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Friend | Download

Friend is a game about underwater navigation in the post apocalypse. Armed with a map, your job is to find various research dead drops left by another sub pilot, your only friend.

Friend was inspired by Iron Lung for its navigation gameplay, but differing in how Friend gives the player different information.
In Friend, the player has a view of the seafloor outside, a coordinate readout and a compass. Along with their map, they need to figure out where their objectives are, making the game a challenge in navigation and map reading.

One novel element I wanted to experiment with was using a physical map. I remember sometimes using the maps that came with older games instead of the in-game one, and I thought it made for a more immersive approach, adding an option to disable the in-game map and print out a .pdf version.
Friend's controls are designed to have both of the player's hands on the keyboard to move their submarine, meaning that to read their map, players must stop completely or release control of their steering or acceleration. While I didn't have enough time to implement any, active threats would become more challenging, now incorporating more situational awareness into Friend's navigation gameplay.