PAGAN: Autogeny
A downloadable nightmare realm for Windows
PAGAN: AUTOGENY
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.
PAGAN: Autogeny is an experimental first person open world role playing game set in the digital ruins of a largely abandoned MMORPG. It is heavily inspired by long-forgotten bargain-bin 1990s adventure games, and by a general ethos of user-hostile design. Features include:
> Over 100 acres of lovingly handcrafted playable space
> An increasingly esoteric series of secret endings
> Five major zones + a litany of hidden areas
> Four idiosyncratic repeatable boss fights
> Over 7000 possible gear combinations
> Five strange and eldritch skills
> Very cursed gender_magick()
PAGAN: Autogeny is an exercise in aesthetic maximalism — In other words, it's pretty big, at least by normal altGame standards. A full adventure will take several hours, but you can return to spawn at any point to save and exit. The game also autosaves when passing through doors, in case you have to run off in a hurry.
Good luck, wayfarer, and God Speed.
Status | Released |
Platforms | Windows |
Rating | Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars (168 total ratings) |
Author | OLEANDER GARDEN |
Genre | Role Playing |
Made with | Adobe Photoshop, Unity, Audacity |
Tags | Altgame, artgame, Atmospheric, Experimental, Female Protagonist, Horror, LGBT, Lo-fi, Queer, Retro |
Average session | About an hour |
Languages | English |
Inputs | Keyboard, Mouse |
Accessibility | Subtitles |
Purchase
In order to download this nightmare realm you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $6.66 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Development log
- [Vivian] Logs Off — Harlequin Fair Demo Out NowMar 11, 2021
- Patch 1.3 - Final Major UpdateSep 07, 2019
- 1.2 ReleaseAug 16, 2019
Comments
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After finishing this game and getting the true ending, I can honestly say I am speechless. This has been one of the most unnerving and unsettling yet strangely charming experiences I have ever played.
Everything from the inconsistent time periods to the music that sounds almost like it is decaying as you are listening to it gives off this feeling of unease and lostness.
This game doesn't explain much if anything about itself. You are thrown into the deep end at the very start without a clue of what's going on and let loose to roam free and 'explore'. And after hours, when you are at the deepest point, when you are the most confused and desperate for answers, that is when it pulls the curtains in a really cryptic fashion.
Honestly I do not yet understand the full picture of what this game is all about, all I know is that I walked away from this project with a renewed passion and a lot deeper appreciation for the horror genre as a whole. I think it's safe to say I won't be forgetting this experience any time soon.
(By the way, I cannot be the only one that thought of Evangelion with the whole glowing cross in the sky event)I can confidently say that I have NO IDEA what’s going on in this game, and I loved every moment of it. Pretty sure there’s still way more to find, but I’m taking a break to process what I’ve been through
i had a dream about this game the other night. safe to say its really really good and i will come back and find tarot 0 one day
just finished my "true" ending-
wow. just. incredible. transgender !! fuck yeah!
the coda poem is beautiful. one day i would like to revisit this game and find tarot 0 (ive done as i was told by the hints, and simply couldnt find anything)...but for now, im finished. everybody needs to play weird ass ambient itchio horror games. this one is one of the best!
Have you had any luck finding the Fool?
ohh, not yet! i havent been back on this game for a while. i never revisited it like i wanted to. but i thought about it the other day! maybe this is my push to get back to it
mac capability?
Downloaded both versions about a month ago, and neither will run... they'll get about as far as the loading/logging in screen, make the custom cursor show up, and if I'm lucky they'll get to a black screen afterwards with some ambience(?). But after that? Trying to do pretty much anything, full screen or windowed? Either I'm forced to force quit through task manager because it won't respond, or I'm prompted to close it by Windows because the program isn't responding. No from-game error messages popped up to give me a lead as to why it does this. A real shame, because this game seems so neat! I'd only hope that if I can ever get it running, that it doesn't lag (as many larger or more ambitious Unity games-- even low-poly ones-- do on my weak little old computer... but at least they get past the first screen and attempt to stutter forth).
Attempted to run both versions available to download on a 64bit HP Windows 10 PC that hasn't been optimized as a fancy gaming PC. Neither was playable, I don't know if it's a hardware incompatibility issue or what. Haven't tried the Steam version, got these in a bundle.
personally i think walking around aimlessly has alot of appeal to it i lvoe the atmosphere of this game :-)
I spent a lot of time in this game, and overall felt really unsatisfied at the end. I had to ask a reddit user from a 6 month old thread to get the 'true' ending and it overall was a frustrating, confusing mess. Maybe I just need a 2 hour youtube video essay to 'understand' these deeper concepts. Like walking down a brown corridor for 5 minutes and then a black void for another 3. Other than that, it was a really intriguing game that had some great atmosphere and insanely tense moments. Even though it doesn't really feel like a dead MMO, it's a very captivating experience with an interesting aesthetic. I loved the puzzle solving and boundary breaking during some parts, it felt really rewarding.
