{{Short description|2014 video game}} {{Infobox video game | title = NEO Scavenger | image = File:NEO_Scavenger_2014_Steam_Cover_Art.jpg | caption = | developer = Blue Bottle Games | publisher = Blue Bottle Games | designer = Daniel Fedor | programmer = | artist = | writer = | composer = Josh Culler | platforms = Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux, Android, iOS | released = {{vgrelease|WW|15 December 2014}} | genre = Role-playing, roguelike | modes = Single-player }}
'''''NEO Scavenger''''' is a survival role-playing video game developed by Blue Bottle Games. The studio is led by Daniel Fedor, a former BioWare employee. In the game, the player controls a character that awakes in a cryonics laboratory in a ruined, post-apocalyptic world. The immediate objective of the game is to keep the character alive by finding food, clothing, and shelter, and caring for any illnesses that may befall him. Ruined towns can be scavenged for supplies, but doing so may draw the attention of nearby looters and raiders. Fighting for survival includes fending off attackers, and other beasts that may be hiding in the wastes. The developer had initially released a free browser-based demo, and tiered purchase options were available to access the beta and pre-order the final game. As of the final release in 15 December 2014, the demo and beta versions can no longer be accessed.
==Plot== The game is set in post-apocalyptic Michigan.<ref name="pcg-preview">{{cite magazine|last=Sykes|first=Tom|date=Jan 2013|title=NEO Scavenger|magazine=PC Gamer UK|pages=28|publisher=Future Publishing|issue=248}}</ref> In the game, Philip Kindred awakes from a cryosleep pod in a cryogenics lab, wearing nothing but a surgical smock, with a "Wolfman" nearby.<ref name="pcg-preview"/><ref name="name">{{cite video game|title=NEO Scavenger|developer=Blue Bottle Games|version=0.954b|scene=Items Screen|quote=hospital wrist strap labeled "Philip Kindred{{"-}}}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=NEO Scavenger - browser games get old-school|url=http://www.pcauthority.com.au/News/293951,neo-scavenger---browser-games-get-old-school.aspx|first=David|last=Hollingworth|date=Mar 16, 2012|work=PC & Tech Authority|access-date=Dec 31, 2012|archive-date=February 22, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130222074928/http://www.pcauthority.com.au/News/293951,neo-scavenger---browser-games-get-old-school.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref>
==Gameplay== thumb|left|alt=|The main world for the game. Players can scavenge towns and kill enemy bandits to fight for survival in the wasteland. ''NEO Scavenger'' is a post-apocalyptic outdoor survival simulation.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> The player controls a character through a series of turns (each turn equals an in-game hour) played on an isometric map divided into hexagonal tiles.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> During each turn, the character has a certain number of "moves". Each move makes the character hungrier, thirstier and more tired.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> The objective of the game is to ensure the character's survival.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> This requires that the player scavenge supplies from ruined settlements in the area.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> Scavenging can be risky as it may alert nearby looters and raiders to the player's activities,<ref name="pcg-preview"/> but it is necessary if the player wishes to survive in the wasteland;<ref name="pcg-preview"/> clothes, weapons, food, and tools quickly become a necessity for the wandering player.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> Recipes are available which require the player to gather certain items and combine them together to create other items.<ref name="rps-angels">{{cite news|title=Scavenging Angels: NEO Scavenger|url=http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2012/03/13/scavenging-angels-neo-scavenger/|first=Adam|last=Smith|date=Mar 13, 2012|work=Rock, Paper, Shotgun|access-date=Dec 31, 2012|archive-date=January 28, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130128075402/http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2012/03/13/scavenging-angels-neo-scavenger/|url-status=live}}</ref>
The player can suffer from a variety of illnesses including hypothermia, diarrhea, dehydration, and malnutrition.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> Left untreated, the character could die.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> Illnesses can be treated or avoided by using certain items in the game.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> For example, to ward against hypothermia, the player should quickly obtain a pair of pants.<ref name="pcg-preview"/>
==Development== After leaving his job of seven years at BioWare, Daniel Fedor founded Blue Bottle Games and began working on his first independent project, ''NEO Scavenger''.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> The game is inspired by other games he played as a child, particularly tabletop role-playing games including Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, Rifts, and Shadowrun: "I loved the creative problem solving, character creation, exploration, and later, character development and interaction."<ref name="pcg-preview"/>
