This morning I found a dead rat in my inbox. When I examined the viscera, it said the following: PATHOLOGICAL 3 Announced TODAY. Ah, I see. Developers Ice Pick Lodge are working on a sequel to the infamous plague city simulator, only this time the sequel will feature “time travel mechanics, allowing players to go back and see how their decisions change the lives of the city’s inhabitants.” ” It will also introduce you to the sophisticated role of the Chevalier, a doctor who likes to quote Latin phrases, who will be able to order quarantines and order patrols of entire areas of the city. There is no final release date yet, but we were told that it will be ready next year.
As a bachelor, the player will be more of an academic doctor than the previous hero, using a microscope and various laboratory equipment to “study pathogens”. Judging by the screenshots and game description, there are some management machinations going on here as well. “Fight the epidemic by introducing quarantines and deploying patrols to prevent the spread of diseases,” say the game’s creators.
Meanwhile, “time travel” is like a Rashomon of sorts, as opposed to anything mystical or crazy. “No, remember how things are Really happened…” Something like that. The player still only has 12 days to make their mark on the city, say the developers, but the ability to go back and change some decisions will allow you to “explore and influence events in ways that will shape the unfolding narrative.”
To clear up any confusion: Pathologic 2, despite the number in its name, is not a direct sequel to the original Pathologic, but an extensive remake. In the original Pathologic game, players could take on the role of one of three characters – Bachelor, Changeling or Haruspex. In the case of Pathologic 2, the developers decided to make Haruspex the player’s default character at launch, with the other two characters planned to be added in later updates. It seems that these plans have changed, and the creators are immediately adding another issue to the series. Does this mean that one day players will also have to purchase Pathologic 4 to learn the Outsider’s version of events? Who knows.
I wasn’t too thrilled with Pathologic 2 when I wrote our review of the first version, discovering a fascinating world bogged down by an overzealous hunger meter and other survival metrics. However, later updates allowed players to adjust the difficulty settings, which significantly improved my run. I ended up enjoying most of the game, like that wonderfully creepy moment on the abandoned train tracks.
However, many Pathologic fans didn’t care at all about the harshness of the world. Excellent Congress sniper of the left, “Hbomberguy”, presented a good argument in favor of the game despite (thanks to?) its bleakness in characteristically comprehensive video essaynever mind that he personally called me out on it, THE BIG POO POO HEAD. Will this third sequel become an extension of our beef? I hope not. I’ve had enough blood in my inbox as it is.
