Whispers From The Rift v1.0 coming June 21st
Direct prequel to Consortium: THE TOWER...
Consortium: The Tower
Whisper2 From The R1ft launching June 21st
Direct prequel to Consortium: THE TOWER...
Early Acce2s A1PHA v1.13 - EXPANDED DEMO - ACT 1
2121 DEVELOPMENT UPDATE 2121
Greetings Seekers,
The entirety of Act 1 has just been made available for everyone to play via the free demo. At this time, we would like to make a few things perfectly clear:
- Consortium: THE TOWER is officially in “Development Hell”. This means that for a variety of reasons, development is currently paused. The project is NOT cancelled. If you wish to support development of Consortium: THE TOWER, the best way is to wish-list the game, buy any of our other games and/or support us via Patreon (search the internet for "patreon idgi1")
- The absolute latest version of THE TOWER shares the Unreal Engine 4.27 code-base that represents the completed and released CONSORTIUM VR/Remastered(PC/Meta Quest). This means that all features and improvements found in that title will be coming to THE TOWER in a future “Alpha 2.0” release, including full VR support.
- Our 2016 crowdfunding Fig campaign made the existence of this game possible. All funds raised were used for development of THE TOWER. We simply cannot stress this enough: without the campaign, there would be no Consortium: THE TOWER game whatsoever. HOWEVER, we wholly acknowledge that we owe all backers, investors and buyers of this game on Steam a finished game, and we remain steadfastly determined to make that happen. No matter how long it takes.
We have amended the "Why Early Access" section of the store page to make it very clear that we don't want anyone else buying the game at this time, and that everyone should instead play the free EXPANDED DEMO of THE TOWER Alpha 1.13.
v1.13 RELEASE NOTES
-More preview areas of Act 2 have been unlocked - it is technically possible to get deep under The Churchill Tower, now.
-Demo now includes the entirety of a modified Act 1 of Consortium: THE TOWER.
-Demo now supports importing saved games from CONSORTIUM Remastered/VR.
-Was forced to disable the “Universe Log” system entirely for this build - it was too rotten, unfinished and not particularly useful anyways. This will make a return in Alpha 2.0 using CONSORTIUM VR/Remastered’s implementation.
-General optimizations made to reduce “draw calls” in many areas - game will perform better in certain areas on lower end machines.
-The automated missile hot-slot device can now be found…
-”Frank McFrankie” encounter on the roof - now has a significantly improved voice. Casting is still not final.
-The “loot stash” on the roof has more stuff in it.
-There is now an entirely new and secret way to go directly from the roof to the hotel park
-There are now many turrets defending the hotel helicopter pad entrance to the hotel park.
-Removed turret inside vent maze that is just after the “Malcolm trap”
-More resources can now be found all over the place. (recyclables, ammo, weapons and armor).
-The Hotel Park layout has been significantly modified to help “funnel” players towards an encounter with “The Voice”.
-The Hotel room floors (in-between the Hotel Lobby and Park) are now only directly accessible with the key found on the roof. The area can still be accessed via the Water Tunnels, however.
-The “Water Tunnels” access spot in the Hotel Rooms has been cleared out significantly, making it significantly easier to find.
-The encounter with Frank McFrankie that could be discovered in the Water tunnels is no longer accessible at this time.
-The connection between the “Water Tunnels” and the industrial Churchill Tower “side vents” is now fully accessible in Act 1 and has been given a significant “environmental accuracy” pass
-The Hotel Lobby has been given a major “environmental accuracy” pass - the entire main lobby interior has been cleared of erreoneous geometry and is now opened up, effectively making encountering Preben Skogan much easier/faster to accomplish.
KNOWN ISSUES:
-This build is still old and definitely has problems, including major A.I related bugs and issues. This patch does NOT fix all known issues. However, it should be very stable.
-The early prototype version of V.O.I.C.E. is in this build, but it definitely has issues and may not work correctly anymore. Alpha 2.0 will use V.O.I.C.E v1.0 that is used for CONSORTIUM Remastered/VR.
-The Information Console found in this stream is very inaccurate and incomplete. We instead recommend using the FREE information console app that can be downloaded via itch.io: ( https://idgi.itch.io/consortium-info-console )
WHAT'S NEXT
We realize that we have lost many of you folks who bought our game years ago (all of the "reviews" telling folks the project is dead/abandoned/etc kind of gave it away...). Many of you rightfully feel like we've let you down. We truly do deeply apologize for this. This is a brutal time in the game industry, and to be perfectly honest, right now, we are mostly focusing on projects that are helping us survive this industry nightmare.
