LIMINAL GAME
A downloadable LIMINAL GAME for Windows
DESCRIPTIONExperience that nostalgic/uneasy feeling liminal images present by progressing through the game. Find the keys to open the doors and explore distant dreams. THIS IS NOT A HORROR GAMEThe use of headphones is strongly advised. All levels are inspired by liminal images from all over the internet, and their credits belong to their respective creators. Have fun! :)
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BUGSPlease contact us if you find any bugs on the game by twitter ( @CrowCaveStudio ) or email (crowcave.contact@gmail.com). The comment section also works for us. |
CONTROLSPause - Esc Move - WASD Interact - E Sprint - SHIFT |
Download
Install instructions
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Just extract the files inside the .zip and open the .exe called LiminalGame. |
Development log
- Update 15/6/2023 (new)Jun 15, 2023
- Update 7/9/2022Sep 07, 2022
- Update 15/7/2022Jul 15, 2022
- Dev log 3Nov 21, 2021
- Update 8/10/21Oct 07, 2021
- Dev log 2Sep 10, 2021
- Update 29/7/21Jul 29, 2021
- Update 5/6/21Jun 05, 2021
Comments
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I have no idea why this forcibly causes Oculus and Steam VR to startup every time it runs.
However, that said, the experience proved to be overall quite frustratingly middling, with only a couple of standout moments. The environments very much invoke a feeling of isolation but if anything can be too empty, with little to do except find the next key/exit. My two favourites were actually sequential; the bizarre and abstract globes map (especially with its trick ending, well played) which really felt like the first true 'this was not made by humans' environment, and then the giant slabs immediately after.
The sound design is, at times, questionable; any time water is involved sounds more like you're squelching through thick mud rather than water. Other than that, I did like the slight thrill of occasional sounds which gave me a jolt, such as random footsteps in the pools level (always in the right ear, though) or distorted/unintelligible talking in the city.
The ending, coming full circle (and implying an endless loop) was a very neat touch, a piece of game design I almost hadn't expected by the time I reached the end, so that was appreciated.
I imagine a redux effort of this could involve just slightly more to do, or more to explore with perhaps some environmental storytelling in the form of random pictures on walls, graffiti/writing, etc.
It was good, but I got the wrong aspect ratio when I clicked on the initial icon and could've use the menu, so I had to go to Liminal/binaries/win64 and use that .exe. But after that it worked without a hitch. The keys were pretty intuitive to find for the most part. I didn't like the more memey spaces like the backrooms type stuff, or water rooms or whatever you call them. Also the water sound sounded like squishing guts or something rather than splashing/wading through water. Maybe the other spaces are memes too, I don't keep up to date on liminal spaces. I thought this was a game I spent money on so I'm being a little harsh, it turns out it was a different game I haven't tried yet, lol. I might've paid money for this though, it's good enough
Hi! A quality of life update is on the way addressing all those problems. About the memey spaces, trust me, I have come to not like them too. But this game has been up since late 2021 and was made before the backrooms were a thing so I can't do much about it. I'm not going to take out those levels either, they take a lot of time create and I think they can still be enjoyable if you try to ignore the internet culture behind them. Anyways, thank you very much for the feedback, it helps us improve. Thank you for playing!
Thanks for the kind words! We appreciate them a lot :) It's great that you liked it that much!
Had to check this game out after I saw a vid on it, was a nice little exploration game, love liminal spaces so this scratched an itch
Thank you very much for the video! Changing the water sound is definietly in the list for the next update so stay tuned!
the key-pick-up sound was rather..intense. either way that was a great experience, amazing job at capturing the atmosphere!
Thank you! I'll look into it for the next update ahahah
This game was very cool and gave me some goosebumps. 9/10 Nice Job!
Thanks!
Cool environments!
Thank you!
Thank you a lot for the comment and video!
The archetypal liminal space experience. 5/5.
Thank you very much for the support!
