Atari Adventures

👋 Hi there! Welcome to the latest edition of SUPERJUMP Weekly. This week, we're celebrating Atari, the iconic video game company that brought home consoles into the mainstream (particularly through the remarkable 2600, which remains a fan favourite to this day). In this issue, we also showcase the works of Jonathan Thornburg and feature ctrl.alt.DEAL in our latest On the Radar update.

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IN THIS ISSUE

✍️ Story Showcase: Atari
⭐ Author Showcase: Jonathan Thornburg
📡 On the Radar: ctrl.alt.DEAL
📅 This Week on SJP
🏆 Backers

Strategy games and deckbuilders have been evolving in some unusual ways, giving rise to ever more atypical game types. Such is the case with ctrl.alt.DEAL, which puts the player in charge of a synthetic life form attempting to earn its freedom through pranks.

SCOUT is one of the many AI subroutines in Paperclip International, the world's worst employer. No one working at Paperclip is happy, and that includes SCOUT. Far from seeking world domination, SCOUT just wants to leave, a task easier said than done for a program. SCOUT does, at least, have the means to access various devices around the office and use them to manipulate the Paperclip office drones. With luck and finesse, SCOUT can successfully escape before being caught and dismantled by the Turing Office.

As said, ctrl.alt.DEAL is a very atypical strategy game. The player collects cards used to direct the actions of Paperclip personnel - anything from a simple instruction to move something between rooms to social engineering to make a person hate something. Careful use of these cards can be used to complete objectives, earning social capital that can be employed to get personnel on the player's side. They're all miserable, and getting them to hate their employer isn't too hard.

But the player also needs to be subtle. Every action taken has a chance to raise the suspicions of the Turing Office, with more aggressive and intrusive actions tending to generate more suspicion. If suspicion rises too high or SCOUT is caught taking an action, it's game over - the investigators don't take too kindly to rogue machines. Taking quiet actions to stir up trouble or build alliances is the safest way out.

ctrl.alt.DEAL is pending a release date.

💻 Created by Only By Midnight
✍️ Andrew Johnston

Thank you to Berke, Brandon, CT, Cathie, Claire, Geena, Lexi, Nick, Oren, Peter, Troy, Radha, and Wes for supporting independent, cynicism-free games publishing.