You wake to find yourself in a strange place. This bed is not your own; you've never even seen this house before. The small room is empty save for an old computer, desk and bookshelf. Warm light filters in through a foggy window, bathing everything in a pinkish hue. The clean hardwood floor is partly covered by a soft looking purple carpet. This place is beautiful, but unsettling. And this is the first view you'll have of the breathtaking world of Oneshot. Made for the 2014 Indie Game Maker contest and downloadable free for PC, Mac and Linux, Oneshot is a puzzle-based adventure which plays only in windowed mode, and yes, there is a reason for that. No, it's not a room escape, though the game's first few minutes would certainly have you believe so. It's not a horror game, but it is certainly atmospheric and has a few untraditionally "creepy" moments. The game's co-developers, Mathew Velasquez and Casey Gu, describe the experience as a mission to "guide a lost child through a strange world, utilizing items, characters, and the environment to progress." That could describe most any adventure game. With such an intentionally vague description, it is difficult for any player to have any idea what this game is really about—and that's the point. This is a game about exploration and mystery, the kind of experience you're meant to have with as little prior knowledge as possible. Don't even read any comments before you start, or it will be spoiled for you. All the information you need is the controls: move your character with the [arrow] keys, perform actions and use items with [Z] or [spacebar], and use [X] to open the menu. Now go play it. Oh, one last thing: put some time aside, because once you begin, you can't stop playing it for at least a little while. Luckily, this reviewer's hardware is sturdy enough that I was able to see everything through to the end, but other players have told horror stories of computers shutting off mid-game and losing everything. There are three moments throughout the game where you can save and quit safely, and you'll know them when you find them, but that's it.
Still reading, eh? Alright, dear readers, but never let it be said that you were not warned. Oneshot follows the story of a little cutie named Niko, a small but brave boy with cat whiskers and glowing, bright yellow eyes. Niko's been transported to a strange world without a sun, one that is falling apart, and he is the one who is destined to save it. However, it's not just Niko's story, but yours too. You are the god of this world, and its inhabitants need your help. This revelation comes early on in the game, but it changes the entire dynamic of the experience. Suddenly, this is not simply a silly, fun game you are choosing to play, but a responsibility to help save this world and return Niko to his home. The gravity of the situation intensifies upon realizing what the title of the game means. You really do only get one shot. If you give up and quit the game early, or even if you accidentally close the window, Niko dies and you can't continue. Ever.
The notion of such permanence, the idea that the game can only be played once, has been done before, but not like this. Oneshot is as original and powerful as they come. The art is gorgeous, resplendent with vivid glowing hues. The puzzles are well thought out, tricky, but far from impossible. Above all, the dialogue is great and the characters are lovable. It is impressive how easy it is to fall in love with the characters and the world of Oneshot in so short a time. The game is not flawless—its first major section, the Barrens, are the longest and most frustrating part of the game to navigate. The later sections are somewhat easier, but feel rather shorter too. The item system is also rather unwieldy, with no way to cycle through your inventory besides opening and closing the menu half a dozen times. Still, despite the risks and surprises that Oneshot holds, it is a beautiful, polished experience that you should not miss. Be warned that once you reach the end, you will have to live with your choices afterwards, as I have. This is your journey, and there's no turning back.
Windows:
Get the free full version
Mac OS X:
Get the free full version
Linux:
Get the free full version
Gah, I'm stuck right at the beginning! I have
an empty bottle, the tv remote
The fireplace is lit and there is a spark on the floor that I can't interact with
feeling kind of dumb here.... can anyone help?
Ha, I got it now!
standing in the exact right spot to interact with the spark was quite a pixel hunt!
Phew, I'm glad you got it! I was racking my brain trying to remember if I did anything differently. :)
There are a few puzzles in the game which involve finding very specific areas, but at least they are always marked by some kind of distinctive visual difference.
