The Signal State Will Be Broadcasting Soon
The apocalypse is over, but the world lies in shatters, and now it is up to a few people to rebuild it. A typical trope of such post-apocalyptic scenarios is the recycling of old technologies. But did knowledge of these machines survive the disaster? In The Signal State, we take on the role of a technician who acquires this knowledge step by step.
The Signal State is a puzzle game at its core, but it also tells a story. We are supposed to repair machines on an abandoned farm to ensure our survival. The Signal State uses this for tricky logic puzzles in which we link cables and modules on a switchboard to get the proper signal and make the machines work again. This gameplay mechanic draws its inspiration from modular synthesisers.
We tried the demo and were surprised by the complexity of the gameplay. The goal of any puzzle is to route an input signal to an output socket. Depending on the objective, the source must be multiplied, reduced or amplified, which can quickly become a challenge when several signals come in; however, the feeling is all the better when there’s a crystal-clear tone at the end despite a giant tangle of cables!
The Signal State is developed for the PC by the Singaporean newcomer studio Reckoner Industries with the support of the publisher The Iterative Collective. Despite the simple starting point, the developers have planned a lot, starting with the idea of telling an exciting story about a revolution in in-game dialogues. If the more than 30 pre-made levels, including leaderboards, are not enough for you, you should be able to let off logical steam in a sandbox mode and self-built levels from the Steam Workshop.
When playing, we were particularly impressed by the excellent puzzle flow supported by the elegant design, which is strongly reminiscent of the 80s Synthie Sci-Fi drawings by the Swedish artist Simon Stålenhag.
The Signal State is slated for PC on Steam in the fourth quarter of 2021. If you like, you can try the demo there and follow the game on Twitter. A Discord community has also already been opened for you to communicate with other fans and the devs directly.
