Consortium: The Tower has reached Alpha 1.7 and the latest update details the additions and changes.

Early Access ALPHA 1.7 - Now with more Norwegians!

16 Feb @ 1:24pm - iDGi

Greetings Seekers,

We have just pushed Consortium: The Tower Early Access ALPHA 1.7 live. The complete list of the changes made can be found HERE.

We're working on many other things in addition to The Tower. So to reward everyone's ongoing patience, we have decided to give everyone access to two brand new Act 2 levels - the rather large OfficeHub5, and the very unique SideVents. Both require some stalwart exploration to uncover...can you find them?

While these two new levels are still relatively early, they are at a stage where we would benefit from additional feedback and comments, so as always please swing by Discord.[discord.gg] and let us know if you have anything to report. Thank-you!

In addition, there are now over 350 new lines of V.O dialog in the game - the hotel mercs are robots no more! We proudly welcome Magnus Tranum and Anders Tranum to the cast of The Tower. This is a big step towards replacing all of the "robot voices" in the game.

Finally, we wanted to call everyone's attention to a really cool video about immersive sims that Logitech G put out a few months ago.

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We loved what they said about our project.

We hope you enjoy the changes/additions,

-iDGi

A new update for Consortium: The Tower brings it to Alpha 1.5.

Early Access Alpha 1.5 is here: Combat re-balanced + Demo updated + 212121

Greetings Seekers,

We have just made v1.5 live for you all. We've also updated the demo to include all of the latest fixes and polish. Click HERE to see a complete list of all the updates and fixes we've made to the game for you.

The biggest change/improvement revolves around combat balance - the early game is now much easier, giving new players more time and space to understand the game's mechanics and systems. We aren't declaring that the game is completely free of issues, but it is now quite stable and we're continuing to fix and polish things as quickly as we're able to.

Here is a complete list of the things iDGi is working on right now:

-Continued polish, fixing and improving all Act 1 content (i.e the game you all have access to now).
-Act 2 content development ongoing, screenshots coming soon!
-A secret partnership centered around a brand new feature for The Tower that no-one is expecting. Fig Backers will be learning about this first, but watch for a big official announcement in the coming weeks!
-A FREE Consortium choose-your-own-adventure digital prequel story is coming to Android and iOS devices! We haven't truly announced it yet, but we're quite close to a first release to our Fig Backers. A PC version will be coming to Steam sometime afterwards...

We have largely been silent over the past few months, and we apologize for any misconceptions that may be floating around out there as to WHY. Please always remember, this is a pure passion project for us, and we will never stop working on it until it's done... even if it kills us, and we have to reincarnate ourselves!

That being fact, in true indie developer fashion, we are all juggling various life responsibilities and contracts along with working on The Tower, so we need to maximize the use of our time. There's still a lot of game to get done here, and creatively we very much need to be able to work on the game in our own way, without any time pressure or outside influences.

So, we deeply appreciate all of your continued patience and understanding, even if we appear to go dark for long periods of time.

We hope you like the latest, more to come soon!

Sincerely,

Gregory and the iDGi team
212121

PCGamesN look at Consortium: The Tower and explore its reactivity.

[...]
Want to murder everyone as news drones buzz overhead? You can. Want to sneak through and incapacitate them all with electric shocks? Go ahead. Prefer to have a nice chat? Sure. Time goes on even if you do not do anything in Consortium, and every action you take is judged by your superiors who monitor your performance constantly, berating and praising you as you go. Occasionally, characters address you as well - yes, you, dear reader - breaking the fourth wall. It is a refreshing setting, and one that evokes the ‘One City Block RPG’ envisioned by immersive sim grandfather Warren Spector. 

The first time I drop onto the tower, I walk up to the first terrorist I see and speak to him, all friendly. He tells me his boss is an idiot and that nobody on the tower is allowed to attack me unless I shoot first. Nice. This gives me free reign to stroll around chatting to these gun-toting goons. Eventually, I voluntarily surrender and am locked up, before being freed from a cell by some unknown, interdimensional ally.

[...]

@RockPaperShotgun Consortium: The Tower has entered Steam Early Access.

This initial early access release isn't the full dealio, of course. Right now it contains roughly the first third of the game with all core game systems, but is missing character choreography along with several other potential features and, y'know, the rest of the game. Interdimensional Games expect to launch the full version in 8-15 months.

Consortium: The Tower will hit Steam Early Access in a few hours.

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Interdimensional Games has been one year in production on Consortium: The Tower and the game is currently feature complete in an Alpha state.  The update also gives us a casting update and tells us that the demo is coming soon.

