This seems interesting, but the graphics quality... everything is so pixelated, and outdoors view is so extremely limited. The lack of any sort of menu, or much for UI in general. This game has potential, but needs improvements in a number of areas before I'd consider it playable.
Hi, is there a settings menu?? I can't figure out how to bring one up if it exists & my mouse sensitivity for this bad boy is wayyyyyy high. Also, I don't know how to save the game? Or leave it
I can't get it to work. It loads the start up screen, then the cursor and music changes, but nothing happens after and if i click or anything it gives me a "not responding" error. Which hums me out cuz this looks like such a lovely game :(
I tried installing the 64 bit one, and the same thing happens, but now it's a completely black screen with the new mouse cursor so I'm assuming it's me not having enough RAM or something
Was looking for games like this one on itch.io, but didn't expect a project of this scale to be so overlooked.
As a really big fan of cryptids and abandonware, I completed the entire PAGAN trilogy in one breath. This is a masterwork in game design that also serves an artistic vision. A bit demanding, but well worth it.
I totally loved it, this game is amazing and the concept is so freaking cool (like, this might be one of my favorite games ever). I got almost all the cards except the Death, the Devil and Tarot 0 (I think I know where to find this one though) but I have no clue what the ones with no description do (except for the Moon) or what the labour vouchers are for :/
Also, I'm curious to know what the Coda text is from.
The npc in front says that he is unarmored, so no piercing damage is needed. He is also not a ghost. If you check out the manual.pdf in the install folder you should be able to take it from there
the scarab lord takes time, patience and as much strength as you can get according to the stats listed in the manual pdf. a circle strafing also helped me, and backing off and focusing on dodging when you're getting low on health.
Yea so I got it from the bundle and this game is real fucking cool. And smart. And harrowing. And it's got the gender feels. I'm totally on board with this.
Only a bit sad that after finding the Coda my save game got wiped and all got reset. I wanted to go back and find Judgement (no clue where that is) and Tarot 0 (I have a decent idea where to find it after doing a lil internet research), but I don't feel like starting all over so I won't see that for now. But anyways, I was completely glued to the screen for the most of today.
In conclusion, this game is awesome! Big trans love to the developer!
I'm only an hour in, and I'm loving this <3 It merges together the creepiness of an abandoned place, well-placed music and sound effects, and retro graphics for an overall uncanny and unsettling experience. The atmosphere reminds me a lot of one of my favorite creepypastas, Jvk.esp, which is about a cursed Morrowind mod.
Also I probably shoulda read the manual. Oops. That might have made that past hour somewhat easier. Still haven't managed to beat any of the bosses...
I am enamored with this game. I'm currently zipping around with the shotgun, the ranger cloak, the chariot, and the devil and having loads of fun!
I do have a couple of questions that have been driving my crazy:
What are the labor vouchers for? I haven't found a use for them as of yet.
Will we ever get effect explanations for the tarot cards listed as [???] (Devil, Tower, etc.) I figured out that Devil adds speed and (I think) strength.
I have my answers. I will not divulge the information unless you want me to
Absolutely lovely game, I love the atmosphere, and I don't mind the combat much.
I can't beat the shaman boss though - it feels like I keep getting one shot? I've tried stacking faith and pierce but I just can't damage him fast enough before a bunch of his projectiles build up and kill me :(
is the shaman the one underneath the food court? trying to puzzle that one out myself. while I'm here, was it intentional to make the entrance to that area where the girls restroom should be? :)
Press [I] to open your inventory. Click to select an item and click again to move it; if it's equipable, equip it by moving it into the relevant equipment slot
i've tried both versions but the game seems to crash on the first Plaza 96 screen - the "Logging In" text flashes a handful of times at the bottom, then stops, the sound changes and the cursor appears but the game won't load any further. i get a "not responding" windows message if i click at all. i'm super bummed - must be something on my end!
I'm having the exact same problem. CPU usage skyrockets from 14% to 100% on startup. I have a 64 bit OS with 16 GB of memory. Processor is Intel Core i7-5600U.
Love the atmosphere so far, game froze when I got to the factory though. Could still hear it and the cursor changed when I switch to my items menu, but the screen stayed frozen in place so had to close. Will try again another day!
Oh dear! It should have saved as you went through the door, so hopefully you haven't lost much progress. Might want to give the 64 bit version a try; it seems to solve crashing issues.
