We appreciate games with direct character control and multiple predefined third person views per room! (Eg. Alone in the Dark, Resident Evil 0, Dino Crisis...)

Fixed multicam is a niche, but a healthy one - the Resident Evil Remake sold 1m copies in three months, which made it Capcom's "fastest selling digital title in history"[www.pcgamesn.com]. Detroit sold 8m copies[www.psu.com] and Telltale's multicam 'Walking Dead' was met with critical and commercial success.

With a wave of new fixed multicam titles like Tormented Souls, The Medium, and Alisa, it's never been more exciting for this cinematic form of gaming!

When fixed multicam pays off, the visuals speak for themselves - while handing the designer a unique level of authorial control over player pacing and situational awareness. It's nothing less than the ability to directly frame the player's visual understanding of the game world, forging and relying upon a bond of trust between player and developer.

There's an untapped vein of criticism on this approach and the analysis of games that employ it. In a medium that values smooth controls and user comfort, fixed multicams can disorient the player... But is that a fatal flaw, or an unsolved and an interesting design problem? One that could be solved with cinematographic consideration or a pure input approach, or...!

Games covered by this Steam Group should feature multiple third-person 'fixed' cameras per-room that frame a character controlled directly by the player (usually no point-and-click).

Positioning and orientation of cameras cannot be directly controlled by the player (eg. as with 'chase' or 'orbit' cams). As players move in and out of 'shot', the game will 'cut' between cameras (ala filmic editing). Tracking and pivot movements of the camera are rare in comparison to 'cuts'.

The Associated Games section on the right of this page only covers titles on Steam, but I'll try to add some relevant links for notable games or moments... Please check our Fixed Multicam Resources for lists of related PC & console games!

Let us know your thoughts & comments in the discussions! Here's to an intentional view!

--Rev

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RECENT ANNOUNCEMENTS

FRESH ANGLES #14: Sprained Angle

June 6 - Reverend Speed | 4 Comments

An occasional newsletter highlighting fixed camera games!

Hey gang!

Whuff, it’s been a while! There’s a lot of great titles on their way at the moment, so I figured I should try and list a few that are tickling our eyeballs right now! And, b’god, it’s been so long since I put out a Fresh Angles that GROUND ZERO HAS LAUNCHED! Maaaan, I’m looking forward to diving into that gorgeous-looking Korean nightmare! (Currently 20% off!)

A quick reminder to tag games as Fixed Camera on Steam[imgur.com] - atm it’s way too hard to find fixed camera games on Steam! Let’s hit that critical mass of games tagged ‘Fixed Camera’ so we can find more of them by searching with that tag! Only YOU can change Valve’s view!

(Disclaimer: Unless stated otherwise, the following are not reviews or recommendations!)

UPCOMING

The new trailer’s been out a while, but it makes The Florist look fresh as a daisy!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3152440/The_Florist/
The new trailer comes with a soundtrack to make your pulse race!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3851600/Pulsebreaker/
As if Psychopass, Texhnolyze and Ergo Proxy brought up a child with Parasite Eve…!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3014650/45_PARABELLUM_BLOODHOUND__Cyberpunk_Active_Time_Action/
New details are on the Steam store page, promising an intriguing blend of coop and Malaysian survival horror!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2967220/yan_Parasomnia/
A Hill-sian approach to Resi survival horror - excited to see how this turns out!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2939450/Inherited_Shadows/
A new trailer, proclaiming 'vampire waifus in dark gothic fantasy'!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3212500/Vampire_Huntress__Lament_of_the_Sun/
Combining timer-based tactical combat with non-stop cardio, you owe it to yourself to try out the demo of Parasite Mutant!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3983000/Parasite_Mutant/

AVAILABLE NOW

Be it from zombies or the 8 tons per square inch of water around you, this game offers a high-pressure experience! Demo available!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3726370/Heavy_Metal_Death_Can/
A hugely anticipated title, which has been out for uh, a while now… Really excited to play this!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2340130/Ground_Zero/
I have you in my sights, you classic zombie hunt, you!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3316350/Flesh_Made_Fear/

CLASSICS

Like a dog smashing through a window, Resi 1 is suddenly available on Steam!
Now, I’m not sure anybody here will have heard of this one, but… Oh, you have? Really? It’s wonderful that Capcom have finally brought (with the help of the GOG porting team!) their classic 1996 Alone in the Dark clone to modern systems - and Steam in particular! (On sale now for 50% off!)

I didn’t start my Resi journey with this game (I stumbled into the Raccoon Police Station alongside Leon in 1998) but this founding title is dripping with equal amounts of polish, invention and interesting dialogue choices! And those cinematic, atmospheric camera angles… all the credit to Tokuro Fujiwara, Shinji Mikami, Hideki Kamiya and their team!

If you don’t own this game, I urge you to check it out. Alone in the Dark might be the founder, but without the execution and marketing of Resident Evil (Biohazard in its native Japan!), it’s doubtful that fixed multicam games would be as popular as they are today…!

If you’re looking for a comprehensive history on the making and legacy of this game, be sure and check out Alex Aniel’s excellent history, Itchy Tasty[www.goodreads.com]!

NON-STEAM

This is excellent! A wonderful ~20 minute video essay from Under the Mayo, which sums up a lot of my feelings on the benefits of Fixed Cam! (*cough* multicam)
Credit to the developer of Sanguine, who’s just put out a new patch!
If anybody’s interested in Camouflaj’s under-appreciated game Republique, I happened across some interesting tid-bits from its development…![www.david-mckenzie.com]
_________________

A quick note regards the curator… It’s a fantastic time for fans of fixed multicam games, with a surprising quantity of titles being released. In the past, I’ve tried to play through the entirety of these games before reviewing them on our curator, but due to time commitments and in the interests of protecting my sanity, I’m implementing a one-hour-minimum policy for when I’m reviewing a game.

In essence, this means that games I test in the future have about one hour to grab my interest - and if I don’t enjoy ‘em in that time, I’m going to give ‘em a negative review and label them as having been played for one hour.

At the moment, this seems fair to me - it’s fairly easy to pique my interest even if a game is a bit janky, but I’m not going to feel obliged to force myself through mostly unfinished, questionably written gameplay…! I hope you understand my decision to take this approach. =)

Right! That about wraps this up…! Let me know what fixed cam games you’re playing - and what are you looking forward to?

Fingers crossed - we’ll see you next week! --Rev

DOWN (Twenty Thousand Leagues) BUT NOT OUT: Heavy Metal Death Can LAUNCHES!

June 4 - Reverend Speed | 0 Comments

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3726370/Heavy_Metal_Death_Can/

Claustrophobic combat and depth-charged exploration in this gorgeous survival horror tribute to the classics! What a great setting - and some really inspirational UI details! Really excited to play this one!

(Friendly reminder: Steam only surfaces/promotes games in the store that are getting positive reviews IN THEIR FIRST WEEK, so IF you enjoy Heavy Metal Death Can, please make sure you drop 'em a nice review! Fixed cam rising!)

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STEAM CURATOR

Fixed Camera Appreciation Society reviews

"3d games with direct character play from dev-authored fixed third person views! (Eg. Alone in the Dark, Resident Evil 0, Dino Crisis...)"

Here are a few recent reviews by Fixed Camera Appreciation Society