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How often have we looked at the ceiling at night and wondered: “What if I had chosen differently?” For whatever reason. Maybe the fast food you ordered that day wasn’t the best, and you regret that choice. Or something serious like not telling that person you loved them before they departed. Out of all the games out there that could make me think about all these things, I would never have thought a survival-crafting game would do it. And while I had already experienced a hands-off preview of The Alters, nothing prepared me for what awaited me in the demo.
A few months ago, I was blessed with the opportunity to take a behind-the-scenes look at The Alters. Naturally, I was the first to jump with joy when the demo went live. When I got my first preview, I thought it was a survival wacky adventure. You have your protagonist, Jan Dolski, who is a builder stranded in space. With no one to help him, the only course of action is hiring the best of the best: another Jan Dolski. The concept already sounded great. If you don’t know how to do something, create a version of yourself that has it. However, the process of doing so is something that hit me in the feels.
If We Could Turn Back Time
In this short demo of The Alters, anyone can experience most of the first hours. You crash land on a mysterious planet and find out you’re the sole survivor from your expedition. After heading into a wheel-shaped base that works like Fallout Shelter in terms of its tetris-like layout, the game officially kicks in. At first, you start gathering materials to build other base modules and tools. The creative thing in the process is how, instead of the pickaxe every survival game has, you get a scanner with pylons you can use to locate deposits underground. After finding one, you put your extractor and let it accrue resources. So far, The Alters sounds like a run-of-the-mill survival-crafting game; the fun comes after this short tutorial.
Since the game tells you the planet is about to hit the galactic fan, you get a countdown à la Majora’s Mask, and you need to hurry and fix your ship. But guess what? Jan Dolski, your playable version of Jan Dolski, is only a builder. With the help of a mysterious voice in the comms system, you decide to recruit another version of yourself from a timeline where he learned about mechanics. And lo and behold, the second Jan Dolski joins the expedition. However, the quick process was so emotional that it left me staring at the screen for a while, just as Jan Dolski saw another version of himself materialize before his eyes.
When you want to summon an ‘Alter,’ you must dive deep into the canon events of Jan Dolski’s life. His childhood inside a house with a drunk father and a sick mother. Being torn between choosing a far-away college to escape home or sticking to a close one to take care of his mother. Missing his mother’s passing because he was too far from home. In this short span of time, one can’t help but wonder about their lives. What small choice could’ve caused a ripple and changed our lives completely? The Alters explores this flawlessly, and while I only experienced the tip of the iceberg, I can’t wait to see what the full release has in store.
Living With Ourselves
Another relevant part I experienced in The Alters, which I feel was a terrific idea to add to the demo, was managing your “clones.” When an Alter wakes up, they’ll, of course, feel more than confused. I can’t blame them. Waking up in an artificial womb and facing an almost identical version of yourself sounds quite shocking. However, here is where the empirical part comes into play. If Jan Dolski and his Alters are the same person, do experiences make them different? Why yes, they do. Every Alter you get has a different personality. The technician you create first isn’t too friendly. So, you must learn of ways to make them feel happy around your base. Good food, choosing the right dialogue choices, and completing certain tasks are some of the things you must do.
Frankly, I’m glad the survival aspect relies a bit more on keeping your Alters happy. It really puts narcissism into perspective when you say, “Yeah, I could live with myself.” No, you couldn’t. Jan Dolski taught me that. Sadly, The Alters‘ demo wasn’t too long, so I couldn’t delve deeper into the plot or meet more Alters. But let me tell you: I can’t wait for the game’s full release. Out of everything we’ve seen this Summer, The Alters‘ concept is as original as it can get. Will it remain flawless in the long run? It remains to be seen. But I’ll be the first one to jump into this planet full of Jan Dolskis and do my best to get them out of there alive.
