LogInThe game from 25 years ago wasn't released in the end.
Recently, a video nearly nine minutes long made a game from over a quarter-century ago resurfaced. This game is no other, but one that is based on George Orwell's iconic dystopian novel, 1984.
The video, which was uploaded by ShedTroll on March 1, showcases the gameplay of this first-person game called Big Brother.
The development of the project started in 1996 when the newly set-up developer MediaX wanted to immerse players in a world inspired by Orwell's novel. The demo features authentic retro graphics, as it was made around 1999, 50 years after the novel was published.
In this game, players take on the role of the protagonist named Eric Blair, which is a nod to Orwell's real name, Eric Arthur Blair. Nancy Poertner, President of MediaX, talked about the game's idea in an interview with a magazine called GameWEEK (thanks, Polygon).
"Big Brother is an interactive adventure game with role-playing elements. The player interacts with different characters, enemies, and puzzles on their quest to find and join the "Hacker Underground" who are a group intent on overthrowing Big Brother - the all-powerful mythic dictator. "
The interview also mentioned that the game would combine "the detail of puzzle adventure Riven into the real-time world of Quake, making it a unique and stimulating gaming experience that will appeal to all gamers."
When the game was showcased at E3 in 1998, it received lots of attention. Per the original plan, it would be released in September 1999 and priced at $30. However, the project ran into some trouble and got canceled, probably in late 1999 or 2000. It's unlikely for us to figure out what happened then, but it was said that it was related to financial difficulties or the license had expired before the game was done.
Now, thanks to the Internet Archive, we have a chance to jump on the time machine to revisit this forgotten gem. According to ShedTroll, a larger video will be uploaded soon.
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