The Invincible has caught the eye of many gamers for a myriad of reasons, but the fact that its being developed by former CD Projekt Red and Techland developers as an adaption of famous science fiction writer Stanislaw Lem's work is definitely something worth paying attention to. Almost acting as a retro polar opposite to CDPR's own Cyberpunk 2077, The Invincible seeks to immerse players in a world where their choices change the outcome of the story drastically, embracing the vision in Lem's original writings as closely as possible.
Of course, this means that The Invincible seeks to explore interesting new ideas and concepts such as the "atompunk" aesthetic that was described in Lem's writings, microrobots, and other aspects of the original novel that has made it stick closely to readers. While Starward Industries' adaption features a new cast of characters, rather than focusing on the tales of Rohan and his crew from the book, the developers promise there will be enough similarities that still offers plenty of thought-provoking segments that players and readers would both experience between the different medias in which The Invincible's story has been presented.
Evolution as a Core Theme in Lem's Novel Returns in The Invincible
Part of what has made Stanislaw Lem's writing persist for so long is his personal analysis on the potential of humanity's future. This of course means introducing new, almost fantastical concepts to paint the image of far-off technological potential, such as helper robots and smartdust that are both incredible to read about, and fun to discover and interact with in video games. Without divulging too much into the original novel, this among other things is why evolution is a core theme in the novel, as well as the new game adaptation, as stated by one of The Invincible's writers Olga Piech in an interview.
Yes, both the book and the game are about evolution, taken literally. In the game, we deal with the phenomenon of evolution. We analyze it, try to understand it, and comment on it. We make decisions on how to behave in the face of it. Psychologically, we ourselves evolve - Regis III changes our character.
Stanislaw Lem's Outdated Future Makes The Invincible an Interesting Time Capsule
As The Invincible ironically uses next-gen visuals to tell an atompunk story about evolution, even Lem's original story has fallen behind the times, despite how he introduced concepts never-before-seen in science fiction. Some things he accurately predicted like drones, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence, but everything was through the vision of someone living in the post-World War 2 world. The very aesthetic in which the author describes has, as a result, wrapped back around as an accepted "retro" aesthetic, commonly seen through Google architecture. This makes it hard for The Invincible to really serve as a glimpse of humanity's future as it feels less like a potential outcome and more like a tale of what could have been. However, Starward Industries is aware of this irony, as stated by art director Wojciech Ostrycharz.
It's challenging to specify a point in the future because the game's action takes place in an alternative reality. The world's design is based on the 1950s aesthetic, with no digitalization, but where humanity has successfully dominated space and explored planets.
Players Can Experience The Invincible as a Book or Video Game Interchangeably
Like many adaptations, there are some hurdles that The Invincible needs to come to terms with in order to serve as a great experience for players. Starward Industries seems to be aware of what needs to be done. While the company aims to stay true to Lem's world and vision, multiple different steps have been taken to keep The Invincible as a great science fiction adventure that already set it apart from the original story. The game not only features a different cast and crew from the original story, but it also takes great pride in its dynamic choices and multiple endings, which the book didn't have. According to Olga Piech, this means that reading the novel between playthroughs can heighten the experience.
Players don't need to be familiar with the book. We would be thrilled, however, if they decide to read it after playing our game and then replay it. We would like as many people as possible to discover Lem. And for those who are familiar with his work and enjoy the author, they will appreciate the subtleties subtly hidden in the Easter eggs.
In the end, The Invincible is promising to be a unique experience in which players can interpret the adventures of atrobiologist Yasna and her crew any way they want, through their own choices, much like the original novel by Lem could be. These aspects, along with how the developers have done their best to keep the original world and tone of Lem's work intact as a love letter to it, all makes the game a possible candidate to sit next to the book as a work of art in its own right, and fans can finally experience that for themselves once the game launches in the coming days.
The Invincible
The Invincible is a story-driven adventure game, adapted from the hard sci-fi works of Stanislaw Lem. Players will explore Regis III as Yasna, use tools to search for her missing crew, and face unforeseen threats.
- Platform(s)
- PC , PS5 , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S
- Released
- November 6, 2023
- Developer
- Starward Industries
- Publisher(s)
- 11 Bit Studios