After a year of very intense production, iDGi has officially reached a major milestone: all core planned game mechanics for Consortium: The Tower are functional and working well together. In layman's terms, this just means that we now have a fully featured videogame with a hefty chunk of working content.

Here is a video that briefly showcases a chunk of what we have fully working. Please note that the gameplay footage shown here is all from our alpha build and should not be considered indicative of a finished game.

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[...]

Casting update

We are proud to announce that with the awesome help of Dave Chan over at Giant Sandbox we have cast the following awesome voice actors for various key characters in The Tower:

Mark Meer as "The Voice"

Matt Alden as "Alvarez Famosa"

Gord Marriott as "Malcolm Thomas"

Belinda Cornish as "Ellon Gibbons"

Also introducing newcomer Eric Fortin as "Elon Stone". Eric is the bassist and lead singer for the local Vancouver rock band Man The Wolf.

Watch for upcoming updates where we'll give you a peek behind the scenes with V.O recording in both Studio X here in Vancouver for the main Consortium characters , and sessions with the new cast members in Edmonton.

The Consortium: The Tower team have released a progress update.

...
Our overall approach revolves around the idea that we're getting all of the core mechanics and gameplay content created and working well together---getting the game simply fun to play. After this is achieved, we will be spending all our time polishing the visuals and refining the gameplay mechanics based on playtesting.

So, after starting with a clean-slate Unreal 4 project in June:

• Most of the Consortium Game One game mechanics and relevant content are now fully ported and working in Unreal 4. This includes recycling and utility energy, inventory, player dialogue systems, weapons and all core combat mechanics, GUI, sounds, alignment.
• As for new stuff: we have two new weapons, the Freefall suit flying mechanics, swimming and water, wind and fans, ledge-grabbing/parkour, the conversation manager, a 3D automap, the Agitation meter system, and multiple stealth related mechanics all working.
• We are well on our way to getting fully playable "whiteboxed" versions of a large number of interconnected levels. Given the radically different level design requirements of The Tower compared to Consortium Game One, it is a relief to be at this stage.
• We have adopted a level design philosophy that is similar to how Bethesda approaches their game levels, in that we are creating modular "kits" that will maximize level designer freedom and creativity while heavily minimizing custom art assets. The levels themselves are all streamed, to help create a seamless experience devoid of loading screens. They will also not feel like levels, but instead interconnected parts of the massive to-scale interior environment of the Churchill Tower.
• We have created solid modular art assets for the Office, vents, pipes and construction kits.
• We've made a bunch of major improvements to our iDGi-1 Interactive Storytelling system from Game One. Steve now has vast scripting abilities that he did have not have before, which will not only result in a more reactive and customizable experience for each player, but also represents a significant improvement in the overall efficiency of our production pipeline, and will result in less bugs and logic issues with all interactive story related content.
• Last but certainly not least: Steve has been making use of this new tool (the iDGi-1 editor) for months now, and has a huge amount of the interactive conversations written, we are approaching our first VO recording session for the project!

[...]

In game screenshot

Here is an undoctored screenshot of the game, displaying one of the more finished art assets in the game (though still not final, of course...), the maintenance/air vents of the Churchill Tower. Explorers of the Churchill Tower will become quite acquainted with these...

Consortium: The Tower has released a new update focused on its stealth system which will focus on sight and sound.

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Here is a list of general features we have planned for Stealth:

• While in "Stealth Mode," your H.U.D. will display the distance of all visible potential combatants, as well as their capabilities such as armour and shielding.
• You'll be able to mark potential combatants to help keep track of where you last saw them, and your own last known position will also be marked on your HUD in the event you're spotted. This is so that you can keep track of where combatants may be searching for you.
• Multiple levels of toggleable stealth strength. Each level progressively drains more energy, while achieving greater levels of invisibility.
• A.I. will be aware of their environment. Meaning, for example, if you recycle an object within a combatant's "pathing," or right in front of them, they may notice and investigate.
• All sounds will be recognized by potential combatants nearby. Footfalls (not shrouded by Shock Absorbers), weapons fire, or even just the act of accidentally pushing objects around the environment will all cause potential combatants to react and investigate.
• If you fire your weapon, receive any damage, or so much as touch a potential combatant, invisibility will be temporarily lost.
• Speak anytime while using Stealth. This goes beyond tormenting potential combatants for your own amusement and can actually be a viable method of pushing them into submission before even showing yourself. Tell them to drop their weapons, interrogate them for information, etc. Only be careful, because depending on their personality and agitation level, some potential combatants may simply open fire when they hear a disembodied voice! "It's a ghost, kill it!"