We find it interesting that despite technically how old Consortium: THE TOWER Alpha may be now, there is still no other experience quite like it. It is for this reason that we remain resolute that the completed game will be worth the wait!
We're gonna get Alpha 2.0 done and out to you all as soon as we can bring Consortium: THE TOWER out of "Development Hell", at which point we will be on a steady path towards completion.
In the meantime...
We have other irons in the fire, including and especially....the interactive novel prequel to both Consortium games: WHISPERS FROM THE RIFT. Whispers is actively being given a final coat of polish by Steve right now, and we will FINALLY be officially announcing the release date very shortly...
With grace, sincerity and love for each and every one of you who have enjoyed our experiences over the years...
Namaste,
- iDGi
https://idgi1.ca
"Every man's foremost task is the actualization of his unique, unprecedented and never-recurring potentialities, and not the repetition of something that another, and be it even the greatest, has already achieved." ~ Martin Buber
2121 Free Info Console app now available for PC and Android 2121
Consortium: Info Console
Greet1ng2 Seekers,
As of today, anyone and everyone can download the completely stand-alone application “Consortium: Info Console” from itch.io, free of charge. Please feel free to share:
https://idgi.itch.io/consortium-info-console
Namaste,
–iDGi
–iDGi on Discord
"We need to start imagining the future or it will get imagined for us, and the ways that it has
been imagined thus far don't seem very attractive”
—Mohsin Hamid
Consortium: THE TOWER Ear1y Acce2s ALPHA v1.12
Greetings Seekers,
Other than (potentially) one more patch, this will be the final build of Consortium: THE TOWER that uses the UE4.15 engine. The TOWER project at large has long since been moved up to UE4.27 to co-exist with CONSORTIUM VR/Remastered and now shares many heavily updated resources, such as choreo systems, user interface, game mechanics, AI, a brand new save/load system and more.
This updated UE4.27 version of Consortium: THE TOWER is not yet playable yet but when it is ready, it will be coming as “Alpha v2.0”.
SPECIAL NOTE to all CONSORTIUM Remastered / VR players that are interested in continuing their story. We do not recommend proceeding too far past the rooftop of THE TOWER in general, if you do decide to buy and play right now. The roof is indicative of a finished part of the game, but everywhere is in various states of deep incompletion and bugginess.
ALPHA v1.12 of Consortium: THE TOWER fully supports importing Universes from CONSORTIUM VR / Remastered. We also made a few other changes. Because it has been so long since we’ve updated this for you all, we have decided to open up more of what iDGi-1 has managed to map out of the Churchill Tower - seekers can theoretically get as far down as the parking garage now, though it is exceedingly cold and hazardous.
CAUTION: The iDGi-1 signal strength is still very low for most of these new lower Tower areas (though we have forcibly filtered out the visual distortion so that it is possible to navigate these “proto-areas”). Only the most stalwart and determined seeker is invited to go down there…save spheres are rare.
NOTE: Just in case, the old December 2019 build of Alpha 1.11 can still be accessed by opting into the “alphatest” Steam beta (no password required).
RELEASE NOTES
- Supports importing universes from CONSORTIUM VR / Remastered
- Updated Main Menu
- Fixed a bug that would cause the ISS system to be spammed with “Stop fighting” player dialog choices endlessly, preventing the player from saving their game.
- All on-screen HUD icons have been disabled for this build. Reason: it is too cluttered, we think it’s better overall without and will instead be streamlining this system in Alpha 2.0.
- Never before seen office complexes and industrial areas around/above/below the C.T.P.F. can now be partially accessed.
- More water tunnels have been mapped out and can be accessed.
- The parking garage can now technically be reached, but be warned - iDGi-1 signal strength is exceedingly bad down there right now.
- Completely removed the functionality of the broken NewsWire panels for now until they have finished content.
iDGi 21 Winter Sol2t1ce 21 update
iDGi development update
Greet1ng2 Seekers,
Wit2 th1s year’s massive solstice iDGi-1 signal boost, the CONSORTIUM VR / Remastered project is now juuuust about complete. Brand new Consortium King convo, finished briefing, tutorials. Major fixes, completely finished choreography, new music.
We just released V0.1.24! Now available to all players of CVR Beta Early Access and CONSORTIUM Remastered Playtest. Here is the complete changelist: https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1428880/view/3864716013041789752
The release of this Beta playtest update (CVR Beta Early Access and CONSORTIUM Remastered Playtest) is basically the signal of the start of the FINAL Beta Test phase. Further patches will largely be only for last minute tweaks, fixe2, music 1mprovements and finishing the very very ending. We can now confidently say that –
CONSORTIUM Remastered v1.0 will be launching at the same time that CONSORTIUM VR emerges from Early Access, in Q1 2024.
