Hydrophobia Prophecy Message Board

Hydrophobia first arrived last year on Xbox Live Arcade, promising to be just the beginning of a trilogy of waterlogged adventure games. But after mixed reviews, developer Dark Energy Digital took all that criticism to heart and implemented many story and gameplay changes to the original game. The r...

European PSN users who are looking to shoot every single one of their friends and relations, and then have documented evidence of the affair: You are the worst murderers ever. However, you're the ideal audience for Call of Duty Elite, which launched today on the Euro PlayStation Store. You can grab the app and sign up for a premium membership through the Store, then fly your K/D spread like a proud, proud flag.

Also on the European Store is the managerial football sim Premier Manager 2012, and the revamped, Move-enabled Hydrophobia Prophecy. Check out PlayStation Blog for the full list of releases!

It’s time once again to have a look at upcoming PlayStation Plus content! PlayStation Plus is a subscription service that gives you access to free games, discounts on new and classic titles, and access to exclusive features of the network, all for just over $4 a month. And this November, we’re rolling out access to amazing content that you’ll want to be a part of. To learn more about this, or get access to PlayStation Plus, either click here, or go the PlayStation Store on your PS3 console and go to the PlayStation Plus category.

Starting 11/1, enjoy free access to Hydrophobia Prophecy! Note that this is day and date with the release of the game. Free for the entire month for Plus subscribers, this action adventure uses the power of HydroEngine – the world’s first fluid dynamics engine for games – to engage in mind blowing flow combat and incredible physics based puzzles. This is also the definitive version of this title complete with PlayStation Move support, a redone backstory, a dramatic new ending, improved voice acting, and a ton of additional features.

We’re also rolling out some classic Crash Bandicoot love with several Crash PSone Classics available for free downloads throughout the month. Crash Bandicoot 1, 2, and 3, along with CTR: Crash Team Racing are all available for the better part of November starting 11/1.

Free PS minis are also on deck with Rumble Trucks and the charming Where is my Heart? free through the month. In the last half of November, look forward to grabbing Doodle Fit, the best-selling puzzle game, free as well.

Lastly, you may have seen today’s earlier note on the special Plus subscription offer in which you can sign up for Plus and receive Jurassic Park: The Game – Full Series (Episodes 1-4) free when it released on 11/15. Subscribing already? You’re not left out! Existing subscribers are eligible to add more time to their Plus subscription and receive Jurassic Park: The Game – Full Series (Episodes 1-4) free when it drops on 11/15; thereby extending their current subscription end date.

There will be a number of other discounts and content throughout the month, many of which will be announced via the PlayStation Store Update. Please keep in mind these are expected games and discounts for Plus. Some content outlined may be subject to change. Release dates are also subject to change. With that in mind, have a look at the expected Plus content to hit this month! Let us know your thoughts in the comments, or hit the PlayStation Forums to chat more about Plus with PlayStation Network’s Morgan Haro / mochuuu.

Don’t have PlayStation Plus? Purchase a 1 year subscription by clicking here. By purchasing online, you’ll receive a redemption code immediately after purchase via email.

Here is the content list for November 2011 as of 10/31.

Free PSN Games and DLC: Hydrophobia: Prophecy (11/1) Free PSone Classics: Crash Bandicoot (11/1)
Crash Bandicoot 2 (11/1)
Crash Bandicoot3: Warped (11/1)
CTR: Crash Team Racing (11/1) Free Minis: Rumble Trucks (11/1)
Where is my Heart (11/8)
Doodle Fit (11/15) Full Game Trials: MORTAL KOMBAT VS DC UNIVERSE DIGITAL (11/1)
MONOPOLY STREETS (11/8)
Hasbro Family Game Night 3 Full Game Trial (11/15) Exclusive Discounts: Jurassic Park: The Game – Full Series (Episodes 1-4) – 20% off – (11/15) Free Themes: Robots Dynamic Theme (11/1) Free Avatars Green Hat Penguin Avatar (11/15)
Raccoon Avatar (11/15)
Red Ornament Avatar (11/15)
Snow Monster Avatar (11/15)
Turkey Leg Avatar (11/15) Media: Qore Episode 42 – November Early Access

Launching a game is always a frantic, exciting time, especially when you are a small, close-knit team. The PlayStation Network launch of Hydrophobia Prophecy on November 1st is no exception; in fact we’re even more excited than usual to have it launch as Game of the Month on PlayStation Plus, and we’re really grateful to PlayStation for getting behind the game.

