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The little-known game I'm anticipating almost as much as T:ToN

I backed a project called "A House of Many Doors" a while ago on Kickstarter, and it now has a "Coming Soon" store page on Steam. This only matters because, unlike the normal case where every KS update seems like a "don't forget us please" marketing spiel, the ones on this have been insights into the author's ideas for how the game will be different and why he is making it. The backer update that accompanied the announcement about the Steam page is a great example, and I think maybe other folks might find it as intriguing as I do:

"Without going too much into spoiler territory, the way to advance the main quest is by exploration itself. You need to gather a resource called 'Apprehensions,' representing your knowledge of the House and all its secrets and oddities. You can collect Apprehensions by writing poetry, discovering new locations, or completing side-quests.

(Why did I choose this design? Well, I was fed up of the thing you get in most open-world RPGs, where in order to enjoy all the side-content you have to ignore the main story entirely. Why not advance the main story by enjoying the side-stuff?)

Apprehensions can be spent on two things: Improving your stats, and advancing the main quest. A player who knows they want to play for 60-70 hours can spend mostly on the former. If you're in a hurry to finish, focus all your spending on the latter. High stats are nice, but aren't a necessity for reaching any of the endings.

The more you discover about the House and the more Apprehensions you collect... The more attention you will attract, from entities far older and more powerful than you. They will come to you in dreams. They offer you the impossible: an escape from the House. It does not come without price."

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