The scene of the rooms in the beggining was sort of hardish, but I can't stop tinhinkg that...
I should have given the wilted plant some water.
Anyway, I'm stuck at the Barrens with a sponge, a lightbulb, a bottle with smoke and a diary.
Is there any special zone with liquid that I missed out?
I know there must be some, as I need to...
"unrust" the robot in the boat with a cleaning solution.
Erik,
What areas appear in your fast travel options?
There is liquid in the shrimp swamp
You'll also need
something from a box of medical supplies
Stuck again... looping
I have
water, seed, die, coin, feather, lightbulb
and I've looped until the die stops vibrating and I'm in a repeating grid of grass and water paths
Does anyone know how to get out?
Mott, have you tried
checking the description of your items after the die stops vibrating?
Is it possible to get a fresh start by deleting the game and re-installing it??
Looks very cool, but is anyone else having trouble getting it to run under OS X? I've installed the rpgosx RTP as per the instructions (and it's allowing me to run other games on that site), but launching Oneshot just gives me a dialog box that reads "Could not start RPG_RT.exe."
I've also inquired with one of the developers, who also works on rpgosx, and will follow up here if I hear back.
I'm afraid not! I'm sure there is some way of resetting the save file, but it would compromise the point of the game.
I'm sorry to hear you're experiencing issues! I really hope they can be sorted out. I wish I could help, but I don't have a Mac around. Please do report back if you figure out the problem!
????? Soooo, the point of the game is to try for 5 min, make many poor choices, and die forever, without a way to try again to follow a better path? To make a better life for your (admittedly Fake) worshipers? I prefer the games from that Lud dum dare challenge whose theme was "You only get one", or something similar.
Also, can you save the game and quit?
Does that RPG maker thing they used have an option for stand alone games? I don't want to download another separate thing.
I already have the "item" inside the chest...
The stringe, right?
I tried using it in one of the pools, but there is no reaction.
Nathaniel: The game isn't quite like what you're thinking of; you may be a god, but this isn't a traditional "god game." And yes, there are save points so you don't have to finish the game all at once. I encourage you to give it a shot!
Shipoopie - The game is standalone for windows, but if you have mac or linux, I'm afraid you'd have to install the rpg maker software to play the game. It's a bummer, I know, but the game is worth it.
By the way, great username. :D
Erik:
The syringe is what you need, and you're on the right track. It won't work in just any pool, though. Try doing some exploring until you see a pool which looks different from the others. Specifically,
look in the southeast.
Hope that helps!
I'd love to try this game but the download link is giving me an error, can't establish a connection because the page may be "too busy." Is there a mirror link available?
Here's an alternate link to the RPGMaker games database for when the developer's site is still busy:
http://rpgmaker.net/games/6560/
I'm stuck,
I have the metal rod but I can't figure out how to open the box. :(
Welp. I don't think I have much of a choice. I examined a computery-looking item, a dire-sounding message popped up, and... the game froze. (Incidentally, if a game requires Wine, it shouldn't be advertised as being available for Linux.)
A ha! This has happened twice to me now. A confirmation dialog pops up ("do you understand?") and is immediately buried UNDER a bunch of windows, instead of displaying over the game window. So the game was frozen until I clicked "yes", but I had no idea that I was supposed to do so. Luckily I clicked the "wait" button on my system's "this program is not responding" dialog, rather than allowing it to force quit. *sigh* I'm rapidly losing patience between this and the super clunky interface.
Great. Now the game window has completely vanished, even though the music is still playing. I surrender :(
Also, I am not happy about the game's use of read/write access.
Hey ggg,
I'm sorry you experienced so much frustration at the game. I'll take the blame for listing it as Linux-friendly; it was listed as such on the site, and I didn't look closely enough to realize the download required Wine. I'll be sure to pay closer attention in the future.
(I'm aware that as a Windows user, I'm spoiled when it comes to games working on my system...)
