity, and the developers use Blender and Adobe Photoshop for the 3D and 2D graphics respectively.[4]

FAR was released for macOS and Windows on May 17, 2018,[10] for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on April 2, 2019,[11] for Nintendo Switch on August 18, 2019,[12] and for Android and iOS on October 22, 2020.[13]

Reception

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FAR received "generally favorable" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic.

Writing for Mashable, Anna Washenko named the game as one of her favorites from E3 2016, calling it a "simple but lovely game".[6] After playing the game at GDC 2017, Chris Livingston of PC Gamer described FAR as "one of the most intuitive games" he had played, also praising the visual design and music.[21] On Polygon, Charlie Hall described the game as having "more meaning, conveyed silently, than many major AAA games released so far this year".[5] Kyle Hilliard of Game Informer praised the game's ability to connect the player to their vehicle, the world building, and the puzzles.[7]

GameSpot scored the game 8/10, praising the visual style and ease of play.[19] Edwin Evans-Thirlwell of Eurogamer recommended the game, describing it as an "enormously warm-hearted adventure" and commenting positively on the game's pace and environments.[20] Writing for IGN, Tom Marks described the game's music as "stunning" and "incredible". He noted that Lone Sails was a "gorgeous little game" and "a journey packed full of both stressful and serene moments alike".[18]

The game was a finalist in the Best Student Game category at the 2017 Independent Games Festival.[22][23] It was also nominated for "Best Visual Design" at the 2018 Golden Joystick Awards,[24][25] and for "Game, Puzzle" at the National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers Awards.[26]

Sequel

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Main article: Far: Changing Tides

A sequel, titled FAR: Changing Tides was announced in June 2021 and released 1 March 2022.[27][28]

Notes

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  1. ^ Distributed by Assemble Entertainment since 2022.[1]

References

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  1. ^ "Assemble Entertainment Assumes the Distribution of Mixtvision Games Portfolio". www.gamedeveloper.com. September 15, 2022. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  2. ^ Foxall, Sam (5 February 2017). "Sail the literal open ocean in solitary adventure game Far: Lone Sails". PCGamesN. Archived from the original on 28 October 2020. Retrieved 22 March 2017.
  3. ^ a b Lahti, Evan (16 June 2016). "Take a weirdly charming roadtrip through the post-apocalypse in Far". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 8 March 2017. Retrieved 22 March 2017.
  4. ^ a b c Couture, Joel (15 February 2017). "Road to the IGF: Student project FAR: Lone Sails". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 16 February 2017. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  5. ^ a b c Hall, Charlie (16 May 2018). "Far: Lone Sails is a poem disguised as a video game". Polygon. Archived from the original on 16 May 2018. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
  6. ^ a b Washenko, Anna (20 June 2016). "The 10 best independent games at E3 2016". Mashable. Archived from the original on 3 May 2017. Retrieved 22 March 2017.
  7. ^ a b Hilliard, Kyle (18 May 2018). "Far: Lone Sails". Game Informer. Archived from the original on May 20, 2018. Retrieved 19 May 2018.
  8. ^ Nielsen, Holly (2017-08-25). "The 11 best games at Gamescom: Mario Odyssey, new Assassin's Creed and more". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 2017-09-04. Retrieved 2017-09-04.
  9. ^ "Okomotive wins prize at Swiss game awards". Switzerland Global Enterprise. 19 February 2019. Archived from the original on 29 January 2020. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  10. ^ Hall, Charlie (2018-05-16). "Far: Lone Sails is a poem disguised as a video game". Polygon. Retrieved 2024-01-26.
  11. ^ Anstadt, Nathan (2018-05-17). "Far: Lone Sails Gets Some Company With Console Release". Game Informer. Archived from the original on August 7, 2019. Retrieved 2024-01-26.
  12. ^ Juba, Joe (2018-05-17). "Far: Lone Sails Coming To Switch This Month". Game Informer. Archived from the original on August 13, 2019. Retrieved 2024-01-26.
  13. ^ Smith, Olly (2020-10-20). "FAR: Lone Sails out on mobile this week". www.pocketgamer.com. Retrieved 2024-01-26.
  14. ^ "FAR: Lone Sails for PC Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 28 April 2019. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  15. ^ "FAR: Lone Sails for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 23 January 2021. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  16. ^ "FAR: Lone Sails for Xbox One Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 5 September 2020. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  17. ^ "FAR: Lone Sails for Switch Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 23 October 2020. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  18. ^ a b Marks, Tom (16 August 2019). "Far: Lone Sails Review". IGN. Archived from the original on 23 October 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
  19. ^ a b O'Connor, James (15 May 2018). "FAR: Lone Sails Review: Come Sail Away". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 17 May 2018. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
  20. ^ a b Evans-Thirlwell, Edwin (29 May 2018). "FAR: Lone Sails review - outsailing the apocalypse". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 26 May 2018. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
  21. ^ Livingston, Chris (4 March 2017). "This week's highs and lows in PC gaming". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 8 March 2017. Retrieved 22 March 2017.
  22. ^ "Finalists and Winners". Independent Games Festival. 22 September 2016. Archived from the original on 9 January 2018. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  23. ^ Chalk, Andy (9 January 2017). "Independent Games Festival Awards finalists announced". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 14 March 2017. Retrieved 22 March 2017.
  24. ^ Hoggins, Tom (24 September 2018). "Golden Joysticks 2018 nominees announced, voting open now". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  25. ^ Sheridan, Connor (16 November 2018). "Golden Joystick Awards 2018 winners: God of War wins big but Fortnite gets Victory Royale". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on 16 November 2018. Retrieved 17 November 2018.
  26. ^ "Nominee List for 2018". National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers. 11 February 2019. Archived from the original on 13 February 2019. Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  27. ^ Watts, Rachel (13 June 2021). "Far: Changing Tides is a lonely post-apocalyptic voyage, coming late 2021". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 14 June 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  28. ^ Nightingale, Ed (2022-01-11). "Far: Changing Tides now has a release date". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 2022-03-17. Retrieved 2022-01-11.
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