For 14 years or so since it originally came on-line, iDGi-1 has been revealing more and more of a world that is, in some ways, a bright mirror to our own; an aspirational world, but some terrifying events have been chronicled in the CONSORTIUM and TOWER streams. How does it all end? It may still take awhile longer, but we simply will not stop until the TOWER stream is completed.
We once again thank everyone that reads this who continues to be patient with our long and drawn out project timelines. We sincerely wish each and every one of you a relaxing and peaceful holiday season.
Can we ALL somehow find a way to make it collectively through 2024 in one piece?!
Namaste,
–iDGi
–iDGi on Discord
“Sometimes you can find peace of mind by transferring yourself to different situations. They're just reminders to stay ... calm.”
—Yves Behar
"It's one world, pal. We're all neighbors"
—Frank Sinatra
CONSORTIUM Remastered and CONSORTIUM VR
CONSORTIUM Remastered
To all current owners of CONSORTIUM (2014) on Steam: You will be automatically gifted CONSORTIUM Remastered when we take it out of Beta.
1) Right click on CONSORTIUM 2014 and click "Properties"
2) Click on Betas
3) Enter the following password into the field: 4Owners0fCons0rtium0nly
Come let us know what you think in the iDGi Discord server
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2380550/CONSORTIUM_Remastered/
CONSORTIUM Remastered fully supports a much wider range of PC setups, controllers, Steamdeck and V.O.I.C.E: You can play through the entire story by literally talking out loud and making friends (or enemies) with Consortium’s diverse cast of characters.
CONSORTIUM VR on Steam
Today we are also announcing that we have decided to make the CONSORTIUM VR Beta available on Steam VR via Early Access. Just like the flat-screen Remastered edition, we have added many new elements to the game, along with improvements planned over the Early Access period. Please checkout the store page and read the Early Access description for more details!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1428880/CONSORTIUM_VR/
If you want to try out CVR for free, and you have a Quest 2, search for CONSORTIUM VR in the Quest store and use the “Try Before You Buy” feature to play for 30 minutes.
We hope to see you all in the iDGi Discord server!
Namaste,
--iDGi
“Our imagination is the only limit to what we can hope to have in the future.”
― Charles Kettering
April 21st TOWER dev update
Earth Day is almost here. A day where we celebrate our shared home, planet Earth, and its incredible beauty and diversity. Let's take a moment to appreciate the natural wonders that surround us and commit to nurturing our environment for future generations. Here's to a brighter, healthier, and more eco-friendly world!
Consortium: THE TOWER
Consortium: THE TOWER remains an active project at iDGi. The Early Access 4.15 build, available on Steam since late 2019, signifies the completion of Phase One of production. While the development process has been lengthy and complex, our original vision for THE TOWER has not changed. Please checkout the following post for more information on our motivations and plans as a company moving forward:
https://steamcommunity.com/app/626250/discussions/0/3829791007686976119/
We are nearing completion of CONSORTIUM VR / Remastered, bringing us closer to commencing Phase Two of Consortium: THE TOWER's production. We have begun integrating the latest CONSORTIUM VR / Remastered features and content into THE TOWER, with plans to release "Alpha 2.0" later this year.
As a result of this effort, Consortium: THE TOWER will now fully support V.R. and V.O.I.C.E. This means that THE TOWER will eventually be coming to Quest and other VR platforms, and the Steam build will soon natively support V.R. (no extra cost to Steam owners).
The transition between engines UE 4.15 and 4.27 involves significant changes, requiring a substantial amount of time to ensure everything functions correctly. We anticipate that THE TOWER will be released as a UE5 title, but to achieve this, we must first ensure compatibility with UE4 4.27.
Lastly on THE TOWER front, we’d like to share a first glimpse of a choreographed scene in Consortium: THE TOWER, showcasing a little bit of our progress thus far.
Finally, we have a small surprise for you all... Now that V.O.I.C.E. is "out of the bag", we have decided to make the backer build of THE TOWER available for everyone. That means that anyone can play with the prototype version of V.O.I.C.E. in Consortium: THE TOWER right now. Simply ensure that your Default Mic is on, and you can literally speak dialog lines rather than punch keys.
Namaste,
--iDGi
“Our imagination is the only limit to what we can hope to have in the future.”
― Charles Kettering
CONSORTIUM VR
CONSORTIUM VR
Please free feel to help share the following announce trailer video far and wide across the internet:
We will be sharing our Beta to the public via the Meta Quest 2 AppLab on February 21st. We are new to VR and want to carefully ease into this brand new market. We aim to ensure that we address all core player concerns during our final polishing rounds.