Hey Johanna,
The puzzle you're on is definitely one of the trickier parts in the game. Have you found
the machines activated when your lightbulb comes near?
One of them can sharpen your metal rod into something more helpful.
endings:
apparently there are 4 or more endings:
I got the ending where I didn't use the plant, nor the miracle grow, then I went to the spire and chose to help the world.
I suppose there is an ending where you plant and help the world, one where you plant and use miracle grow and help the world, one where you don't plant and help niko, one where you plant and help niko, and one where you plant use miracle grow and help niko.
In mine, there's a growing light, and then there are images of characters of the world looking at the light from the spire. Then there's the menu of the game with start and quit, but the image in the back of the menu is now just white, and when you start, you are in the room again where niko started, but there's no niko, and there's a lot of light in the window, and you can't do anything else, as there's no niko to control.
If anyone else got a different ending, I'd like to know how it goes.
Well, my ending went like this.
I don't know what using the plant means, but I planted the seed, as well as used the miracle water.
The game window shakes and leaves you in a black room with only Niko in it. They go to the side of the game window and just... walk right over the border and outside of the game window, right off your screen.
At the end of the credits, the game just gives an error about a missing world and shuts off.
How can I clean the rust out of the robot? Someone please help!
(I have been stuck for 15 minutes...)
Did anyone else's antivirus block this game from opening? Mine identified it as a suspicious file and deleted it.
Should I not unblock it?
Hey phu,
Unfortunately since I was only able to play the game once, I don't remember all of the details... I'll do my best to help you though!
In the building at the bottom of the map, there are several notes on the floor--one of them tells you about a cleaning solution. To clean the rust, you'll need to make this yourself. That involves hunting around the map for a few special items, including a syringe and a sponge.
You'll need to put liquid in the syringe from a certain pool (it looks different from the others) in the lower-right corner of the map. Then I believe you need to mix it with some of the gaseous substance from the top-left corner of the map. Again, you can only get the gas from a certain geyser (so explore a bit), and you'll need to trap it in one of your items.
If you find all the items and combine them, you'll eventually get the cleaning solvent and can use the sponge to clean up the robot.
Hope this helps!
Beautiful little game. Apparently, I missed getting the
miracle water,
but it wasn't necessary to get one of the endings. I would love to know what the other endings are. I chose to
save the world by not shattering the light bulb/sun.
I'm having abfdrumz's same problem: "Could not start RPG_RT.exe."
Sorry to hear it! I've submitted a report about this on the dev's site at rpgosx.tumblr.com...haven't heard back yet, but it's only been a couple days. Fingers crossed.
Another game where RegEdit is better than a phoenix down.
This looks really good, so I look forward to sitting down and giving it my full attention, soon.
Just got around to trying this and I have the same prob as abfdrumz and Ezra. :'(
Must say, this is an experience that will be hard to forget. Sort of reminded me of the Klonoa series.
For the curious ones, the author said in a Deviantart page that there are only 2 endings on this game. This means that:
You save Niko or you save the world. Nothing between.
I want to believe that Niko is
not dead. Just travelled to another world, as Klonoa does.
I am stuck!!! Please help... T^T
I am too at the looping part, out of sudden I found myself moved on to the water and grass path then continued on a darker one. I have no idea how I did that and now the coin is buzzing...
Select the coin so that you see it in the lower right of your screen. It will light up in the directions that you are supposed to travel. Follow it's N, S, E, or W directions three or four times and you will advance to the next scene.
Yay! My first
Walkthrough
General
When I say a place name in Bold, go there by fast travel, or follow the directions next to it.
Read the notes for info on how to play the game so I don't have to repeat it here.
If you quit before unlocking the computer, no harm done!
If you quit after unlocking the computer, Niko will die, but this place is strange enough that he comes back next time you start the game! You gotta learn not to trust that guy.
Other than that, the land is quite safe. I haven't found a place where Niko can die.