Goddamn I love this game, but I'm having trouble figuring out what all the tarot cards do! This game rules, it's probably the best of the crop of early-3D graphics reminiscent games that have come up in recent years. I can't wait to see what you follow this up with!
It's just struck me that I'm yet to leave a comment here. Well. Let me fix that.
PAGAN: Autogeny is undoubtedly my favourite game of 2019. Many one-developer games fail as they are either too ambitious, or too safe. Autogeny, as well as the two other PAGAN games, are exceptions to this. These games are the result of genuine passion and artistry; Oleander Garden utilises every aspect of the games - audio, gameplay, narrative, graphics etc. - to create a wonderfully focussed and thought-provoking experience.
I didn't expect much going into Autogeny - there had been no significant publicity for it and the description was quite vague - and I am so glad that this was the case. Unravelling the story and meaning of the series has been one of the most fulfilling experiences I've had in my two decades of gaming. On top of this, it exposed me to a world view that I had not really considered before. I won't say what that is - I fully recommend that whoever reads this buys and plays the game for themselves. It may be confusing at times, and you may have to look for help online, but that's all part of this game's charm.
"Games as art" is not as much of a controversial subject as it once was, but people still misuse the idea. Many think that pure aesthetic, narrative, or tactile quality is what makes games art - but that doesn't cover the most important elements: meaning, structure, and intent.
PAGAN isn't the best looking series out there, but it's not meant to be. It doesn't have the most dramatic or emotional story - hell, at times it feels like there is no story - but its one that will stick with you once you understand it. It certainly doesn't have the most satisfying gameplay, but that works in its favour. PAGAN is everything PAGAN needs to be, and I'd never have it any other way.
Do yourself a favour - buy this game. Play Technopolis and Emporium. Write your own theories. Realise what games can be.
"A thousand worlds surround our own, composed of bits and bytes. When they die, where do they go; what secrets do they hide?
Stumble ye, wayfarer, through the wreckage of a dead MMO."
Hello! This game has a fascinating coherency to it and I'm really enjoying it. I did have a question, I've killed the scarab lord a few times without them ever dropping a card, is that a bug or am I just failing to fill a condition?
Hmm, I've had one other person report this bug, and can't figure out what to make of it; I can't replicate it, and 99% of players don't seem to run into it either. Sorry! I'll keep looking into the issue. In the mean time, if you're comfortable using reg edit, you can manually edit the card into your inventory:
1. Open reg edit, and navigate to Software\OleanderGarden\Pagan3
2. Edit the inventory value, adding the string "tarot19" between two adjacent commas (this value is just a list of items by name, separated by commas, so it's hopefully not as opaque as it sounds
3. Save, and restart the game
Hope that works for you! Apologies for the inconvenience—this is proving a very strange bug to track down.
This seems to be a 1/100 players sort of bug. I have no idea what causes it, and can't seem to reproduce it; as far as I can tell, it's a problem with the way this version of unity runs on particular systems.
I think editing the card into your inventory manually (following the above instructions) is your best bet for now. If I still can't locate the bug, I might make a patcher that adds the card to your inventory while I'm putting together a demo for IGF. It would just do the same thing as a manual inventory edit, though.
Sincere apologies for the inconvenience—hate to be one of those "here's an arcane registry hack to fix your issue" devs.
I love and am obsessed with this game and the PAGAN series. Still trying to figure out that secret ending ;( I'll be looking out for your future projects!
Thanks! Desert theme is from here, used under CC - By Attribution. The only other music is the intro/portrait theme, which is J.S. Bach's /Komm, süßer Tod/ played on synthesizers at double speed, which I posted here.
Is it too soon to ask for a little light hinting for, say, Tarot 0? Maybe an area I should devote more time to or a card combo I should experiment with? Or is it the early 90s all over again where I just have to hope a kid at school figured it out ;)
Well, I've now humped every wall in Plaza96 about 26 times! I have so far found a factory with no collision and that's about it. I feel bad that the Martyr has to watch this
← Return to nightmare realm
Comments
Log in with itch.io to leave a comment.
Please add a settings menu...
This seems interesting, but the graphics quality... everything is so pixelated, and outdoors view is so extremely limited. The lack of any sort of menu, or much for UI in general. This game has potential, but needs improvements in a number of areas before I'd consider it playable.