This was an amazing experience, one of the best liminal space/ backrooms experience I've had and i've played hundreds now, You must get the game on steam and charge money for it:) Well done
Thank you very much! We really appreciate your feedback but unfortunately it is difficult to get money from a <2 hours game on steam due to the refund policy :( Our next game Monumentality will be on steam if you are interested tho!
can the dev or someone help please and thanks? every time i open game it gives me a unreal error log.... i try again and same thing happens... :( i REALY OH SO WANNA TRY GAME BUT CANT x( help me please! any advice will be most appreciated thx much! and also i realy imo liminal does not necessarily mean horror... i can just be nice atmospheric lands and places that give you good maybie bad nostalgic happy or sad or what ever the feels may be and remind you of a place or land or somthing that gives you those vibes in that moment in time its to bad mostly liminal games are horror ones... more like this one plz!
Sorry for the delay! I'll try to help you. What does the error log say? Also thanks for the support! It's very much appreciated :)
oh! sorry I'm not on this websites much oops I did not see your message right straight away anyway... ya thanks for your help but like um I don't need it any more I'm super sorry :( how I fixed my error was deleted game... thing (sorry I like it though!) and re-download it fixed my problem but Iike I can't remember what the error said something to do with unity engine or somthin idk.... I'm sorry if I get game again in future cuz I played it all and get the error AGAIN I will be Shure (if I can remember oops... \>~</ ) to inform ya of the error but good job :) u did a thing I enjoyed! :P
Can this be run in VR?
No unfortunately! Might consider it for upcoming updates tho
Good Game !
This game is dope,very atmospheric,it's really gives this liminal space vibes,sounds effects is great,i liked how you can interact with stuff,like you can just sit somewhere and enjoy atmosphere,also locations looks atmospheric and pretty unique,i even made bunch of screenshots for background,among all games about liminal space that i played here,this one is the best in my opinion,without any monsters,this game made me feel a little bit disturbing,if there will be continuation of this game,maybe with more locations,i'll be looking forward to it,5\5
Thank you so much for the words! It really means a lot when someone gets the point of the game and likes it :)
We also take your feedback about the update! Although we are currently working on another game (an fps but kind of liminal-ish) maybe in the future, development of this one can be resumed. Cheers!
I will follow ya'll,and i hope that there is would be continuation of this game someday,this game is example of how really liminal space game should be
Thanks a lot for the support!
very nice! exactly what i was looking for! I had a hell of a time getting it to run but when i did i enjoyed it a lot. Pretty short overall but perfectly atmospheric and liminal walking sim with a bit of key hunting to keep me engaged, and without all the unnecessary backrooms style lore and horror
Thanks a lot for the comment! We like keeping things simple, so no horror nor backrooms lore have ever been in our plans. As for the problems getting it to run, can you tell us exactly what issues did you have? We are very interested in fixing them if possible.
I can't find the first door, and it's not in the same place as version 1. Is it tucked in one of the houses now?
Yeah! you'll have to do a little more searching for the doors (and keys) in this version, but there are visuals and sounds that will guide you to their locations. Have fun!
I'm afraid I'm entirely unable to find the first door after sitting in the chair. I'm quite sure there is no glowing doorway anywhere in the level, and I see no building that stands out or other visual or audio clue.
Try to search for a house in the back end which has the top window emitting light ;)
I love the atmosphere of the game, the sound of the footsteps is very well done, 9/10 the best walking simulators I've ever played
Greetings from Latin America
Thanks a lot for the comment and support!
I played it through before the updates and recorded it.
I'll be sure to record when I play through the v.2.0 !!!I loved it already. I cannot wait to see what's been added.
Leaving you with this one:
Thank you for the video and support! We really recommend checking out the 2.0 version as everything is better than the previous ones :)
really loved this game, it was super liminal and didnt try to add a cheap jumpscare or monster to make it scary it was just liminal and beautiful, underrated game
Thanks a lot!