''PC Gamer''{{'}}s Tom Sykes compared the game to DayZ but without zombies and with a solitary player.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> The game uses elements from roguelikes, adventure games, and role-playing games.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> The developer tried to reduce the dependence on guns which typify the post-apocalyptic genre.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> Although players need to fend off attacking monsters, situations in the game such as hypothermia or dehydration also require the player's immediate attention.<ref name="pcg-preview"/>
Early versions of the game used a simple combat system that consisted of repeatedly clicking basic options such as "Use axe on looter" until either the looter or the player's character ran out of hit points.<ref name="igm-july">{{cite news|title=School Of Hard Knocks – 'Neo Scavenger' Takes Survival Seriously|url=http://www.indiegamemag.com/neo-scavenger-medical-preview/|first=Dominic|last=Tarason|date=July 28, 2012|work=Indie Game Mag|access-date=Dec 31, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130528081527/http://www.indiegamemag.com/neo-scavenger-medical-preview/|archive-date=May 28, 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> This system was replaced with a significantly more complex system that allows for actions such as grabbing an attacker's legs to pull them to the ground if you are already down.<ref name="igm-july"/> The winner of the fight is no longer based on hit points but on blood loss, shock, and other realistic causes.<ref name="igm-july"/> The AI also received updates prior to a preview in July 2012: mutant creatures still act aggressively, but humans are less likely to risk themselves in a fight if the player character has nothing of value to take.<ref name="igm-july"/>
Along with a free browser demo of the game,<ref name="rps-angels"/> the developer sold pre-orders that include beta access to raise funds to finish development.<ref name="pcg-preview"/> The game was created using a number of different free programming libraries and tools: Flixel, FlashDevelop, TortoiseSVN, MySQL, Audacity, and Chevy Ray's AssetBatcher.<ref>{{cite video game|title=NEO Scavenger|developer=Blue Bottle Games|version=0.954b|scene=Credits|quote=Free Tools that made N.E.O. Scavenger possible: Flixel, FlashDevelop, TortoiseSVN, MySQL, Audacity, ChevyRay's AssetBatcher}}</ref> The game was entered in the 2013 Independent Games Festival competition.<ref>{{Cite web|title=NEO Scavenger entrant|url=http://www.igf.com/php-bin/entry2013.php?id=468|work=Independent Games Festival|access-date=Dec 31, 2012|archive-date=April 10, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130410100011/http://www.igf.com/php-bin/entry2013.php?id=468|url-status=live}}</ref> The game was part of a Humble Bundle Weekly sale featuring games developed using Open Source tools.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Humble Weekly Bundle|url=https://www.humblebundle.com/weekly|access-date=March 31, 2014}}</ref>
== Reception ==
{{Video game reviews | MC = 77<ref>https://www.metacritic.com/game/neo-scavenger/critic-reviews/?platform=pc</ref> | IGN = 7.9<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2014/12/22/neo-scavenger-review |title=Archived copy |access-date=2025-11-10 |archive-date=2024-09-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240917171330/https://www.ign.com/articles/2014/12/22/neo-scavenger-review |url-status=live }}</ref> }}Responses to Neo Scavenger were generally favorable, with Metacritic calculating a score of 77 based on 7 reviews.<ref>{{Cite web |title=NEO Scavenger |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/neo-scavenger/ |access-date=2024-09-17 |website=www.metacritic.com |language=en |archive-date=2024-09-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240917171330/https://www.metacritic.com/game/neo-scavenger/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
''IGN{{'}}''s Leana Hafer praised the game's storytelling and survival mechanics, but noted that the difficulty of these mechanics can get in the way of the player experiencing the story.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hafer |first=Leana |date=2014-12-22 |title=NEO Scavenger Review |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2014/12/22/neo-scavenger-review |access-date=2024-09-17 |website=IGN |language=en |archive-date=2024-09-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240917171329/https://www.ign.com/articles/2014/12/22/neo-scavenger-review |url-status=live }}</ref>
''PC Gamer''{{'}}s Tom Sykes said of the game, "Compared to other post-apocalyptic RPGs, ''NEO Scavenger'' feels like the real deal, with a central character who lives the harsh life of a wastelander rather than simply borrowing the aesthetic."<ref name="pcg-preview" />
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== * [http://steamcommunity.com/games/248860/announcements/detail/226632896431051151 NEO Scavenger developer accepts digital currencies] on November 22, 2014 * [http://indiegamesaaa.com/2012/11/16/audio-interview-with-daniel-fedor-neo-scavenger/ Interview with the developer] on November 16, 2012 * [http://www.gamingnexus.com/Article/Indie-Spotlight-NEO-Scavenger/Item3671.aspx Interview] on September 28, 2012
==External links== {{Commons category|NEO Scavenger}} * {{Official website|http://bluebottlegames.com/main/node/2}} * [https://gamedevgonerogue.blogspot.com/ Developer's blog] * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2K3mihtzrA August 2012 gameplay trailer]
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Category:2014 video games Category:Early access video games Category:Linux games Category:MacOS games Category:Post-apocalyptic video games Category:Role-playing video games Category:Single-player video games Category:Survival video games Category:Video games developed in Canada Category:Video games set in Detroit Category:Windows games