Enter the world where death is not the end
Verge is a Puzzle Platformer from the makers of Depict1. Created in 2008, it was the winner of the Commonplace Book competition at the Tig Source forums
and got an updated flash version three years later.
You control a nameless boy who can't remember who or what he is. Tantalized by a mysterious angel-like figure, he explores the levels to solve puzzles, but will eventually die.
But dying is not the end, and is in fact necessary to solve some puzzles. Dying places you on the bottom of the world, filled with water, and certain markers can restore you to spots above. Yet even in the land of the dead, one must be wary of those who would steal your soul...
It can be found here.
This game contains examples of:
- All There in the Manual: In the flash version, collecting the fairies in each level will unlock medals with descriptions that expand on the game's backstory. Here are the lines for those who can't or don't wish to play the game (or sign up to Newgrounds, which is the only way to get the medals) but would like to know the story. ...as my memories return... ...fading back to me... ...a part of him... ...I cannot be... ...making my way... ...toward this fate... ...I sense him out there... ...lying in wait... ...this vivid trance consumes me... ...and sets my spirit free.
- Amnesiac Hero: The boy cannot remember who or what he is, and the game is his journey to discover the answer.
- Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence: In the true ending, at the end of the secret level, the boy ascends to heaven.
- Big Bad: The soul stealers are the primary obstacle the protagonist encounters in his quest to regain his memory, as they seek to devour his soul, are in every level, and are the only enemies that can kill you for real.
- Cessation of Existence: Dying while already dead via the soul stealers causes you to explode and get a Game Over.
- Death as Game Mechanic: Death only means being respawned underneath the level with flipped gravity. Respawning in the main area is done by entering one of many doors in the area of the dead.
- Death Is Cheap: When you die, it's very, very easy to come back. It's a game mechanic and a plot point.
- It's a Wonderful Failure: Dying to a soul stealer makes you explode, and gets a special message.
- Mind Screw: Exactly what is going on is rather vague, as even the medal descriptions explaining the backstory are pretty cryptic. It is also never fully explained what the mysterious angel is.
- Stupidity Is the Only Option: It never says you have to die. You just get to the point that jumping into a pit of spikes is the only thing that you can do. To find all the fairies in each level, you have to let enemies kill you.
