Hi researchers, how is going your adventure with Prof. Penderghast?
For all of you, we have worked on a new patch.
With the last update, it was introduced the possibility, before starting a new game, to choose whether to skip the prologue and immediately enter into the heart of the game,
or discover the whole story of Penderghast from the beginning by playing the prologue.
Ghostly Matter: new patch released 14/09/2018
Here we are finally with a new update. With this patch, we have solved some small bugs problems that players with a careful eye will have surely noticed:
-Miscellaneous translation errors.
-Some texts were not placed correctly.
-Some enemies in the area of the upper floors remained invisible even with the polterscope on.
-The enchanted coffer placed in the level of the upper floors could not be opened.
Have a ghostly adventure!
Ghostly Matter: List of Weapons
How does your adventure go with Dr. Penderghast?
Fighting aganist zombies, monsters and demons can be a difficult job, but not impossible when you have the right weapon in your hands.
Here is a brief description of all the weapons you can find inside Ghostly Matter, use them well depending on the situation, but remember: nothing helps more than a good shot!
Here is the list that every monster hunter should have.
Polterblast: not bad to start making some undead, very useful for ghosts. Train well with this weapon and then move on to heavy artillery!
Flamethrower: do you like the flambé of demons? So this is the perfect weapon to warm up the situation.
Laser Gun: similar to that used by Ghostbusters, with only one difference: Ghostly Matter doesn't take prisoners...
Teaser: the best version of Laser Gun, with greater damage to ghosts and undeads.
Plasma Rifle: when you get this weapon there is nothing that can make you afraid. Shoot and destroy any entity in a few strokes.
Sonic Cannon: the top of the top, now even the demons have to be scared!
Interview with the author of Ghostly Matter: Ivan Porrini
• Hello Ivan, congratulations for the release of your first game. How do you feel after this long work?
A total liberation and an incredible satisfaction, for me it all started as a trial, the idea of creating a game from scratch had always fascinated me. Over time, the project has become something bigger and more structured.
Compared to the beginning, things were becoming more complicated, but it was a great challenge for me.
• Three years ago you were a novice developer, tell us a little about the challenges you had to face to complete the project.
Being a graph, surely the part of programming was the most difficult because initially I did not know the engine, so I had to learn how it worked first of all. The engine is called Construct 2.
In general, the story was also very complex, both because I was not going to tell something trivial, so I tried as much as possible to be profound, both because it was very difficult to hold the reins of a narrative and at the same time establish how it would be carried out on the level of the game.
• Let's talk a bit about the game: living dead, ghosts and scientists with balls ready to run all the way to Scotland on a Mustang. This is a game with many references, fantasy, but also related to your life?
There are no particular references to my life, rather that I have included what I really liked, in fact the references we find take us back to horror movies, obviously to some historical videogames of the past, but also to some characters from the world of cinema or music.
• Why a Metroidvania?
Simply because it's my favorite genre.
• Do you have any other project in your mind? Can you anticipate a little something? Come on, we're sure you have some other hidden idea in a secret crypt, inside a well-sealed treasure chest ... Do not make us find the key.
Yes, I actually have at least three new projects in mind. I still do not know which of the three I will work on, but they will certainly be on the style of Ghostly Matter. In my free time I'm working on a game set in the Far West, with shootings and stuff like that.
On the other hand I would have the desire to carry on the horror genre. The next title could be called "Zombie Matter", which in fact I had thought before Ghostly Matter, set in a city infested with zombies, but with the novelty of the PG switch. And then finally there would be "Alien Matter", with this we could say ended the trilogy.
• Are you willing to enlarge your studio? Maybe ahead of the launch of a new title.
In reality I was only at the beginning and I assume that I will remain only in the future, but only for a matter of optimization of time and resources. It would be very difficult for me to think about splitting the work or setting up a new line of work.
I feel more organized in this way, thus avoiding unnecessary waste of time with the bureaucracy and things like this.
• How was this relationship established between you and Milestone, your publisher?
Milestone was interested in the development of the indie games at that time, but still had nothing definite. By pure chance one day I met a person from Milestone who I talked about about the project. Let's say it was immediately appreciated, indeed it was he who stimulated me to conclude the project.
so the company would have wanted to invest in the publishing of the indies and this, in a sense, I would have been the trailblazer.
Ghostly Matter: new patch released 20/07/2018
A new update has been released to solve some problems encountered in some points of the game.
Here is the list of the most important fixed bugs:
- Bug block in the "black lodge" area: after talking to the visionary the character was no longer able to interact with the objects of the environment or open doors.
- Bug block in the area of the upper floors: at this point, once passed a door located on the upper floors of the house, the game went into a black screen with the inability to continue.
- Correct translation error ING and FRA relative to closed doors unlockable with simple keys.
- Correct error that allowed, by loading a saved game, to use the viewer in the prologue even before having collected it.
Tuning: chance of spawning objects from enemies reduced to 25%
- Enigma of the scale - sometimes it was possible to repeat it endless times even after having solved it,
other times the player could not repeat it after getting it wrong, if it went out and returned to the room
- Fixed the bug that damages the save files, when saving the game in the rescue area located near the church.
- Fixed bugs on various ports in the last scenario.
- Various minor bug fixes
Ghostly Matter Now Available
A dangerous mystery, an adventure full of twists within a suggestive setting.
Ghostly Matter is finally available for all those who wish to try their hand at this indie metroidvania that winks at the great works of 80s pop culture and the famous Italian horror genre in the 60s.
The game ties, with great sensitibity, a well-established style of play, exciting and sometimes innovative, with a series of references to the great titles of the past. The references contained in Ghostly Matter are therefore multiple. Dropping into the shoes of Dr. Penderghast will be, at least for the most nostalgic, like going back a few years, and relive those old emotions aroused by some great titles such as Castelvania, Medievil, Zelda and Faxanadu.
Prepare yourself to face fun challenges and collect a large number of Items useful to solve the mystery that afflicts the Blackwood mansion!
ːsteamboredː Over 600 rooms
ːsteammockingː More than 40 enemies
ːsteamsadː Lots of items to discover
ːsteamfacepalmː Fully customizable CRT filter
ːsteamhappyː An open world map that can be freely explored
Ghostly Matter, more than an Indie game.
Ghostly Matter is a one-man show. Ivan Porrini designed, created and developed this Indie gem all by himself, in a timespan of three years.
The "roots" of Ghostly Matter go right back to just after Ivan finished studying Illustration at IED Milan. His abilities in the field of graphic design combined with his great passion for videogames; particularly older titles such as Resident Evil, Faxanadu, Medievil, Zelda, Battletoads, Baldur's Gate and Castlevania. Alternating his academic life with work, Ivan started thinking about creating a videogame, initially weighing up the idea of recruiting other specialists and creating a studio. After looking further into it, he realized that the only skill he was lacking to proceed with development was programming, so he took three months to get familiar with the engine that was most suitable for his needs. The three following years were entirely dedicated to the creation of the game, which finally culminated with its release in collaboration with Milestone.
The game will be out mid-July on Steam only, and we all can't wait for you guys to try it!