I have the feeling that the bad graphics quality was an artistic decision and is bad on purpose. To me it absolutely adds to the mood of the game.
Hi, is there a settings menu?? I can't figure out how to bring one up if it exists & my mouse sensitivity for this bad boy is wayyyyyy high. Also, I don't know how to save the game? Or leave it
You save by going through doors or returning to the spawn point. You can exit by interacting with the spawn point or just closing the game manually.
I can't get it to work. It loads the start up screen, then the cursor and music changes, but nothing happens after and if i click or anything it gives me a "not responding" error. Which hums me out cuz this looks like such a lovely game :(
I tried installing the 64 bit one, and the same thing happens, but now it's a completely black screen with the new mouse cursor so I'm assuming it's me not having enough RAM or something
Was looking for games like this one on itch.io, but didn't expect a project of this scale to be so overlooked.
As a really big fan of cryptids and abandonware, I completed the entire PAGAN trilogy in one breath. This is a masterwork in game design that also serves an artistic vision. A bit demanding, but well worth it.
I really enjoy this game! It's very creepy and esoteric, and that's a great big part of the charm of this game.
Having played it to its end, I can say that I think it's worth its weight.
Tried both 32 bit and 64 bit, crashes on startup every time
Is this a scary game? I'm not very good with those.
most likely. seems like there aren't any jumpscares though. just ambience.
Scary, no. Creepy? Could be.
It's scary through the enviroment, but no jumpscares in it, just some nice mood.
I found at least one jump scare.
I totally loved it, this game is amazing and the concept is so freaking cool (like, this might be one of my favorite games ever). I got almost all the cards except the Death, the Devil and Tarot 0 (I think I know where to find this one though) but I have no clue what the ones with no description do (except for the Moon) or what the labour vouchers are for :/
Also, I'm curious to know what the Coda text is from.
Thanks! I wrote the coda text, lol
Wow, it really gave me some obscure Victorian poem vibes.
good great atmosphere.
for dev: is there a soundtrack that can be downloaded, or would you be considering it?
uhhh... i need help beating the scarab lord
edit: i beat it guys, but i won't tell you more than this: stack stats
The npc in front says that he is unarmored, so no piercing damage is needed. He is also not a ghost. If you check out the manual.pdf in the install folder you should be able to take it from there
the scarab lord takes time, patience and as much strength as you can get according to the stats listed in the manual pdf. a circle strafing also helped me, and backing off and focusing on dodging when you're getting low on health.
Hi! Is there a way to control mouse sensitivity? The default is super duper extra high with my machine.
Yea so I got it from the bundle and this game is real fucking cool. And smart. And harrowing. And it's got the gender feels. I'm totally on board with this.
Only a bit sad that after finding the Coda my save game got wiped and all got reset. I wanted to go back and find Judgement (no clue where that is) and Tarot 0 (I have a decent idea where to find it after doing a lil internet research), but I don't feel like starting all over so I won't see that for now. But anyways, I was completely glued to the screen for the most of today.
In conclusion, this game is awesome! Big trans love to the developer!
(Oh but read the manual.pdf everyone ^^)
I'm only an hour in, and I'm loving this <3 It merges together the creepiness of an abandoned place, well-placed music and sound effects, and retro graphics for an overall uncanny and unsettling experience. The atmosphere reminds me a lot of one of my favorite creepypastas, Jvk.esp, which is about a cursed Morrowind mod.
Also I probably shoulda read the manual. Oops. That might have made that past hour somewhat easier. Still haven't managed to beat any of the bosses...
"LGBT" yeah this is def a game made by someone who isn't straight
wat this is means?
Like, the acronym? LGBT stands for lesbian/gay/bi/trans, and the comment was referring to the blatant queer energy the game posesses ;)
it o o z e s gay
ah yess mucc queer energy i feal its nd lobe its:)
I am enamored with this game. I'm currently zipping around with the shotgun, the ranger cloak, the chariot, and the devil and having loads of fun!
I do have a couple of questions that have been driving my crazy:What are the labor vouchers for? I haven't found a use for them as of yet.Will we ever get effect explanations for the tarot cards listed as [???] (Devil, Tower, etc.) I figured out that Devil adds speed and (I think) strength.I have my answers. I will not divulge the information unless you want me to
I want you to, I legit can only find one ending and it seems like theres so much depth to this story
Absolutely lovely game, I love the atmosphere, and I don't mind the combat much.