When CONSORTIUM VR graduates out of Beta later this year, we will be releasing v1.0 right here on Steam:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1428880/CONSORTIUM_VR
The PCVR build will be largely similar to the Quest 2 build, but with the addition of a bunch of graphical options such as volumetric clouds, fully dynamic lights and shadows, amped up particles, etc.
What about Consortium: THE TOWER?!
To all of you folks that bought here on Steam that are reading this in frustration: We truly are genuinely sorry that we’ve had to take such a drastic detour from updating Consortium: THE TOWER (The Tower) here on Steam. In exchange for this long wait, future builds of The Tower will be directly receiving many benefits thanks to the CONSORTIUM VR project. This includes features that go beyond what we originally promised backers back in 2016. This means:
-Full V.O.I.C.E. support. You will be able to use your own voice to conduct dialog in The Tower - zero button pressing.
-Full native V.R support. The Tower will now be coming to VR as well as flat-screen.
-Massively improved combat A.I., FX, inventory systems and general GUI.
-Most of the Virtual Trainer content of CONSORTIUM VR, including the VT editor and mod tools
Finally, if you’re a Steam Tower owner/player that is feeling ignored/abandoned, please hop into our Discord server and ask for the “Tower Steam Owner” role - you will receive a special icon next to your name and receive special perks and future sneak-preview builds of The Tower, just like Tower backers currently do.
More info about V.O.I.C.E and about CONSORTIUM VR will be coming over the next few weeks. Until then, it’s back to the dev caves for us!
Namaste,
--iDGi
“Want to change the world? Upset the status puo? This takes more than run-of-the-mill relationships. You need to make people dream the same dream that you do.”
– Guy Kawasaki
November 2022 iDGi dev update
General iDGi Dev Update
The Announce Trailer for our VR INTERACTIVE CINEMA production is getting close to done. The front-end is feeling pretty good now. Credits are almost done. We’ve been continually testing, fixing and polishing the whole thing, but with a particular emphasis on on the ending and beginning.
Today marks 2 years since we’ve started updating you all each and every month on the 21st. It’s also been just over a decade since we first revealed the initial glimpse of CONSORTIUM. Here is a very brief look of our game development efforts over all this time.
Wait for a never before seen glimpse of Consortium: THE TOWER’s Act 2 at the end.
With a bit of luck, we’ll be releasing the Announce Trailer before the December holidays and you’ll all finally realize what we’ve accomplished for VR and how it relates to THE TOWER…
To all of you in the USA, we wish you a wonderful thanksgiving!
Namaste,
--iDGi
“Imagination allows you to think of the journey worth making. Motivation gets you started. But, it’s patience and perseverance that get you there.”
– Ernie J Zelinksi
October 2022 iDGi dev update
General iDGi Dev Update
Our VR INTERACTIVE CINEMA production has now technically, FINALLY reached early BETA! However – contrary to what we told you last month, we still aren’t ready to let new playtesters in just yet. We’re a very small team and can only move so fast and work on so much at one time.
We’ve been working on things like the game ending, credits, the front-end and the announce teaser trailer video. Once this video is ready, we’ll properly announce the project and make our store pages live! THEN we’ll let in the first wave of beta testers…
Here’s a new little glimpse of something else we’ve been working on via iDGi-1:
VR INTERACTIVE CINEMA Streamer List of 21
Calling all VR game streamers!
We are now actively looking for no more than 21 folks who are into streaming VR games, with the only requirement being that said streamer must have an audience of at least 100 subscribers. A mixed reality setup using Liv would be ideal!
Everyone chosen will be gifted a DEMO copy of our VR INTERACTIVE CINEMA game. Streamers will get the first chance to put on a performance for their audience unlike any they’ve ever done (we promise!). You will also be the first to experience what we hope will be seen as a brand new genre of VR game.
Twitch streamers will get the chance to play with our game’s unique Twitch integration that we’ve taken to calling “Breaking The Fifth Wall”.
Hop into our Discord and let us know if you are a VR game steamer (Meta Quest 2 and/or PCVR), or know someone that may be interested. Or, perhaps reach out to your favourite streamer and plead with them to get on our list. ;-)
To be considered for the “VR INTERACTIVE CINEMA Streamer List of 21”, simply shoot an email to support@interdimensionalgames.com with the subject line “VR INTERACTIVE CINEMA Streamer List of 21”. Please include in your email a link to your channel where you do VR streaming (Twitch page, YouTube channel, etc).
So what exactly IS VR Interactive Cinema, you ask? Use your imagination and you just might not be too far off…
Once again until next month, it’s back to the dev caves with us!
Namaste,
--iDGi
“War, except in self-defense, is a failure of moral imagination”
– Bill Moyers