This December, Hunters Entertainment will release a rather unique tabletop role-playing experience with its title Alice is Missing, a game that is played almost entirely in silence via text messages.
Successfully funded on Kickstarter in under three hours, Alice is Missing: A Silent Role Playing Game takes players on a journey to discover the truth about Alice Briarwood, a high school junior who has disappeared from the small town of Silent Falls.
Alice is Missing, which takes approximately 90 minutes to complete, can be played with three to five people and talking is only permitted at the very beginning of the play session, as players create their characters and establish roles and relationships. After that, communication becomes limited entirely to text messages, both individual and group chat.
The developers compare the level of drama and immersion in Alice is Missing to games like Life Is Strange, Gone Home, Oxenfree, and Firewatch, all of which draw players in using a combination of unique gameplay and a compelling, often haunting story.
The concept of unfolding a narrative using a phone interface and text messages has been done before in indie titles like 2016’s Sara is Missing and its spiritual successor Simulacra, both of which require players to uncover the mystery of a missing person using their discarded cell phone. Alice is Missing, however, differs from these previous games due to its introduction of a multiplayer aspect and its emphasis on total silence.
Alice is Missing can currently be pre-ordered for 20 dollars and is scheduled to come out in December 2020.
Source: Kickstarter (via Polygon)