I can't beat the shaman boss though - it feels like I keep getting one shot? I've tried stacking faith and pierce but I just can't damage him fast enough before a bunch of his projectiles build up and kill me :(
The shaman isn't a ghost ;)
Might also want to try increasing your speed or armour
(and thanks! Glad you like it)
is the shaman the one underneath the food court? trying to puzzle that one out myself. while I'm here, was it intentional to make the entrance to that area where the girls restroom should be? :)
A month later but... I don't think you noticed that the only toilet area is unisex.
Played about 20 minutes so far and I'm loving the atmosphere! I didn't realize there were actually enemies that could hurt you so I uh.... died.
How do you use items?
Press [I] to open your inventory. Click to select an item and click again to move it; if it's equipable, equip it by moving it into the relevant equipment slot
Hey. I've just started the game and I'm stuck moving diagonally forward and to the left. Is this a bug or just a "user-hostile" thing?
Huh - that's a new one. Are the controls in the launcher set to WASD?
Really cool game! Looking forward to whats next.
i've tried both versions but the game seems to crash on the first Plaza 96 screen - the "Logging In" text flashes a handful of times at the bottom, then stops, the sound changes and the cursor appears but the game won't load any further. i get a "not responding" windows message if i click at all. i'm super bummed - must be something on my end!
Oh, sorry to hear that! What are your system specs, if you don't mind me asking? You might be running out of RAM
I'm having the exact same problem. CPU usage skyrockets from 14% to 100% on startup. I have a 64 bit OS with 16 GB of memory. Processor is Intel Core i7-5600U.
*16 GB ram, not memory.
It loaded after waiting around for several minutes, I'm in now.
You fool, ram IS memory xD
RAM is memory. Disk storage space is not memory. You said the right thing.
i have the exact problem. if you just wait a few minutes for some reason it should suddenly enter the game
Love the atmosphere so far, game froze when I got to the factory though. Could still hear it and the cursor changed when I switch to my items menu, but the screen stayed frozen in place so had to close. Will try again another day!
Oh dear! It should have saved as you went through the door, so hopefully you haven't lost much progress. Might want to give the 64 bit version a try; it seems to solve crashing issues.
Goddamn I love this game, but I'm having trouble figuring out what all the tarot cards do! This game rules, it's probably the best of the crop of early-3D graphics reminiscent games that have come up in recent years. I can't wait to see what you follow this up with!
ALSO HOW DO I BEAT THE SCARAB BOSS??
Check the install folder for the manual; that should help! <3
It's just struck me that I'm yet to leave a comment here. Well. Let me fix that.
PAGAN: Autogeny is undoubtedly my favourite game of 2019. Many one-developer games fail as they are either too ambitious, or too safe. Autogeny, as well as the two other PAGAN games, are exceptions to this. These games are the result of genuine passion and artistry; Oleander Garden utilises every aspect of the games - audio, gameplay, narrative, graphics etc. - to create a wonderfully focussed and thought-provoking experience.
I didn't expect much going into Autogeny - there had been no significant publicity for it and the description was quite vague - and I am so glad that this was the case. Unravelling the story and meaning of the series has been one of the most fulfilling experiences I've had in my two decades of gaming. On top of this, it exposed me to a world view that I had not really considered before. I won't say what that is - I fully recommend that whoever reads this buys and plays the game for themselves. It may be confusing at times, and you may have to look for help online, but that's all part of this game's charm.
"Games as art" is not as much of a controversial subject as it once was, but people still misuse the idea. Many think that pure aesthetic, narrative, or tactile quality is what makes games art - but that doesn't cover the most important elements: meaning, structure, and intent.
PAGAN isn't the best looking series out there, but it's not meant to be. It doesn't have the most dramatic or emotional story - hell, at times it feels like there is no story - but its one that will stick with you once you understand it. It certainly doesn't have the most satisfying gameplay, but that works in its favour. PAGAN is everything PAGAN needs to be, and I'd never have it any other way.
Do yourself a favour - buy this game. Play Technopolis and Emporium. Write your own theories. Realise what games can be.
