Bithell Games, the studio behind indie hits Thomas Was Alone and Subsurface Circular, announced a new story-based puzzle game coming to Oculus Quest soon that tasks you with building increasingly complex machines during an interstellar conflict, and getting to know an alien at the same time.
Called Arcsmith, you step aboard a remote space station where you take on the role of the titular apprentice arcsmith—an artisan of all things antimatter, it would seem. Here’s how Bithell explains it in its Oculus blog announcement:
When war threatens, you’re tapped as an ad hoc apprentice to master arcsmith Korith Dinn. Balance heat, power, and more as you construct dozens of ever-more-complex interstellar machines, including space drones and the aforementioned antimatter generator. A library of modular parts and simple diagnostic tools are yours to play with in this freeform puzzle game.
A gripping sci-fi story unfolds in the background as you work. Discover why Korith Dinn retired to this quiet corner of the galaxy, and help your reluctant mentor make peace with his past. The radio also pipes in intergalactic tunes and important news reports—once you fix it, of course.
Bithell Games is also known for creating a number of well-received titles including John Wick Hex, North Star Rising, Volume, Quarantine Circular, and The Solitaire Conspiracy. This is slated to be the studio’s first VR game, and one not directed by studio founder Mike Bithell. That honor goes to Nic Tringali, who was a game designer on many of studio’s past games.
Arcsmith is slated to arrive on Oculus Quest on July 29th, priced at $25. You can wishlist it here.