The Beginning
Bedroom
Examine the lump on the carpet.
Remote GET!
Use the remote with the window to get a code.
Use the computer, and enter that code!
Hey, that looks like a gamedev's computer...
Living Room (south)
Take Alcohol from the fridge, and examine the fireplace.
Bathroom (north, west)
Take a branch from the wilted plant.
Living Room
Use the alcohol with the stick, then use the stick with the TV, then the torch with the fireplace.
Get the Basement Key from the floor, and USE it to enter the
Basement (east, east)
You get an IDEA! (lol jk)
Living Room
Use your IDEA! with the west door to leave.
The Barrens
Roadways (north)
Get and equip the boots to make your life easier.
Outpost (east)
Talk to the robot priest guy, and ask about the computer.
Niko will ask you about your name. If you don't like it, or if it got truncated (ISHAN MURPH?), go ahead and change it.
You can exit the conversation with X.
In the warehouse he's standing near, go right and get the shiny thing on the shelf.
In the trailer, there's a Rod. Get that too.
Shrimp swamp (east)
Get the Sponge.
Dormitories (north)
Get and equip the Gloves.
Use the right of the two machines near the gloves with the Rod, and get the Crowbar! A wonderful tool for any escape.
Cliffs (north)
Somewhere here there's a safe. Use it.
Now where's that code?
It's under My Documents, as INFORMATION.oneshot.txt. If it's not there then I dunno.
Equip the Gas Mask.
Mining Facility (west)
Take the Plastic Syringe from the upper-right of that big building.
Also get the Camera.
Gas Vents (west)
Yay gas masks!
One of the vents isn't on a cone thing, but on the ground where Niko can reach it! Use the Bottle on it.
Outpost
In that warehouse, there's a shiny box which you can open with your Crowbar, and get a Battery for your efforts! It's broken though. Aww.
Shrimp Swamp
One of the pools here is all weird. Use the Syringe on that one, and get Goo!
Dock (north of Roadways)
Time to use ALL the things!
Screwdriver + Camera
Lens + Battery
IDEA! + Battery
Battery + Robot
Bottle + Syringe
Syringe + Sponge
Sponge + Robot
But there's still more.
Mining Facility
Talk to the lady in the building to (eventually) get a Coin.
Dock
There's a trailer with a bed. Take a nap, if you haven't already. Big night ahead!
Give the coin to the RowBot, and be on your way!
The Glen
Forest (south)
Talk to the guy.
South Ruins
Go in the rightmost door.
The Ruins is a bit of a maze.
Go down two flights then to the right and use the computer.
Wanna know where the code is now?
It's on your desktop, COMBINATION.oneshot.bmp.
Although, when you open that, you might have seen the combination somewhere else...
Go down more stairs, then right, then down again.
You'll be parted from your IDEA! for a bit, but that's okay.
Go up two flights of stairs, and left to the newly un-vined door.
Save Alula by walking on the tiles to reflect the code.
Go down the stairs and talk to that computer again.
Forest
Return Alula!
Village (north of Dock)
One of the houses near the upper-right contains a lot of pots, the center of which contains Miracle Water. This is optional BTW.
To the east, there's a sheperd. You can help with his rams.
If you're bad at sokoban, here's a solution.
U R D L = Directions
O = Interact
Start from touching the two in the upper right.
DOL OLO LDD DDL OLD LLL ULL UUU URR RRO LDO DOD ODO DOD RRU LOL ORR UUU LOL ORD DDL LLU UO
You get nice, fluffy Wool.
North Ruins (east)
USE the wool with the trader.
We will always miss you wool :*(
South Ruins
That girl at the bottom of the ruins is probably done with your IDEA! by now. Go get it.
Take another nap. Saving the world is exhausting.
To the Refuge!
The Refuge
Ritual circle (north, north-east)
If you're feeling amiable, plant the seed. If you're feeling even more amiable, use Miracle Grow on it (if you have it).