backrooms very goood game its so god i like it god keys
the whole game took me 15 minutes. i didnt know what to expect at first, i was thinking there might be some kind of jumpscare or something like that. to be honest? the tension was with me from the beginning to the very end. i think you can add something really unsettling in the rooms that look liminal, but not actually real. like the room where the walls are imitating the sky. there could be something making this place even more uncanny. a silent sound, a face, eyes, a shadow - whatever. sometimes somethings presence makes it even more scary than being on your own. this would make the expirience even more abstract. you can just mix a bit the abstractionism with the realism youve created here. i did really enjoy this game. i jus thought you can use the tension youve created and add a small detail <333
Hi zuza, unfortunately we have no plans on adding jumpscares or any type of presence in the game apart from the player! This game is not intended to be a horror game, although some people might find it unsettling, this is more of a journey through dreams, a 3d representation of the feeling the original liminal images that got famous back in the day had. Your input is really appreciated though! We are aware of the impact liminal horror has on gaming now a days, but it's not really our cup of tea. Thank you for your comment and feedback :)
It's a cool game that captures that weird feeling you get from liminal images. Like the creator says wearing headphones is basically mandatory for maximum spookiness and immersion ^^.
As the levels are inspired by liminal images from the internet the game has the same great atmosphere that you get from their original counterparts.
Most of the levels look pretty awesome, but some rooms can also be a bit lacking in the visual department as you walk through them.
So if you're into liminal stuff and want a quick and cool experience, give this game a try :).
We appreciate your input :) There is a big update planned for the end of the submission period for the next Liminal game jam that will try to improve a lot of aspects of the game, so stay tuned!
my internet is trash.
unfortunate buddy keep it to yourself
to whoever downvoted this you have no sense of sadness you absolute idiots
This was an interesting take on a liminal game. I expected the pace to maybe take away from the effect, but I was still following with interest to see where the game would take me next. Had fun with this. Thanks for the experience! :)
Thank you too for the comment! :)
This game has the best vibes ever i hope more people will discover your creations. you're truly the best for making it thank you sm !
Thanks to you too! Comments like this are truly appreciated. Have a good day! :)
Same for you brother
i wanna play the game but when i tried to play it it said error :
Have you tried running the game from the Desktop itch app?
oh it works now! but when i try to run the game it will be stuck in the liminal game screen
That's odd, so It won't let you click play or any other button?
Looks and feels like I'm somewhere time forgot, I love it
Thanks a lot!
Hey, it's me again, I just made a video showcasing the final release of your game.
Gotta say the new levels look pretty good and atmospheric.
Yo! Thank you so much for the video, feeling really grateful for your support :)
I hope you had fun playing!
Good game. I loved how I never knew where I was going next so it was always a surprise
.Thanks for the video and feedback!
Very nice game! Very uncanny!
Thank you very much!
Hi! I'm one of the hosts of the 2022 Liminal Game Jam, would you be interested in submitting your game?
Absolutely! I'm close to finishing the game so this is perfect for me.
Beautiful game, all the locales felt strangely familiar and hit the right tone. Based on my memories alone I could almost feel the warmth of the setting sun or the resounding silence of the metro station. I also liked the aspect of finding the doorways, I wouldn't mind more of a walk to reach them. Enjoyed the experience, thanks for creating :)
Thank you too for the video and feedback! I also really appreciate the 5 star rating. I hope you had fun :)
Definitely did. I even liked the glitch part where you could see the transparent pixels behind the buildings. Made it a little more meta/surreal, at least for me. I look for that stuff for better or for worse lol
That glitch part was so embarrassing to see. I never noticed in 8 months that the building had no collision, and I instantly opened the game editor to fix it when I saw your video 😅
Everything is fixed in the final release which i'm going to upload some day during the next week, so stay tuned!
Don't be embarrassed at all! Nothing's perfect the first time around, that's what edits/updates are for. Your work is appreciated. I'll actually always remember your game now, not only because of how lovely it is to play but also that little glitch. I'm glad it happened :)
Thank you so much for the support! It really means a lot to me :)
I really liked this game, played it for this first time back in 2021 at a friend's house. Most of the locations are very realistic, and I think this project is really underrated. Anemoiapolis gets all the love, yet small projects like this barely get any recognition. I have been working on my own liminal space game for the past 2 years and I'm getting close to releasing it, but it's nowhere near as good as yours graphics-wise.
I've got one question, though, are all of the levels based on real photos? I recognize many of them and wanted to make a video with a side-by-side comparison of the real photos and the recreations, but I don't think I have ever seen some of these (like the one with the blue blocks).