I've gone to registry editor and unfortunately Software\OleanderGarden\Pagan3 doesn't exist. I really need the giant beetle to drop the sun card lol. Any advice would be appreciated! <3
Whoops nevermind I found a fix. The issue was that I was using the spear and was inside the beetle when I killed it, then the card would never drop. Killing the beetle at range with the shotgun made the card drop :)
This game has been a really interesting experience. I really do like the feeling of liminal spaces and exploring the worlds of a "dying" game really fills that.
I'm still confused on the events that occur on the game, but currently I've only seen one of the endings.
A really interesting game. Definitely feels like a hidden gem.
How do I reset my save? Where are saves stored? I seem to have uninstalled the game and still have my old save based on the equipment I start with.
Some would say an "inverted" mouse-look is the most pagan control scheme of all..,
There are games which are works of art and this one is one of them
This was a really interesting game! Having no idea what you're doing and slowly figuring out all the systems was really fun!
Hi, is there a way to get in touch with you in private form? I'd like to propose you something for a blog I write for. It seems like these comment sections are the only way to contact you.
Hope to hear from you soon,
Mattia.
Message @void_hyacinth on twitter, that'd probably be easiest; alt. email oleandergarden0@gmail.com, but I'm bad about checking that, lol. Thanks!
i have very low horror tolerance so i didn't get very far until this became too creepy for me, but the concept itself is one of the most creative things i've seen, and i want another million games about it. maybe a non-horror sequel for the cowards in the crowd devs???? 😂
a list of creepy things and their k.o. power:
- sound. any sound. EVERY sound was very much uh, present (10/10 k.o.)
- this 2d lady who told me some creepy shit expecting me to move on with my life (11/10 k.o.)
- big beetle friend whom i thought was a reprieve from the creepiness but no, apparently in this game you kill your friends (6/10 k.o., i still felt kinship)
- if i hear the word martyr one more time (11/10 k.o. WHO IS SHE)
- SKY LOUD!!!!!!?? (9000/10 k.o., i saw this part in review video and could only be glad i wasn't experiencing it firsthand)
i guess congratulations for creating what was decidedly an experience. you probably deserve the mild cult following that seems to be going on
Here are my comments:
+ great use of ambient sound, top tier
+ levels are great, right size, feel great
+ the sloppy mouselook is terrific
0 doesn't seem to fit the description on itch - there really weren't any "early MMOs" that look or feel like this
- Inability to adjust brightness may make game inaccessible, depending on monitor setup and vision needs of the player
- itch says you can just walk back to the exit, but that's sometimes quite a long way. a quit-without-saving-further option would be helpful. also the itch page is a bit inaccurate, there are many doors you can walk through that do not save the game
Best wishes, this game is really cool.
This is one of the most fascinating games I've ever played. I can't believe it's as obscure as it is; more people really should be talking about this. 10/10 atmosphere, the entire world post-martyr was oppressively unnerving and uncomfortable in the best way possible.
Checking in with another Scarab Lord not dropping the card issue. I fixed it with regedit, but I figured it'd be worth mentioning that he dropped it just fine on my first playthrough, I only encountered the bug on my second. Not sure if that'll help narrow down what's causing it but hope it does!
I just killed it and it didn't drop a card.
EDIT: Killing it with something like the spear while near it makes the card not appear for me. Using shotgun instead worked.
I'd love, love, love to play this game, been holding off on watching a let's play for forever, but I have the same issues as others where I get through the intro screen and then it stops responding :( and I even have 12 GB of RAM! I'm guessing my laptop's CPU is too weak or something? This is with both the 32 and 64 bit versions.
edit: worked itself out! If I wait long enough (like, 10-15 min or so) the game loads and runs smoothly. Unfortunately, now I'm dealing with a crash (despite using the 64 bit version) that seems to happen every time I approach the temple across from the marsh tavern, where the audio cues continue as normal but the screen is frozen. Everything else is enthralling! Although just to check, [spoilers] is it intentional that I retain my inventory whenever I quit and come back, even though pickups respawn?
Got this through the big bundle, finally got around to playing it and have to say how much I love this game. The atmosphere, the vibe, it's absolutely spot on. Do wish the whole 'dead, abandoned MMO' vibe was just a little stronger, but what was present was fantastic, and the rest of the game really is one of the best of the admittedly niche "lo-fi abandonware horror game" genre I've ever seen. It makes me wish I wasn't such a wuss - I played this on stream for some friends but I'm genuinely too embarrassed to share the VoD because it scared me SO badly. I ended up quitting out JUST before getting the (first?) ending, and then ashamedly sought out other ways to see the rest of the endings. But there's still this slight hook in the back of my skull telling me to go back and see what I missed, because I KNOW I missed something. several things. and with a criminally low amount of info out there on this game, it almost feels like my duty to go back and document it! maybe with the lights on.
oh and one last possible gripe that could just be me overlooking something: do you lose any speed bonuses when you reach the end-game? It felt like I was slowed down, which def made it scarier but also felt a little lame.
thank you so much for this little game. I can't wait to try out your others.
as an aside, just in case anyone's reading this later down the line and is hesitant like I was: There aren't any moments I'd consider outright jumpscares (of the 'sudden shock image with loud noise' variety) but the whole game past a point has this incredibly tense pre-jumpscare vibe where you're afraid to walk round the next corner. Someone did point out to me that me viewing it as a horror game first did probably make it scarier, but if you're easily frightened or anxious know that this will play on that massively. It'll be you making yourself scared, which IMO is the best kind of horror.
