After vanishing from Steam quite a while ago in 2021, Betrayer from Blackpowder Games has resurfaced on GOG and it's free to add to your account.
This is a bit of an odd one. The developer seemed to go silent, and then have it delisted on Steam. Their official Twitter account was also silent on it. However, the Wayback Machine shows that Blackpowder Games via their own official blog was acquired by John Ruth and then got turned into some odd news website.
However two days ago it resurfaced as a free game on GOG.com, with no explanation as to why. The official GOG news post doesn't clarify anything either, it just thanked Tyler "tfishell" for helping bring it to GOG and that's it. Weird.
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Testing it on desktop Linux with Fedora KDE 38, thanks to the use of Heroic Games Launcher to easily download GOG games it appears to work quite well with Wine-GE. Although, with my NVIDIA GPU I do see a few minor graphical glitches with shiny things like the water having weird spots over them. Apart from that, it performs well and looks good. Another free game to add to your collection - why not.
Game Features:
- Explore large, open environments teeming with danger and discovery. Chart your own course in search of clues and treasures.
- Switch between two distinct worlds featuring different enemies, obstacles, and threats.
- Wield early 17th century weaponry including muskets, bows, crossbows, and tomahawks. Upgrade your arsenal by purchasing or finding faster, deadlier, longer-ranged weapons.
- Charge headlong into battle with guns blazing or pick enemies off quietly. A novel, movement-based stealth system lets you hide in plain sight or use the wind to mask your footsteps.
- Equip ability-enhancing Charms to complement your play style, granting anything from extra health to faster movement to improved stealth.
- Play with the default visual style for maximum eeriness and tension or customize the color and contrast settings to suit your tastes.
Get it free on GOG.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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10 comments
Holy shit, I'd never thought to see this game ever again. And it's free too.
Mind you, Betrayer is an indie game from 2014 so it is rough around the edges and clunky by todays standards, but due to its atmosphere and setting it is well worth a try.
PRO TIP:
Last edited by BalkanSpy on 12 July 2023 at 10:02 pm UTC
Mind you, Betrayer is an indie game from 2014 so it is rough around the edges and clunky by todays standards, but due to its atmosphere and setting it is well worth a try.
PRO TIP:
Spoiler, click me
Early in the game whenever you encounter those creepy statues that look like petrified people do yourself a favor and just smash them to bits. You will understand later why this is a very good idea.
Last edited by BalkanSpy on 12 July 2023 at 10:02 pm UTC
2 Likes, Who?
Play with the default visual style for maximum eeriness and tension or customize the color and contrast settings to suit your tastes.
I am so glad that tidbit of information was included in the write-up. I thought "meh... this game" until I read that. I looked at this game years ago, and passed on buying it because I didn't like the colour scheme (greyscale with coloured NPCs etc... stuff like that is a big turn off for me. My life is drab enough, thank you lol). I'd have passed on it for free, too.
With the light intensity and dark intensity (brightness and contrast) and that greyscale actually implemented as reduced colour intensity, I actually have it looking like a normal game (though overuse of bloom, as is typical of Unreal 3 games of that era)
I haven't gotten far enough to know how much I'm going to like it yet, but, walking through the woods... check. Reading notes for discovery... check. Shoot enemies with arrows and they die... check. The promise of better weapons coming... check.
So far so good :-)
Last edited by Grogan on 12 July 2023 at 11:02 pm UTC
0 Likes
I would not exactly call Betrayer that much of an Indie game though; it was designed by Craig Hubbard of Monolith Productions fame as well as whole bunch of other Monolith veterans.
0 Likes
I cannot overstate how cool that is, a game giving the user control over brightness, contrast and colour intensity and sticking them in a prominent place, collapsible on the main menu. Most games would only give you a gamma slider, never mind contrast.
There are a lot of stupid looking games with oversaturated colours that could be fixed (to taste) with such settings.
Now this is a pretty good game, possibly even an abandoned gem. I've only got a couple of hours into it, but so far it's been nice. A bit rudimentary in some ways, like character interaction and text based dialog instead of voice acting but it seems so far to be my kind of game. The combat is not horrible either, and it drives the need to get better stuff.
Last edited by Grogan on 13 July 2023 at 4:17 am UTC
There are a lot of stupid looking games with oversaturated colours that could be fixed (to taste) with such settings.
Now this is a pretty good game, possibly even an abandoned gem. I've only got a couple of hours into it, but so far it's been nice. A bit rudimentary in some ways, like character interaction and text based dialog instead of voice acting but it seems so far to be my kind of game. The combat is not horrible either, and it drives the need to get better stuff.
Last edited by Grogan on 13 July 2023 at 4:17 am UTC
3 Likes, Who?
rustybroomhandle Jul 13, 2023
I would not exactly call Betrayer that much of an Indie game though; it was designed by Craig Hubbard of Monolith Productions fame as well as whole bunch of other Monolith veterans.
Indie does not mean amateur. A lot of indie studios are packed with industry veterans.
4 Likes, Who?
No time to play anything right now, but will take it :)
0 Likes
Indie does not mean amateur. A lot of indie studios are packed with industry veterans.Sure, but it is a question of expectation management. You would assume more of a level of polish from the guys who made F.E.A.R. than you would from a true bedroom coder say.
Certainly my main interest comes as someone who has played Hubbard's earlier games going back to Shogo.
Last edited by Hamish on 13 July 2023 at 3:36 pm UTC
1 Likes, Who?
Indie games can be amateurish (keep those, in general, if binary) but as a "genre" it can also be associated with lower budget. That's more what I think of when I see an "Indie" tag, it can be good or bad, just don't expect a studio with thousands of people to be working on it, possibly even farming more of it out to other studios beyond that.
While there's probably no more need to label it in that manner, I wouldn't exactly consider this an "AAA" game. It is neither of that quality nor feature level. You can see skilled, professional work in it, but only so much work can be done.
While there's probably no more need to label it in that manner, I wouldn't exactly consider this an "AAA" game. It is neither of that quality nor feature level. You can see skilled, professional work in it, but only so much work can be done.
0 Likes
It's funny reading that a game from 2014 is clunky and old. PS1 games were clunky.
0 Likes
"However, the Wayback Machine shows that Blackpowder Games via their own official blog was acquired by John Ruth and then got turned into some odd news website."
What is the point of this? If you want to create a news website why not just create a news website in the first place? The money he used for the acquisition could have been used as startup capital for the news site.
What is the point of this? If you want to create a news website why not just create a news website in the first place? The money he used for the acquisition could have been used as startup capital for the news site.
1 Likes, Who?
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