Wow! I'm really thankful for those words, they really mean a lot to me because this is my first serious project ever, and the support it's receiving is great for me even tho it may not be much for other devs :)
I'm thankful too for the comparison to anemoiapolis, but I think they really deserve the attention they get, I'm happy with my little portion. And don't worry about the graphics of your game, the liminal feeling is all that matters, graphics are useless if your game doesn't feel like you want it to.
And yeah, all the levels are based on existing pictures, tho not every picture has been taken in real life. If you really are interested you can write to me in this email hugo.a.game@gmail.com and I'll send you the original images :)
Also I wanna thank you for your comment, I'm in a very tight schedule with my studies and haven't been able to really put time into making the game, but I think I'm gonna resume the development and finally release it thanks to you!
I have already found the majority of them, and if I don't fiend the rest I will e-mail you.
And yes, I do realize that the visuals are not everything, but I really regret using the Irrlicht graphics engine for it, because it lacks support for many key features I would need to use, and while I could theoretically implement them myself as the engine is free software ("open source"), it wouldn't make much sense when there are other, more advanced engines such as OGRE. When I started working on that game, I thought of it as a small project that I would complete in under two weeks, but then I kept on adding more and more levels and now, almost one and a half years later, I'm at the point where switching to a different engine would take too much work.
Oh, that must suck tbh. I don't really have any problems with ue4, I don't know if you tried it but I really reccomend it! I dont have any coding knowldege at all, so the blueprint system works great for me too. You should just finish your game and don't put too much tought on it if it doesn't have a practical solution, at least you learnt from the experience :)
Have you released your game yet? if so whats it called, i would love to try it out.
Well, to be honest, I released the game for the first time publicly in 2020, but not on Itch, and back then it only had 3 levels, all of which were unfinished. When it reached a semi-playable state, I released it on Itch in May of 2022, and the game receives updates to this day. It's called PogoBijoux (the name is kind of random and doesn't mean anything in particular), you can download it here, however please keep in mind that even though this game had its full release on February 14, 2023, it still has many bugs and is not 100% feature-complete. A big update is currently in the making so you might want to wait until it comes out before playing.
Yo! I really appreciate you doing a video on my game tho I don't understand russian :) Thank you!
One thing you should know is that the game continues if you go by the right path in the last level, you missed a lot of the game! Have a good one :)
No worries! You are the first one making a video on my game and I'm very excited about it, love to see you enjoyed it :)
im liking how this looks, I think you have done a good job of transferring that essence you see in liminal images into a game, something a lot of people struggle with. Good job!
Thanks a lot for the support!
Really Realistic i love it but pls add more levels!
Thank you so much! I'm trying my best :)
There is a Black Screen after the level with the skyscrapers and the corner door, intended or is there a fix?
I think I know what you are talking about! The hitbox is a little off the black zone, so you just have to move forwards for a bit and you should be on the next level. I'll fix it on the next update :)
Absolutely amazing! The levels look truly impressive and are very well designed. Can't wait to see more levels!
Thank you so much for the support!
wow, man, this was awesome. I'm a junkie for anything liminal and was already impressed with the first three environments, did not expect there to be so many. Great job on the soundscapes as well, perhaps change the footstep sound so it fits to the terrain in a future update. If you need any game objects or assets modelled, feel free to let me know, I'd be happy to contribute to this awesome game
Thanks for the support! I really appreciate it. I'll try to change the footsteps as you said. About the assets, right now I dont really need anything, but I'll keep it in mind :)
Thanks Hugo, can't wait to see the updates!
Are the levels linear? Why is the button downloading a .rar file?
Yeah they are, and the .rar file contains the game files, I just compressed them for a lighter download.
I can't open it properly. Don't compress the files in a .rar file. Even if it means a slower download, you should put them in a folder. Thanks to what you done, I can't play. Especially beacuse I am supposed to download, extract, and play, not download and deal with a .rar file. :( Can I convert it to a .exe file?
Let me explain, the executable is inside the .rar file, you just have to download and extract everything using 7zip or anything that can extract compressed files. It's not that difficult. Once you extracted everything in a folder, you just have to click on the .exe and play :)
Which 7zip do I use? There is also a program called "extract". Can I use it?
If it can extract .rar files, it's good. You can also use WinRaR if you already have it.