Library (north-west of Tower Exterior)
Talk to Die, and give him the MyStErIoUs JoUrNaL.
Cafe (south-east of Tower Exterior)
Have delicious pancakes!
Library
Talk to Die.
The End
I think someone drugged Niko.
The Refuge?
Wanna figure this out yourself?
Take the die out of your pocket. Go one step onto each of the four catwalks. When it flashes, continue that way.
The Glen?
Repeat with the Feather.
The Barrens?
You got this bro.
Living Room
Hmm...
Bedroom (north)
Yawn. Time for a catnap. (Niko is close enough to a cat in my opinion.)
???
Find a metal hatch somewhere.
The Spire
The fate of the world, and Niko, rests on this IDEA!
Choose wisely.
P.S. I know how to restart but i'mmm nooot telling :P
Unfortunately, I couldn't find the garden before I got to the tower despite having everything I needed.
My girlfriend is a genius and when she accidentally closed Oneshot, she figured out how to restart it.
You have to delete "GameOver" folder. c:
...im stuck
do you have to find
the gas mask before making the cleaning solution to get the gas? or is it just one little area of gas that wont hurt you? and if so i have NO IDEA where to find the gas mask
i normally suck at puzzle games but all my friends wanted me to play thos and now i've started but im so stuck! please help!
My antivirus did that too. It's not a virus, just a game, but it does do some weird things:
It changes your desktop background (and changes it back if you don't quit before it gets the chance to). It makes the game window shake. It talks to you with dialog boxes. It has the character walk off the game window. It won't let you start the game over even if you delete and redownload the game.
So those are probably some reasons it got flagged. If those things bother you, don't play it, but it's not malicious.
I finally got around to playing this game, but hit a snag. If you also get stuck at the pattern on the floor in the ruins, because the game doesn't actually change your desktop wallpaper to show the combination, it luckily seems not to change between games. I was able to find the pattern on another website.
-###-
#---#
#-#-#
#---#
-###-
--#--
# = Lit
There's a metal compacter of some sort in the dormitory area where you turn the metal rod into a crowbar. Then you can use that to open the chest.
Okay, I have been searching through my computer for the hidden file that prevents me from replaying the game and it's driving me nuts.
I know it completely defeats the whole concept, but does anyone have any idea how to replay this amazing game? I really want to enjoy it a second time.
Hey Dodger,
I'm glad you loved the game as much as I did! Unfortunately I was never able to figure out how to replay the game either (other than playing it on a different computer), though I think I'd feel a little guilty if I had.
The TV Tropes page for the game says
"The game even modifies your computer so you can only finish the game once, and you either need a separate computer or account to replay it, or restore your computer to before you played the game." Perhaps creating a new user account and downloading it there may work for you, then?
It also mentions something about registry files, but it doesn't get specific... so I think you might be hard pressed to figure it out still. Good luck!
I figured out how to get another shot. Open the game folder, double click on the icon of a document with a gear on it (one of the RPG_RT files) and set "FullPackageFlag" to equal 0.
It worked for me!
Help, I'm stuck in the new version of the Refuge
I made the GROUND button out of the coffee tin, but I don't know how to connect it to the elevator.
Seriously, I swear I've interacted with everything, tried combining everything, talked to everyone until I get repeating dialogue - I'm so stuck. Please someone help me with what to do next.
Has anyone beat the remade version yet?
I am stuck at the refugee, in the remade version. Got some magnets, water, a coffee tin, a weird film which gave me a code which i dont know where to put and serveral items which i got from the other regions, any help?
got stuck in the barrens with a broken fuel cell, brwobar, screwdriver , emty bottle :(
Guys, I found an easter eggs. But I don't know what to do with with the items I found. It was a Novelty T-Shirt. You get this thing when you select "No" when trade a wool. It will gives you an ink and a Novelty T-Shirt
Update