Aster Initiative is more than just a love letter to the early days of computing. It’s a story-based “analog horror” inspired experience with choices that matter, deep world-building and an open world or “open web” sandbox philosophy.
THE STORY
You are Joanne Saunders, a newly hired secretary at the Canadian pharmaceutical company, Aster Initiative. As dark secrets from the company begin to unravel, you decide to dig deeper and take the company down from the inside—on your work computer.THE GAMEPLAY
With programs provided by fictional operating system, LapetusOS, you can:
- Surf a truly authentic and colorful early internet with side objectives to be discovered
- Call and message a cast of unique characters
- Download and manipulate videos, pictures, documents and music
- Play fun minigames
- Customize your desktop environment
- Decipher codes and solve puzzles
- Find e-mail passwords to log into accounts and snoop
- Create art with PicassoPro
- Avoid phone scammers and harmful viruses
But beware of your watchful supervisor, who doesn't tolerate slacking off.
REINVENTING ANALOG HORROR
Aster Initiative takes a new approach to analog horror by departing from genre cliches and opting for more nuanced and life-like tension and fear.
The design direction faithfully represents 1994-1998 computing and web design, resulting in an eerie world that feels strangely real.
To accomplish this, Aster Initiative uses full HTML websites made with actual tools, rare assets and design techniques used in the 90s. We also work with computer historians and consultants to ensure Aster Initiative is authentically 90s from the inside out.
