.:Below and Beneath:.

Gruene Grotte unten

.:The Project:.

Below & Beneath is a classical 3d-action-adventure game with roleplaying elements. The focus is on exploration and close-combat action. Every enemy has different abilities and every weapon the player finds demands its own fighting style for always new battle situations. The game was created by students of the second, third and fourth semester in a timespan of 15 months at Games Academy, Berlin.

The player will be drawn into the game world through a breathtaking setting and immersive sound design. Furthermore, collecting items and managing them in the inventory is another challenge, because the player has to consider the realistic limitations and thus decide how much and what sorts of equipment he wants to bring along.

  • Explore the luminescent cave world of Naree'kor as Vespek from the race of Acari.
  • The unusual inventory system allows you to stow away items fast and easily within realistic limitations.
  • Use the fantastic Acuesthesia of the Acari to detect hidden enemies and confuse them with powerful Acoustic Blasts.
  • No preset character roles. With the choice of your equipment, decide if you want to focus on close-combat, ranged combat, magical powers or a combination of the three - Find your own personal style!
 
Feuersturm

.:The Story:.

You need to understand that Naree'kor once was a prospering world full of life. A hundred thousand years ago a huge war was fought there between the Old Powers, battled with forbidden magic. The forces of evil were vanquished and the five demons of Tuuu'r banned into magic stones.
The price however was high: only few could escape the firestorm scorching the surface of Naree'kor over decades, transforming the world into a barren wasteland. The climate changed and forced the survivors into the giant underground caves. New life flourished and for thousands of years, no creature has ever been outside the caves and caverns of Naree'kor. But most things are not meant to last. The breeze of change lies in the air.

But for now, everything seems peaceful in the caverns of Naree’kor. Join Vespek, a young female Acari with the passioned heart of an adventurer, when her once sheltered live suddenly changes into an endangered journey.

Reteids Raum
 

Strange things start to happen and it’s up to Vespek to find the cause behind it. This is the moment where players pick up the game. But before we get too much into teasing the storyline, we prefer to give you some more insight into Vespeks race, the Acari, and into other creatures you will find in Below and Beneath.

 
Gruene Grotte oben

.:The Acari:.

The Acari are peaceful people of native herbivores. They live in small groups spread across the caves. The Acari are highly spiritual and usually settle close to large blue lucent crystals from which they believe all living organisms draw their vital force. Their housings are usually located aloft, built into huge stalactites, to protect themselves from their enemies.

Acari are humanoid in appearance with stretched heads and long ears. They have two arms and two legs, with four fingers at each hand and cleaved hooves instead of feet. Acari are mammals and have blue or green skin with spots and patterns on it. Compared to the other species of Naree'kor, Acari are not the strongest of creatures. Instead they prevail through their skills and craftsmanship in trade, agriculture and forging.


.:Komos:.

Komos are a very common species in the caves of Naree'kor. They are up to half a meter in height and look like a mix between frog and lizard. Komos usually live in packs and hunt other creatures up to their own size. They have long legs, allowing them to make long leaps and dig their caves deep into the walls. Blue crystals have a calming effect on Komos. That’s why Acari often carry rods decorated with those crystals when they need to work near a Komo den.

Komos are relatively harmless for the other species as long as they are larger, however when attacked, Komos know how to defend themselves with their razorsharp jaws and claws.

.:The Nyctalus:.

Those creatures are a tribe of primitive insectoids living in large groups in the deeper regions of Naree’kors caverns. These pretty aggressive carnivores show no mercy if the opposite looks tasty. With their strong legs, sharp claws and hefty tusks, they are formidable hunters. Despite their heavily stomach-influenced behaviour, the Nyctalus are also pretty intelligent. They fight strategic in groups, some bigger specimen of them even use weapons against stronger enemies. They are neither taken by surprise nor avoided easily.

There are two known species of Nyctalus. The smaller ones with two arms and two legs that look a bit like a giant mantis, and the bigger ones with two arms and four legs, that resemble more a centaur.