"A thousand worlds surround our own, composed of bits and bytes. When they die, where do they go; what secrets do they hide?
Stumble ye, wayfarer, through the wreckage of a dead MMO."
Oh, wild? How'd you manage that? If things are just 'strange' or you get a message telling you to reboot / not to reboot, that's intentional!
Otherwise, if you're comfortable using reg edit, you can manually reset your save:
1. Open reg edit, and navigate to Software\OleanderGarden\Pagan3
2. Delete every value except "Default"
3. Save, and restart the game
Hope that helps!
There's possibly a loading bug while driving the car. I alt-tabbed while in windowed mode and the car never stopped. (Also great game)
this might be because of the stage of the game. if you're in the end game segment, the care will continue to go on forever. this seems to be intended
Hello! This game has a fascinating coherency to it and I'm really enjoying it. I did have a question, I've killed the scarab lord a few times without them ever dropping a card, is that a bug or am I just failing to fill a condition?
Hmm, I've had one other person report this bug, and can't figure out what to make of it; I can't replicate it, and 99% of players don't seem to run into it either. Sorry! I'll keep looking into the issue. In the mean time, if you're comfortable using reg edit, you can manually edit the card into your inventory:
1. Open reg edit, and navigate to Software\OleanderGarden\Pagan3
2. Edit the inventory value, adding the string "tarot19" between two adjacent commas (this value is just a list of items by name, separated by commas, so it's hopefully not as opaque as it sounds
3. Save, and restart the game
Hope that works for you! Apologies for the inconvenience—this is proving a very strange bug to track down.
I'll use regedit, thank you! Good luck tracking the tricky bastard down.
i also encountered this issue tonight during my playthrough, unfortunately. i have a VOD here where it happens at ~54:45
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/536700466
have you had any luck with figuring out a possible fix?
Oh dear!
This seems to be a 1/100 players sort of bug. I have no idea what causes it, and can't seem to reproduce it; as far as I can tell, it's a problem with the way this version of unity runs on particular systems.
I think editing the card into your inventory manually (following the above instructions) is your best bet for now. If I still can't locate the bug, I might make a patcher that adds the card to your inventory while I'm putting together a demo for IGF. It would just do the same thing as a manual inventory edit, though.
Sincere apologies for the inconvenience—hate to be one of those "here's an arcane registry hack to fix your issue" devs.
I appreciate the tip and hope it works out! Loving the experience otherwise, thanks for making this game
I love and am obsessed with this game and the PAGAN series. Still trying to figure out that secret ending ;( I'll be looking out for your future projects!
totally excellent game. anywhere i can get the music?
Thanks! Desert theme is from here, used under CC - By Attribution. The only other music is the intro/portrait theme, which is J.S. Bach's /Komm, süßer Tod/ played on synthesizers at double speed, which I posted here.
Because I am an absolute dumb_b*tch, patch 1.2 reintroduced bugs from version 1.0. Version 1.3 forthcoming in the next few hours! Apologies.Patch 1.3 out now!
Love you dumb b*tch
You should bring this bad boy to steam.
Bring this to Linux!
This is freaking me out. Kudos!
It’s only on PC? Aw man! 😢
Is it too soon to ask for a little light hinting for, say, Tarot 0? Maybe an area I should devote more time to or a card combo I should experiment with? Or is it the early 90s all over again where I just have to hope a kid at school figured it out ;)
Might want to look around and see who's conspicuously left standing once the martyr roams free - they ought to have a hint for you :)
Alt. wait for it to show up on GameFaqs in 3 years, for authentic 90s vibes.
Well, I've now humped every wall in Plaza96 about 26 times! I have so far found a factory with no collision and that's about it. I feel bad that the Martyr has to watch this
idk if it's just me but this doesn't seem to cooperate with the itch.io desktop app, I don't get the 'install' button.
not a huge deal though, I'm super excited to play it!!!
I'll look into this - thanks!
I can't tell if I won or not. If I find the Coda, is that the end?
I love that this is a game where I can't tell if a glitch is diagetic or not
Aha, yes - that's one of two "true" endings. A coda is the ending of a piece of music <3
The final ending is even harder to find, if you're ever inclined to revisit the game.
I love this game by the way. It's like playing nightmares I've had since I was a kid. Thanks for making it
Glad you like it! <3 <3 <3