During Microsoft and Bethesda Game's E3 2021 conference today, there were many games announced coming to the Xbox Game Pass. Some of these included several titles from ZeniMax and Bethesda's library, including the Dishonored franchise and Doom Eternal. One noteworthy game that was shown after this lineup was a dreary and dark new title by Jumpship, titled Somerville. It will have a moody and somber atmosphere, along with exploring the remains of a world after a large scale conflict.
This sci-fi title showcases a young man adventuring the ruins of a town, braving against life threatening disasters and environments. The main premise and art style brings to mind other similar titles, like Playdead's Limbo and INSIDE. This can be immediately seen with its moody colors and lighting, along with some of the platform puzzles the protagonist can be seen doing in the trailer. The influence is not unnoticed, as one of the executive producers and founders of Jumpship is former Playdead CEO, Dino Patti.
One of the core ideas that was seen that was reflected both of those games was isolation. The protagonist is shown to be relatively alone in the adventure, exploring by themselves. However it can also tie into the theme of disaster and recovery. This is shown where the protagonist is exploring many different parts of a rural world, seeing different sides of nature after the conflict, and hiding from a larger scale threat. Much like the threats seen in INSIDE and Limbo, one of the major antagonistic forces is a hostile alien force. Their powers were demonstrated in the trailer with the pillar-like beings, forcing them into hiding from their destructive power.
Based on themes alone, this title will certainly whet the appetite of those waiting for the next game from Playdead. It would be safe to say that this title shaping to be its spiritual successor. The central goal, as shown in the beginning and end of the trailer, is the idea of "making your family whole again." This is a slightly different tone when compared to the previous adventures in Limbo and INSIDE.
It is shown many times in Somerville's teaser trailer that the player will not be alone, with companions joining them. This includes a dog, a younger sibling, and their parents. But it also shows that everyone might not survive. Showing the repercussions of the aforementioned large scale conflict, it shows scenes of possible death and loss. It's themes like these that made its predecessor games by Playdead such a monumental indie darling, with this game looking to follow its footsteps.
Somerville will be released in 2022 for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.