Looks like going to Fig has worked out for Consortium: The Tower with the game funded and still 28 days to go in the campaign its time to look at stretch goals. Hype thread here.

WE ARE FUNDED!!!! A HUGE Thank-you to every single one of you awesome people that have pledged and invested in us. We are going to make one helluva game experience for you all. Now, about those stretch goals.....:-)

This video takes a closer look at Consortium: The Tower 's gameplay mechanics. Currently on Fig and at 234k out of a goal of 300k.

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A closer look at some of The Tower's gameplay mechanics, as well a glimpse at some of the ways your actions can have an impact on the gameworld.

Greg Zeschuk (former Bioware founder) decided to talk to Gamespot about why he's supporting Consortium: The Tower and offered his thoughts on the game and the Fig platform. The game is now live on Fig and currently at $139k out of a 300k goal at time of writing.

One of the industry's RPG luminaries, BioWare co-founder Greg Zeschuk, has come forward to invest in the game and sing its praises. We recently spoke with Zeschuk about the game to ask what drew him--and his wallet--to the project. He also told us why he thinks Fig, which offers both rewards-based backing and equity investment opportunity, is the right fit for the game.

Not only was Zeschuk already friendly with developers at Interdimensional, including its CEO Greg MacMartin, but he also truly believes in The Tower and what it's trying to do.

"I know the developers pretty well; an awfully long time; 15 years or so. Beyond that, the product I think is really interesting. The game's branching narrative structure is something I think is really cool and this is a different flavor of it," he said. "The other thing is, I think this is a game that should get made. It's something that's going to be unique and stand out. I think it's really going to impress people in terms of the depth of the gameplay."

Zeschuk adds that he trusts the team at Interdimensional to "get it done and do a good job."

The Tower, a sequel to 2014's well-received PC game Consortium, is a single-player, first-person sci-fi game that takes place (almost) exclusively within a structure called the Churchill Tower in London 2042. All the core mechanics, interface systems, and gear from the original are back, but this time with an "all new scope."

After failing with Consortium: The Tower at Kickstarter Interdimensional Games is using the Fig-platform now:

Consortium: The Tower is Jumping to Fig

CONSORTIUM: THE TOWER IS JUMPING TO FIG

Interdimensional Games Will Enable Fans to Share in the Potential Success of the Game Through Equity Crowdfunding

SAN FRANCISCO, February 26, 2016 – Interdimensional Games (iDGi), makers of the 2014 hit title CONSORTIUM, have decided to take their fundraising efforts from Kickstarter to Fig (www.fig.co) for their sequel Consortium: The Tower. The rewards and investment crowdfunding campaign will launch on March 22 and will be looking to secure $300,000 in rewards and equity funding.

“We are excited about CONSORTIUM: The Tower being chosen for the Fig platform,” said Gregory MacMartin, CEO of Interdimensional Games. “The Tower is our dream project with almost a decade of planning and R&D behind it, including our first game CONSORTIUM. The folks at Fig have recognized this, and by transitioning our campaign onto their platform Fig Publishing will be able to invite investors to join in realizing our project and participating in its potential success in the market.”

CONSORTIUM: The Tower is a single-player, first person science fiction simulation game created using the Unreal 4 Engine, and is set almost entirely within the hyper-futuristic Churchill Tower, an immense skyscraper in the heart of London, England. The Tower begins on December 21st, 2042 within an alternate dimension on the brink of world peace. The Tower incorporates all of the core mechanics, interface systems, gear and dynamic fourth wall shattering concepts for an all new scope. What should have been a straightforward mission to rescue civilian hostages from terrorists turns into a global debacle involving a deeply rooted conspiracy where Consortium Officer Bishop Six will be forced to question his allegiances and the morality of meddling across the bounds of existence. Acting as Bishop Six, players can choose to fight, sneak, explore or talk their way through an interactive story driven by their own actions and decisions.

“CONSORTIUM: The Tower is the type of game that is perfect for Fig. Interdimensional Games understands that fans want the option for more than just a t-shirt and a copy of the game when they financially support a game’s development. They want the opportunity to play a bigger role in its development and share in its potential success,” said Justin Bailey, CEO of Fig. “Our goal at Fig is to be able to pave the way for a sustainable ecosystem through investment crowdfunding, and by giving developers the funds they need for development, and being a great game co-publisher for them, we can further help in the potential success of the game.”

Fig is the first and only platform that offers both rewards and investment-based crowdfunding for independent developers in the gaming space. As part of its service offerings, Fig has announced that going forward it will waive all fees for the rewards portion of their campaigns, starting with Consortium: The Tower.

