The Sinking City
Between Cthulhu and the deep blue sea, there’s plenty to unspool
the flooded corners of Oakmont are stalked by more than just phantasms
The sea and the sky trading places, Escher-esque architecture, and the troutpouted Innsmouthers that call it home—Oakmont’s travel brochure would certainly be a sight to behold. Luckily, its visitors are not looking for respite, least of all detective Charles Reed. Reed is the only survivor of an obviously supernatural disaster. More archetype than distinct character, he occupies the role of ‘man haunted (literally and metaphorically) by that past event’. Visions draw him to the waterlogged streets of TheSinkingCity’s eerie town, slap-bang in the middle of Lovecraft country. Clearly the flooded corners of Oakmont hide more than just phantasms and tricks of the light.
After investigating a disappearance, Reed encounters Joy, the sole employee of Oakmont’s library. Through lips that have been sewn shut and pained whispers, she tells him she has been dealing with an unwelcome visitor. As with many of the investigations available to Reed, you can decline to help her. In this instance though, doing so feels cruel. Agreeing to assist, Reed gets an address from Joy, and off he trudges.
A boat ride later (because of the ‘sinking’ part of TheSinkingCity), Reed finds Joy’s apartment building in disarray. A still smouldering camera occupies one corner, and there’s a pile of bloody giblets in another. Perhaps even more disturbing is the empty dog bed. A bloody sewing machine and alarmingly fleshy teddy bear tell the rest of that horrific tale in entertainingly over-the-top fashion.
From the Drink
For a few moments the world goes grey, taking on a visceral texture. There are hints of a kind of sanity management system, although I’m not sure what form that will take in the full game. Once the effect abates Reed starts his investigation. In case you hadn’t guessed from the teddy, this is not a subtle crime scene. Reed spots a bloody symbol smeared nearby and draws a connection between what happened here and a prior disappearance case.
Reed has the ability to see patches of the past, letting you try to piece a chain of events together. He sees someone sewing up the meat-teddy as they sing creepy rhymes to themselves. As the strange visitor accosts Joy’s pup, they’re distracted by a camera flash from next door. This gives Reed a lead to follow, but no one appears to be home.
Reed has another trick up his sleeve though. Entering concentration mode, he can figure out a possible way in and soon winds up in a cellar of horrors. After a costly firefight with a few too-many-limbed creatures, concentration mode comes in handy again for dispelling illusions that would otherwise trick the town’s denizens. Reed eventually finds a key for the flat above.
He finds Joy’s neighbor in no fit state to answer questions. However, his journal drops more than a few hints as to the wider lore surrounding Oakmont and the identity of Joy’s uninvited visitor—the cryptic cryptid Granny Weaver.
Players will be able to give Reed himself more of a sense of personality through dialogue choices. For example, you can tell Joy later that her dog has been killed, and there’s an option to share all the grisly facts (what is wrong with you?) or spare her the grim details.
This build still looked a bit rough round the edges, and Reed is a tough chap to invest in. TheSinkingCity caught my eye because it seemed to riff on Lovecraft tales rather than recreate them. I hope the remaining months of development can bring that quality out.