(accidentally deleted this, so sorry for reposting)
I'm a fan. Gendermagic is my favorite spec.
I played this game once, now i got constant nosebleeds everytime when i take a shower and every electronic device in my house is haunted and speak to me in riddles.10/10
When I start the game I can't see more than a foot in front of the character. Everything is totally white until I get right up in front of something. At first I thought it was deliberate, but looking at stills from the game, it isn't supposed to be this foggy. Has anyone else had this problem?
Edit: Having the same problem with PAGAN: Technopolis
Huh, this is exceedingly strange — especially that it's happening in both games. If you don't mind me asking, what sort of GPU do you have? The third party lighting library I used for the PAGAN games sometimes has serious issues on lower power GPUs (which is a big part of the reason I stopped using it when I started working on HEXCRAFT).
I'm playing the games in Bootcamp on an older Macbook, so maybe the integrated graphics card is the issue. It's an Intel HD Graphics 4000 1536 MB. Thanks for responding so quickly, sorry I wasn't as prompt. Loved the little bit I got through in Pagan 3 in spite of the graphics issue, congrats on releasing HEXCRAFT :)
hm every time i launch it it stalls out and uses alot of my cpu while logging in. anyone know how to fix it? i tried both versions
Why does the AppData/LocalLow/OleanderGarden/Pagan3/Unity folder include Analytics, along with a configuration file that asserts that the user has not opted out?
The user is never given any opportunity to opt out, so it ought to be assumed that the user has not in fact consented to analytics and tracking. Particularly under the EU.
Perhaps this was an oversight and it isn't actually active, but either way it should set correctly or removed.
Oops - had to look into this to figure out what it was. It's not sending any data that /I/ can see: (my end of) the unity analytics system doesn't even know the game exists. But unity (the company) seems to be collecting hardware data (for their own records, I presume) on all games by default — which I agree is sketchy as fuck. I've manually disabled everything I can find / find out about for future projects, and will do likewise with Autogeny if there's another patch.
Thanks for spotting that; I'm sorry I didn't catch it earlier.
[SCROLL DOWN FOR PSYCHOSIS TW]
really enjoying this!!!!
I wish there was an ingame item stat thing of some sort. I mostly just can't for the life of me figure out what the star card is doing for me.never mind, I'm just unobservant. this is so cool, I am seriously in love with it. I can't tell if I feel like it needs something or if that's just me wishing for a 300 hour AAA version of what the game represents. it reminds me of virtual hydlide in terms of how it handles both visual design and lore/storytelling. I friggin love it. for anyone else reading this, this guy on reddit has done some fantastic posts about this game. and videos, but I haven't watched those yet because I wanna toy with the game more first.I have psychosis, so I wanted to give my fellow psychotic gamers a little heads up. this game can be very discordant in sound and unnerving in image. in one bit, a dark figure emerges from a dark corner as you approach (you will have plenty of time to react). the general tone is creeping discomfort. the game attempts to seem like it is haunted by simulating having power beyond the boundaries of gameplay (closing out, referencing the nature of reality, etc). some visual glitching is used for effect. the plot vaguely centers on cults, gods, and demons. that said, I SUPER recommend this!
Which is it, are you warning psychotics away from your comment or writing it for them?
writing it for them! this is a fantastic game, but it can be disturbing in a way that ruins the rest of your day if you're psychotic and not aware of what sort of things might happen
The sound design on this is exceedingly well done. It almost felt custom-tailored to me as it gave me almost nauseating vibes of oppressive chills through audio alone.
I'm really surprised this game isn't talked about more. A game hasn't made me feel so unnerved in a very long time.
I just finished my playthrough. I pushed through the ending, followed a path, and found my inventory wiped... I don't know that I have it in me to play again to get back to my spot, so I guess I'm done. (I'm also one of the .1% who can't get a Sun card to drop)
I have mixed feelings. There is a mystery to this game, but I wasn't compelled to discover the mystery. The game doesn't put any sort of carrot on a string, and it is just about as user hostile as it promises on the cover. Once you are playing, have created your own investment, and get immersed, then it's a treasure. And then you get unceremoniously ejected. It's a weird, wild ride. Reminds me of Kairo.
I went back. It was itching at me. I got what I thought I wanted, but I think I've found something sinister instead.
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.