Beholder



Beholder is a game developed by Warm Lamp Games and published by Alawar Entertainment. It was released on November 9, 2016 on Steam.

Summary
You’re a State-installed Landlord in a totalitarian State. You must spy on tenants, peep, eavesdrop and profile! You must report on anyone capable of plotting subversion against the State. You MUST! But WILL you?

Description
Welcome to a grim dystopian future. A totalitarian State controls every aspect of private and public life. Laws are oppressive. Surveillance is total. Privacy is dead. You are the State-installed manager of an apartment building. Your daily routine involves making the building a sweet spot for tenants, who will come and go. However, that is simply a facade that hides your real mission... The State has appointed you to SPY ON YOUR TENANTS! Your primary task is to covertly watch your tenants and eavesdrop on their conversations. You must BUG their apartments while they're away, SEARCH their belongings for whatever can threaten the authority of the State, and PROFILE them for your superiors. You must also REPORT anyone capable of violating the laws or plotting subversive activities against the State to the authorities. You MUST! But WILL YOU??? BEHOLDER IS ALL ABOUT MAKING CHOICES - CHOICES THAT MATTER! What will you do with the information you collect? Will you report the suspicious activities of a father and orphan his children? Or will you withhold the details about his illegal activities and give him a chance to make things right? You may also choose to blackmail him to acquire the money your family desperately needs.

Gameplay
Beholder is inspired by dystopian works of George Orwell, Aldous Huxley and Ray Bradbury.

The main character – Carl – is a government-installed landlord in a totalitarian State. The State appoints Carl to spy on the tenants. The primary task is to covertly watch the tenants and eavesdrop on their conversations. A player can bug apartments while tenants are away, search their belongings for whatever can threaten the authority of the State, and profile them. The State requires a player to report anyone capable of violating the laws or plotting subversive activities against the Government to the authorities.

The game offers a player a chance to either follow the commands of the Government or to side with the people who suffer from the oppressive directives. Each game character has their own personality, circumstances and issues. Every decision that a player makes affects the way the story unfolds. The game has multiple endings each of them being a sum of the decisions made by a player.

Awards
Best in Play @ Game Developer Conference, GDC Play 2017

Most Creative & Original @ Game Connection America, 2017

Best Indie Game @ Game Connection America, 2017

Best Indie Game @ DevGAMM, 2016

Excellence in Game Design @ DevGamm, 2016

Best Adventure Game @ IGN Russia (Best Games of 2016)

Winner in Entertainment Category @ GDWC, 2016

Platforms
Available: PC, Mac, Linux (via Steam), Facebook Gameroom, IOS, Android,Nintendo Switch.