Sleights is the story of Harry Houdini in his attempt to escape
from the afterlife. Picking up just after Houdini's death, users must
decide whether to bring Houdini back from the dead after learning
about his life from colleagues, his wife, his mentor, Robert Houdin,
and Houdini himself. Playing the role of a down-and-out magician,
users are transported to a netherworld familiar to us all: the corner
tap. Summoned there by Houdini, the user slips into the nether space
to explore its contents over the course of one hour's time. When that
time is complete, travelers will need to either release Houdini from
the fate nature has presented, or return him to the earth, upsetting
the balance between the living and the dead.
Sleights originally grew out of my desire to build a dynamic alternative
to the narrative storytelling forms of traditional. My interest in
cinema over the past years and a lifetime of gaming leads me to believe
that we will continue to see a melding of the two forms as the visual
competencies of viewers continues to rise. One only needs to view
the dominance of film style cuts and cameras in current real-time
3D gaming experiences and the dominance of graphics out of computer
gaming now found in nearly every feature film to understand that the
cross-pollination of the forms presents unique opportunities for creators.
Sleights has developed into compelling new form of narrative thanks
to the professionalism and artistry of a wide variety of developers:
Hallie Blanchard, Matt Henkelmann, Don Kenyon, Richard Leider, John
Loesel, Reid Perkins Buzo, Anna Marie Panlilio.
