Papa Sangre

Papa Sangre
Developer(s)	Somethin' Else
Platform(s)	iOS

Papa Sangre is a horror-themed audio game developed by Somethin' Else for Apple’s iOS devices.

The game has been described by the developer as a "video game with no video" — its environment is rendered exclusively in sound via binaural audio, processed on-the-fly using The Papa Engine, a proprietary audio engine.

Development

The game was released originally in December 2010, with a fully re-written version released in April 2013 based on an entirely new engine. The sequel, Papa Sangre II, was released on Halloween 2013.

The developer had intended to use VoiceOver, an accessibility function on Apple’s iPhone, to help with user interface for those who need to play the game using that function. VoiceOver wasn't flexible enough to work at the same time as the sound engine, so after discussion with user testers the developer had to create a separate user interface for VoiceOver users, which encouraged them to turn VoiceOver on and off. The development team includes Paul Bennun, Ben Cave, Adam Hoyle of Do Tank Studios, Peter Law, Margaret Robertson, Nick Ryan and Tassos Stevens of Coney with illustration by Sofiski.^[1] The team had also created its own 3d audio engine. Papa Sangre was inspired by Sangre Y Patatas.^[2] Somethin’ Else thought of pricing the game at £1.99, but Apple encouraged the team to raise the price.^[3] At launch, Papa Sangre was priced at £3.99.^[4]

Plot

You are dead, and trapped in Papa Sangre’s kingdom in an afterlife filled with darkness, and need to save the soul most precious to you trapped in the palace while avoiding a death from dangerous monsters.^[5][6]

There are two unknown voices who speak to you throughout Papa Sangre's kingdom, a female voice who serves as a guide through each level and a male voice who seems to be friendly and communicating from a phone.

As you progress through the levels, you may have the option to save other lost souls, such as an infant or old man. However, the sound of rescuing them may alert nearby monsters. If you choose to save them or not will change what the male voice says to you at the end of the level.

When you reach Papa Sangre's palace, it is revealed that the male voice is Papa Sangre himself and you are saving your own soul. You must ring the Bell of Fate to return to the living world. When you ring the bell, Papa Sangre gives you a choice between two doors, one that leads back to the living world and one that returns you the afterlife. If you saved a lost soul, they will go through the door you do not choose.

If you choose to return to the living world, the lost soul is heard dying in a car crash. If you choose to remain in the afterlife in place of the lost soul, you are killed in the car crash.

Features

Papa Sangre is a thriller/horror game based only on binaural audio. Headphones are required to play. The player moves using foot buttons displayed on screen for each individual step and turns using a built in accelerometer or swiping across the wheel on the top-half of the screen. If the player taps each button too fast, the character will fall. While traveling through the world, various sound effects are heard to guide the player. Using binaural audio, the player can determine which direction or how far or close objects are. There are a total of 25 levels to complete as the player tries to survive. The player must collect musical notes and reach the exit to proceed.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate Score
Aggregator	Score
metacritic	80/100[7]
Review Scores
Publication	Score
IGN	9/10[8]
148apps.com	5/5[9]
TouchGen	[10]
TouchArcade	[11]
Gamezebo	[12]

Reviews for Papa Sangre are mixed with both negative and positive response. Many negative responses were from pricing and file size. Papa Sangre received an award for ‘Most Innovative Game’ at Mobile Gaming Awards in March, 2011.^[13]

Sequel

Papa Sangre II is the sequel to the survival horror audio game Papa Sangre. It was published by Playground Publishing B.V on October 31, 2013. The game has a rating of 92% on Metacritic based on 9 critic reviews, making it the best-reviewed iOS game of 2013 by its metrics.^[14]

References