Code 7, developed by Zein & Kevin, is an episodic next-gen text adventure with fully-voiced narrative. It combines hacking gameplay and an interactive sci-fi novel. What more can we ask for? Especially when the Code 7 prologue is available to play for free and we gave it go. Here’s our impressions.
Developed by Zein & Kevin, an independent game company situated in Germany, Code 7 is the team’s first game. Code 7 tells the story of a future when new galaxies have become potential locations to settle down. When a group of professionals sent out to establish the first interstellar colony went silent, two agents Sam and Alex were dispatched to find out what went wrong. This is where the free prologue, Episode 0 called Allocation starts.
https://youtu.be/2E-pt6_K44Q
We play as Alex, who has been separated with Sam when they landed in the colony. With our hacking skills, we need to gather information and guide Sam out. However, along the way, we realize that there is something bigger in the system, an A.I. entity that looms about the system trying to stop them from leaving. The A.I. is smart and dangerous. The environment is eerie and as the game progresses, there are choices to make for how to proceed in the conversation and different types of hacking puzzles to show up. The prologue shows off two of them: the MIM attack which tracks a message that you need to intercept in the system while the online security patrols and find the key to unlock and the other is using the system to manipulate obstacles in our way to guide Sam through the facility.
Code 7’s prologue may take about an hour or so to complete. For those unfamiliar with text adventures or even hacking gameplay, we are in the same boat (particularly for the latter). It never becomes difficult and the instructions are simple enough to grasp. Much of it comes with common sense. The prologue proves that there is a compelling story to tell here. One that we look forward to being expanded on with the full episodic game release that will reveal what the A.I.’s motives are and what Code 7 is. Plus, Code 7 shows off intense retro-style music in the background while also having great voice actors. It is a project that has us impressed.
Code 7 is currently in a Kickstarter campaign. The full game promises to be an indie game experience with around eight hours of gameplay charged with a creepy atmosphere, accessibility for those who are not fast typers, the ability to team up with main characters and multiple endings based on the choices the player makes during the game.
Check out their Kickstarter here.