HELENA: Cloud District Is a Megastructure Photography Game Built for My Interests, Releasing Next Week

Just don’t look down

Yes, I’m doing it, I’m writing about a megastructure game for the second time this week because, come on, HELENA : Cloud District just looks stunning, doesn’t it? Admittedly there’s a chance you haven’t heard of it—that’s just the way of things in this algorithmically dominated world—but let me tell you about its vast, intimidating world and the strange camera you’re equipped with to capture all the sights it holds.

In the world of HELENA : Cloud District, you come across a rotting megastructure that appears to have been long abandoned, with all sorts of strange flora scattered throughout it. In one part, it becomes something of a precision first-person platformer, as you navigate its intricately layered world with drops so steep you’d probably die before you even hit the bottom. At the centre of it all sits a computer, and it’s here that you must bring all of your photographs in order to learn more about the history of the place.

The in-game camera itself is a fascinating thing to look at—completely impossible, alien and ancient in its design. From what I can tell, it’s a sort of metallic helmet, with insect-like segments snapping into place when you’re gearing up to take a snap. You only appear to have three photo slots at any given point in time, meaning you can’t just go gallivanting around the place, trigger happy as you like. There’s a certain amount of care you have to put into positioning yourself and subsequently finding your way back to the central computer.

It’s non-linear too, with no set path you have to take, and it seems there are some neat movement mechanics as well. “Slide, hover, and glide through the structure in your own creative way in order to reach every level and get deeper into the slumbering Cloud District,” explains the game’s Steam page. Sounds like you don’t have to worry too much about that falling to your death thing, then. I’m quite enthused by what HELENA : Cloud District is putting down, and it has a release date now too: October 29th. Same day as Hypnos! I now dub October 29th megastructure day. There will not be a vote on this matter. Ahead of HELENA’s release, make sure to give it a wishlist on Steam.