Journey Beyond The Edge of the World
By Markus Koepke
Games Lift 2023
An atmospheric first person adventure game in which the player solves puzzles to unfold a mysterious and surreal story. A story told in a unique way through 5 narrated music tracks.
In “Journey Beyond the Edge of the World”, players find themselves aboard a storm-ravaged fishing trawler adrift in a vast unknown ocean. They are alone, except for a spectral figure that appears in places all over the ship. Players can freely explore the ship and interact with a multitude of objects, uncovering secrets and story fragments. Setting the ship’s radio channel activates a puzzle – solving it requires utilising all kinds of items scattered around the ship in creative ways.
This mechanic pays homage to classic point & click adventure games. Upon successfully completing the puzzle, a music track and, consequently, a chapter of the story are unlocked. Narrated through radio transmissions, the music tells the story – while the game world reflects the events depicted in the music. After a track has ended, players choose when to advance the story by tackling the next puzzle and accompanying music track and how much time they spend exploring in between. In that way players gradually uncover the mysterious story of the Unnamed Fisherman. A story about loss, reclaiming hope, and about facing oneself.
The pixelated retro look of the game is complemented by atmospheric lighting, fog, and a realistic water simulation. Handcrafted sounds fully immerse the players in the world, made possible by spatial audio, providing three-dimensional sound that works on any headphones; making for a truly unique audiovisual experience.
The Developer
Markus Koepke is the solo developer behind “Journey Beyond the Edge of the World”. Having worked as a freelance cinematographer and post production generalist in the advertising industry for more than a decade, he is now transitioning into game development. Crafting interactive digital worlds allows him to express his creative ideas in ways he always felt limited by the confines of a camera. Markus is also a passionate electronic music artist, and “Journey Beyond” lets him blend music and gaming in a way that is particularly inspiring to him.
