The Flame in the Flood

Gameplay

The player character is a young girl named Scout. Her only companion is a dog called Aesop, who can sense danger and fetch supplies. Scout uses a raft to traverse a large river, the result of an apocalyptic flood which has turned the land into a series of islands. The player must pay attention to Scout's needs such as her energy, thirst, hunger, and warmth, and not paying attention to them can result in death. Like other roguelikes, death is permanent, although the player can restart at predetermined checkpoints along the river. There is a crafting system allowing the player to create new items. Players will also need to scavenge areas for valuable items. Factors such as the weather will impact the gameplay. Players are also able to create insulated clothing to protect them from the cold. One of the developers referred to it as a "travelling survival game".

Plot

The player must try to survive a river journey through the backwaters of a forgotten post-societal America.

Development

The game was developed by a team of people who previously worked on BioShock, Halo 2, and Rock Band. It had a successful crowdfunding campaign, reaching $251,647 of a $150,000 goal. Chuck Ragan composed the soundtrack. The game was originally available in beta, to its kickstarter backers, and was released on Steam as an early access game on September 24, 2015.

Reception

The Flame in the Flood received "mixed to average" reviews, according to video game review aggregator Metacritic.

Ben Davis from Destructoid rated the game a 7.5/10 saying, "Even with its flaws, The Flame in the Flood remains an engaging and challenging survival game."

Mark Steighner of Hardcore Gamer gave the game a 4 out of 5 saying, "The Flame in the Flood offers a genuinely new variation on the survival game theme, tuned, focused and confident in its execution."

IGN awarded it a score of 7.3 out of 10, saying "Brutal and beautiful, The Flame in the Flood is a unique sort of survival game, with a few crucial flaws."

GameSpot awarded it a score of 8.0 out of 10, saying "Despite the awkward menu system, it’s an absorbing game that lets you experience a journey in the present, and fully appreciate the sights, sounds, and joys of floating down the river in its alluring world."

Soundtrack

The soundtrack for the game was made by Chuck Ragan, who said “I’m completely honored to link up with The Molasses Flood team who’ve invited me to write an original score for The Flame In The Flood."