For those of you unfamiliar with the game, Hydrophobia Prophecy is third-person action adventure with a sci-fi twist and a unique dynamic feature; our custom HydroEngine fluid dynamics technology. It’s a full physics simulation for flowing water – the only one of it’s kind in games, which allows water to wash dynamically around the environments, carrying objects and characters along with it. If you’re a sucker for water or game physics, then it really is a sight to behold – we’re very fortunate here at Dark Energy to have some incredibly talented tech-heads!

HydroEngine allows us to deliver dynamic and unique physics-based gameplay. Shoot out a window or weakened wall and water will crash through, wiping out any enemies that stand in the way. You can also shoot environmental hazards like barrels to unleash floating oil fires (which can become a weapon or a hazard depending on the emergent flow behavior) or fuse boxes and cables to electrocute enemies. Combining these together gives you score multipliers, and you get tons of emergent behavior because the water physics is never the same twice, so chain reaction physics is the order of the day.

Since the lead character, Kate Wilson, is an intelligent systems engineer, you can also utilize her augmented reality MAVI device to hack into systems and CCTV networks so you can scan the area ahead or remotely open doors from afar and unleash more torrents of water into unsuspecting enemies.

If you are familiar with the game then you’ll be pleased to learn that Hydrophobia Prophecy on PSN is definitely our best version. The tech guys have done a great job of harnessing the power of PS3 to make some significant enhancements Dark Energy‘s in-house InfiniteWorlds engine, so the game really looks superb. Gameplay wise it’s in a different league compared to the original release; the design team went back to the drawing board reworked really almost everything from the ground up. It’s been a lot of work, but it was worthwhile in the end.

In addition there are literally hundreds of refinements sourced directly from Darknet – our built-in developer feedback system which allows players to drop comment flags at any point in the game. It’s really been fascinating watching the data points from real players build up in our dev builds of the game. It’s particularly delightful to play through the game and come across a concentration of positive feedback flags around a cool event, and better still to watch the evolution of the data as we’ve updated and improved the game. It makes it all the more exciting knowing that PSN players are going to get their hands on the most polished version to date, and it will be interesting to see a whole bunch of new Darknet data emerge from the PlayStation community.

Going back to the game itself, we’re also very keen to see how PlayStation Network players respond to our implementation of PlayStation Move motion control. The precision and enhanced immersion it brings to the table really helps to engross you in the action, and we think it adds a new dimension to the flow-combat gameplay. We spent a great deal of time tuning the PlayStation Move controls, and we’ve made sure there is a full range of customization options available so players can adjust it to their liking. Our goal was to bring a compelling third person action-adventure to PlayStation Network with really great PlayStation Move functionality – and it’s certainly the preferred method of play here at Dark Energy now.

We think you’ll find Hydrophobia Prophecy on PlayStation network to be a really unique experience, with tonnes of dynamic and emergent gameplay. We’re really excited about building a community behind the game too, so we’ve worked hard to ensure it’s great value for money, and we can’t wait to see the Darknet data points flooding into our system and really look forward to sharing the analysis with you.

Hydrophobia Prophecy, Dark Energy Digital's publicly iterated action adventure title, will arrive on PSN in North America and Europe on November 1 and 2, respectively.

"The PlayStation 3 is now by far and away the best looking and best playing version of the game on any platform - it's in a different league compared to the original release, with many game systems reworked from the ground up, compelling new mechanics and a deeper back-story," said Dark Energy Managing Director Peter Jones. The PSN version includes Move functionality and the "Darknet" feedback system, which lets players give direct critiques and praise to the developer.

After a belly-flop of a launch on Xbox Live Arcade last year, Dark Energy Digital's game came back with the "Pure" update, fixing concerns from the original launch. "Prophecy" is the same game, with further refinements, and will be available for $7.99 in the US, £5.10 in the UK, and free to PlayStation Plus members.

It’s safe to say I didn’t enjoy Hydrophobia: Prophecy so much, but when it comes to listening to players’ comments it’s hard to fault developers Dark Energy. Today they’re reporting some impressive success from their Darknet system – a context sensitive feedback system that lets the team see customer remarks exactly where they have them during the game.

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This is an Impressions, rather than a Wot I Think, because I’m my own boss, and there’s no one in enough authority to force me to carry on past the first four or so hours. It’s safe to say I haven’t enjoyed my time in Hydrophobia‘s watery future world of terrorists vs. dryness. You can find out why below.

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Dark Energy Digital, which refused to let Hydrophobia's initial release issues halt the franchise in the making, is set to launch Hydrophobia: Prophecy -- not a sequel, but a remake -- on Steam in May (and PSN sometime after that).

Hydrophobia is reborn with new levels and enhanced graphics and mechanics!