Stay tuned for more updates on the Consortium: The Tower campaign in the coming weeks and visit www.Fig.co for more information.

As expected the Kickstarter campaign for Consortium: The Tower has failed.

On behalf of everyone here at iDGi, THANK-YOU for your awesome support, encouragement and hard work spreading the word on our crowdfunding efforts so far!

We’ve learned a lot over the past few weeks, and gathered over 4400 of you who believe in what we’re trying to do with The Tower. We weren’t successful on Kickstarter, but this isn’t the end of the road. We’ve always said that no matter what this is a game that is going to get made, and that still holds true.

The Radical Plan?

So, what is our radical plan to save this campaign? Well - we were hoping to completely blow the lid open on the entire plan today, but unfortunately we aren’t allowed to just yet. The official announcement will be coming in a press release next week, but the gist is simple: The moment that the clock runs out here, this crowdfunding campaign will officially enter an intermission period. We have found a way to resume this campaign in just a few weeks’ time outside of Kickstarter or PayPal. You were the first supporters of The Tower, and as a special thank you we’ve got a bit of an extra treat.

Pledge now, you are eligible to become a SUPER BACKER...

Each and every one of you who has pledged at the Consortium Initiate level or higher on Kickstarter will not only be able to keep your pledge and rewards when the intermission period ends, but will eligible to become a SUPER BACKER with us.

What’s a Super Backer? It means that in the future all games released by iDGi in the Consortium Universe will be free for you. Forever. This will apply to all pledges made up until the ending of our Kickstarter campaign, so if you’re sitting at the $5.00 pledge, or on the fence about pledging, you’ve only got a limited time to take advantage of this. There will be some more information next week on how this will work from a technical standpoint.

We realize it may seem strange to back a campaign that isn’t going to succeed, but all will be revealed next week.

Thanks Eye.

In this video, Gregory MacMartin discusses the first decade of Interdimensional Games, Inc.

Thanks to Couch for tonight's news.

The developers behind CONSORTIUM: The Tower Prophecy have been interviewed @wccftech.com. Check out the kickstarter here.

CONSORTIUM: The Tower is not quite your average video game. It's played in first person, but it's meant to be deeper than a shooter: according to the developers, it should be possible to complete the entire game without ever raising the gun. Interdimensional Games describes it as a sci-fi immersive simulation where players will take control of Bishop Six, a CONSORTIUM officer who's been tasked to resolve a hostage situation in Churchill Tower, London, 2042.

That's why, in a nutshell, the developers refer to the game as Deus Ex meets Die Hard. Intrigued yet? Wait to hear more details from Gregory and Steven MacMartin, brothers and project co-leads.

[...]

Will CONSORTIUM: The Tower take place over the span of a single night? Also, is there a time limit (hidden or explicit) on defusing the hostage situation?

Yes it will, and perhaps even into the next day, but no longer than that. We're trying very hard to keep from giving away story spoilers (an extremely difficult endeavor when using crowdfunding!), but I will say that while no explicit "time limit" exists, things do escalate depending on what you do, how you do it, and how long it takes you. That is at least if the hostage situation doesn't suddenly become second fiddle to something far more important! 😉

I understand that it will be possible to even betray Bishop Six's own organization in CONSORTIUM: The Tower. However, can the protagonist investigate on his own (for instance by exploring the environment and finding clues) before making this choice? Also, will it be possible to turn against the CONSORTIUM without taking the murderous approach seen in the pitch video?

The people actively working against the Consortium very much want you in their pocket. Right near the beginning of the game you'll be contacted by them, and they will immediately begin their attempts to show you "their side of the story." At the same time they'll be testing the waters with you to ensure you're capable of being what they need you to be.

This means asking you to do things for them both on the Tower, and within Consortium ranks. They may ask you to attempt and create a divide between two main characters, so for example you have to go and find a way to make the Boyle twins turn on each other. Or have the Queen turn against Knight 15. Or maybe they'll have you convince a Pawn on board Zenlil to do something for you that ends up aiding a hidden away mole/traitor. Or you could decide to gather information about these mysterious benefactors, and then spill the beans to your crew - double agent style.

So yes, there will *absolutely* be a way of turning against the Consortium without taking the murderous route. In fact, the "mysterious benefactors" are equally horrified by the act of you being a murderous lunatic. They are normal, well adjusted human beings with their own cause and purpose, not cartoon bad-guys devilishly joyed by your evil deeds. They only let the murdering slide because they believe, unlike the Consortium, that they need you and have no choice. I should say that they need the interdimensional traveler (you!), and not so much the Bishop.

