Once Upon a Coma looks as somber as it sounds
A flash game darling returns.
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Thomas Brush's first game was Coma, a popular flash game from way back when. Next came Pinstripe, a grim 2D adventure game about an ex-minister following his kidnapped daughter into Hell. Now Brush has gone back to his roots with Once Upon A Coma, a 2D adventure game about "a sad little boy in a terrifying coma."
Once Upon A Coma expands and continues the story of Coma. There are 10 levels in this one, for starters. Staggered backgrounds and soft lighting give levels a real sense of depth, and liberal use of black gives the otherwise brightly colored landscapes a shadowed, reserved look.
The playable character is also considerably more complex than Coma's little black gremlin of a protagonist. His is a sad design, and unexpectedly fluid in motion. There's something very Tim Burton about him, in a good way.
Once Upon A Coma is slated to release in 2018. You can learn more about it on the website for Atmos Games, Brush's studio.
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Austin freelanced for PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree, and has been a full-time writer at PC Gamer's sister publication GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize that his position as a staff writer is just a cover-up for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a focus on news, the occasional feature, and as much Genshin Impact as he can get away with.