Annapurna Interactive recently held its 2023 digital showcase, shining a spotlight on many exciting upcoming titles including Lorelei and the Laser Eyes. The game's cryptic trailer warns players against untrustworthy actors, challenges of pattern recognition, and international mystery amidst maze-like ciphers and repeated phrases with a disconcerting, post-hypnotic quality. The indie mystery-puzzler is due for Steam and PC later in 2023, and fans of both narrative-driven games and challenging puzzles may want to keep an eye out for its arrival.
The Best War Games recently spoke with Simon Flesser, the game director of Lorelei at its Malmö-based developer, Simogo. Flesser talked about the game's various influences, ranging from puzzle games like Professor Layton and Resident Evil to 1960s French art cinema and contemporary literature. The only common thread among these disparate influences seems to be mystery, and from the outset, a sinister sense that nothing is what it seems.
Lorelei and the Laser Eyes Has Nearly 150 Puzzles
At the time of writing, Lorelei and the Laser Eyes has nearly 150 puzzles. Most of these are entirely unique, although there are a few templates that have repeated twists and variations, similar to Nintendo's Professor Layton series:
"For quantity and frequency, we definitely looked at the Layton series for inspiration, but wanted to make a game in which puzzles would have a natural place within the narrative."
In terms of difficulty, Flesser says that puzzles will range from moderately challenging to very difficult, with the caveat that puzzle difficulty is highly subjective and will vary from player to player. Where puzzle breadth is concerned, Professor Layton provides a natural point of reference, with lengthy campaigns that offer players dozens of brain-teasing templates in a single playthrough. Lorelei's focus on ludo-narrative resonance, however, may help the game stand out in a crowded genre where the reasoning behind a puzzle's implementation can feel arbitrary.
Flesser also gave a nod to Resident Evil and other 90s survival horror titles as a design touchstone. Lorelei is intended to evoke a similar feeling of exploring an eerie environment, albeit one without the constant threat of monsters nipping at players' heels. Rather than quick reflexes and resource management, players will be challenged by the very nature of Lorelei's narrative.
Mazes within Mazes: Lorelei's Non-Linear Progression
Flesser is confident that players will never get hit with a puzzle gridlock thanks to Lorelei's non-linear progression—even if the player gets stuck on one challenge, there will be other avenues of exploration available to them. The story, however, sounds like it will promise twists and turns that will keep players lost and guessing until the end.
"Seemingly, the story is about an artist who is called upon by an eccentric auteur to participate in a project at an old hotel in a forest. It is also a story about a magician looking for a long-lost treasure, a lost ghost, secret societies, and many other stories within stories within stories."
Lorelei' s setting is of key importance, but also deliberately ambiguous. The title's Steam page states that it is set in an old baroque manor in Central Europe that might have been either "a hotel or a museum," with ties to historical events spanning 1847 to 2014. Flesser also states that the physical reality of the setting is not the only 'place' that players will interact with in Lorelei, referring to dreams, visions, and other sorts of places within places.
Other influences on Lorelei's story include the 1961 French film, L'Année dernière à Marienbad, or Last Year at Marienbad, which features a cast of anonymous characters in a setting similar to Lorelei' s. Another touchstone was the 2002 novel, The Book of Illusions, which tells the story of a grieving university professor whose obsessive research sucks him into a world of dark intrigue. Both works feature touches of metafiction and unreliable narration, leaving the viewer to ponder what they have seen. This metafictional approach, paired with parity between environment and puzzle design, could further distinguish Lorelei as a mystery to remember.
Even if the narrative is a labyrinth, Mechanical accessibility is a major priority for Simogo, as evidenced by prior releases Device 6 and Sayonara Wild Hearts. With Lorelei, Flesser is hoping to make the game as easy to interact with as possible by avoiding dexterity-based mechanics altogether. Players will navigate Lorelei with a simple control stick and single interaction button to engage with objects, occasionally make selectable choices, and other universally user-friendly mechanics.
Lorelei and the Laser Eyes is currently in development with a planned release for PC and Switch later in 2023.