For kickstarter update #4 Interdimensional Games explain how your story choices will carry over.

In Summary:

*All unique universe settings will be importable from our first game, Consortium, though this is absolutely not required to fully experience The Tower.
*If starting without an import from Game One, receive an interactive recap sequence to start the Tower. As the recap plays out, you'll be given the chance to make key decisions along the way in order to customize your starting position in the gameworld.
*Begin The Tower on board Zenlil, the location from Game One. Get the chance to familiarize yourself with the crew as well as receive custom content tailored toward people new to the franchise.
*If starting The Tower without importing from Game One, the murder mystery storyline will remain unsolved. You must play Consortium in order to get a chance at apprehending the traitor by the start of The Tower.
*If you start The Tower by importing save data from Consortium, many things will be transferred over including: alignment stats, character states (dead/alive/captured), general narrative decisions, and conversation choices.

Interesting info about the Churchill tower:

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Gregory discusses the Churchill Tower itself, all the areas you'll be able to explore and some in-depth discussion into one of the environments featured in the main pitch.

The Churchill Tower is the centerpiece of this experience. We’ve referred to it as an “open world futuristic skyscraper.” Allow me to explain what we mean by that. One of our chief inspirations from a level design perspective is the approach taken by the fantastic game, “Dishonored.” That game seamlessly fuses functional level design with aesthetically interesting and architecturally realistic level design. Meaning, a design that allows players ample opportunity to use their abilities while still looking and feeling both real and believable.

Thanks Farflame!

CONSORTIUM: The Tower has a goal of $450,000 and 32 days to achieve it. Consider backing it if you enjoyed the first game.

The ultimate single player first-person immersive sim. Explore, talk, fight or sneak through The Churchill Tower in 2042! PC/XB1/PS4

A new teaser video for Consortium: The Tower Prophecy was made available last week, for which the crowdfunding campaign starts the 18th of January.

Interdimensional Games (iDGi) has released a new teaser trailer with gameplay footage for Consortium: The Tower. Included in the video is the launch date for the project's long anticipated follow-up crowdfunding campaign: January 18th, 2016.

The Tower is a new single-player first-person science fiction immersive simulation created using the Unreal 4 Engine, and is set within the confines of a massive tower looming over Central London.

Fans of the lore established in Game One of the iDGi-1 Trilogy (CONSORTIUM) are encouraged to visit iDGi1.net at the Winter Solstice on December 21st, 2015 for back-end access to the satellite and an expansion to our Alternate Reality Game.

A teaser trailer footage for the second Consortium game, named Consortium: The Tower Prophecy has been recently made available by Interdimensional Games. Expanding the current IP, The Tower Prophecy is a new first-person science fiction interactive narrative RPG created using the Unreal 4 Engine and set within the confines of a massive tower looming over Central London.

As the announcement of the game has been more than half a year ago, here is some more information about it:

The Tower Prophecy is both a direct sequel to last year’s fourth wall breaking Consortium, and also a stand-alone game in its own right. “It’s not well known yet, but I’m proud to say that even one year after its release, Consortium remains a highly unique first-person interactive narrative,” Gregory MacMartin, CEO of iDGi said. “No two players can have the exact same experience. The iDGi-1 Interactive Narrative Technology allows for a unique combination of scripted narrative and player agency. By harnessing and building upon existing technology, mechanics and content developed for Consortium, The Tower Prophecy will push the boundaries of seamlessly blending narrative and player freedom even further, and will offer a more polished and well-rounded experience.”

In The Tower Prophecy players will explore the futuristic Churchill Tower in the heart of Central London, where they will be able to seamlessly fight, explore, sneak or talk their way through the entire experience, or any combination thereof. The Churchill Tower and its inhabitants are all being designed as part of a seamless open-world, sand-box game environment, and the game’s narrative will shape itself to player decisions and actions in ways never before seen.

iDGi is preparing a crowdfunding campaign for launch later this year to help raise the production budget for the effort. “We are asking anyone who likes what they see in this reveal trailer and are interested to learn more about our game to please consider subscribing to our mailing list in order to keep up to date on progress and details as we move forward.

Interdimensional Games announced Consortium: The Tower Prophecy yesterday. Its a sequel to the funded kickstarter game Consortium, and is the second part of the trilogy.

The heart of downtown London. Civilian hostages have been taken by terrorists with a dubious agenda in the Churchill Tower, a thousand meter high skyscraper built over the River Thames. Bishop Six (the player) has been tasked with skydiving in from the Consortium command vessel ZENLIL above the clouds and rescuing the hostages. Players will soon begin to realize that nothing about the mission or the situation is what it seems...