Peripeteia (video game)

Peripeteia
Peripeteia box-art on Steam
DeveloperNinth Exodus
PublisherNinth Exodus
Programmers
WriterSnake (formerly)[2][3]
Composers
  • Ed Harrison (aka 0edit)
  • Bogie
  • Daungreid[2]
  • Cynthoni (fka Sewerslvt; featured)
EngineUnity
PlatformMicrosoft Windows
Release
  • Early access
  • 21 February 2025
GenresAction role-playing, immersive sim, first-person shooter, stealth
ModeSingle-player

Peripeteia is an upcoming indie immersive sim developed by independent, Polish game studio, Ninth Exodus.[1][4] The player controls Marie, a superhuman cyborg with amnesia, looking for a secret bunker in a post-Soviet cyberpunk Poland.[5] It was released into Steam Early Access on 21 February 2025.

Gameplay

As an immersive sim, levels in Peripeteia can be completed several different ways depending on the actions of the player.[4] Non-player characters give the player missions in exchange for information or items, which ultimately further the main goal of reaching a secret bunker outside of the city.[6]

Gameplay mechanics include:

  • A free-form grid inventory system, allowing players to place items in their inventory in a number of orientations and positions.[7]
  • Cybernetic implants which can be activated at will using the function keys.[8]
  • Semi-realistic firearm reloading, requiring manual replenishing of empty weapons in the inventory.[7]
  • A timed hacking minigame, which requires players to guess a password using a heat map-style keyboard display.[9]
  • Climbing and physics mechanics.[9]
  • Light/sound stealth mechanics.[7]

Plot

In the mid-late 20th century, the Cold War escalated into a third world war that ended in a nuclear holocaust, devastating the entire planet. Despite nearly every major population center in the world being hit by nuclear bombs, a large portion of Poland, including Warsaw, was left relatively untouched. The destruction of the former world powers (namely NATO and the Soviet Union) left a large power vacuum in Europe, which would be promptly be filled by the newly formed "Polish Solidarity Republic" (PSR), which rose from the ashes of the Polish People's Republic and the Polish Catholic Church.[7]

In the wake of the nuclear war, a large expanse of Eastern Europe, dubbed the "International Disputed Zone" (IDZ), was claimed by all three of the surviving nations of the war; the PSR to the north, NATO to the west, and the "Second Union" (an attempted rebirth of the Soviet Union) to the east.[10] The PSR was able to easily claim and occupy large regions of the IDZ, though true control over these regions is doubted by many, as groups of both Second Unionist separatists and the followers of a counter-culture movement dubbed the "Joy Cult" threaten the temporary stability.

All the while, cybernetic implants, originally developed as prosthetics for soldiers, had become extremely popular, as several world armies began to shift towards cybernetic bio-computer warfare. Moments before being dismantled for parts by a black-market scrapper, Marie, a cybernetic super-soldier wakes up in a trash heap. She doesn't remember who she is or how she ended up there, but she quickly manages to get the hang of her implants, of which includes a spy drone, enhanced movement, and night vision.[8]

The rest of Peripeteia's plot follows Marie, as she navigates through the world on a journey to a location from her only other remaining memory: an elusive Soviet bunker, filled with strange and futuristic technology.[10]

Development

While the staff of Ninth Exodus does a majority of the development for the game, Peripeteia has had major contributions from other members of the indie developer community.[2][11] One example of this is the game's dialogue font, White Rabbit (by Matthew Welch),[12] which was given a Slavic language overhaul by several members of the community, allowing it to properly display Polish and Cyrillic characters.[13]

Early development

Peripeteia began as a game jam project in November 2019. The founders of Ninth Exodus reached out to other developers in their circles to refine it.[11] The "Unveiled" demo was released on 29 November 2020, containing a significantly polished first level and new characters.[14]

Crowdfunding

On 14 August, 2021, a Kickstarter fundraiser was created to help fund Peripeteia with an initial goal of €10,000.[15] Three days later, on 17 August, the initial goal was reached and new stretch goals were unveiled.[16] Over the next month, more than €37,000 was pledged by the community, reaching all ten of the stretch goals.[17] On 18 August, a revised version of the Peripeteia demo was released on Steam.[15]

Early-access

On 21 February 2025, Peripeteia was released into early access on Steam by Ninth Exodus, featuring 8 levels.[18][19]

Reception

PC Gamer's Joshua Wolens said that Peripeteia "feels a little like the beautiful mutant hybrid of Stalker and Deus Ex," owing to its immersive sim roots.[6] PCGamesN's Oisin Kuhnke said "it also feels like the original Thief, especially given its themes of authoritarian government, and levels built around verticality."[20]

Eurogamer's Lewis Gordan, while criticizing Peripeteia for its bugs and poor enemy AI, praised that "the moments this game conjures as you navigate the various strata of its crumbling, vertiginous megacity, stumbling across sights capable of filling you simultaneously with dread and awe are superbly powerful."[18]

In February 2025, RPGFan's Ben Love elaborated on the lacking AI in Peripeteia, stating that enemies often "become invulnerable, fall through the floor, or otherwise exhibit strange errors that break immersion and ruin a carefully planned attempt at stealth." Love warned that potential players "may feel this diamond in the rough requires a bit more polish and may want to wait until the game is closer to full release to jump in."[7]

Accolades

YearAwardCategoryResultRef.
2022 IndieDB Players Choice - Best Upcoming Indie Won [21]
2025 Players Choice - Indie of the Year Won [22]

References

  1. 1 2 Ninth Exodus (n.d.). "Peripeteia Presskit". 90s.graphics. Ninth Exodus. Archived from the original on 14 June 2026. Retrieved 14 June 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Ninth Exodus (n.d.). "About the devs". 90s.graphics. Ninth Exodus. Archived from the original on 14 June 2026. Retrieved 14 June 2026.
  3. 1 2 Snake; Frankenstein Radio Studios (19 May 2026). "Current status of the Patreon and what's next for it and for Peripeteia:". Patreon. Archived from the original on 12 June 2026. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
  4. 1 2 Vaughan, Andrew (5 May 2026). "10 Hidden Gem Indie Games Everyone Should Play at Least Once". CBR. Valnet Publishing Group. Archived from the original on 5 May 2026. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
  5. ↑ Ninth Exodus (n.d.). "Peripeteia; an indie immersive sim". 90s.graphics. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  6. 1 2 Wolens, Joshua (28 Feb 2025). "I became a domestic terrorist to steal a lightbulb in the best immersive sim I've played this Steam Next Fest—and it isn't even a Next Fest demo". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 7 Mar 2025. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Love, Ben (21 February 2025). "Peripeteia Hands-On: An Engaging and Promising Cyberpunk World". RPG Fan. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  8. 1 2 SomeAlcoholic [@somealcoholic9916] (1 Jun 2025). An Immersive Sim Where You're the Last Anime Girl in a Cyberpunk City | Peripeteia Review. YouTube. Retrieved 12 Jun 2026.
  9. 1 2 Macgregor, Jody (19 Sep 2021). "Peripeteia is an immersive sim where you play 'living military surplus' in near-future Poland". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 21 Sep 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2026.
  10. 1 2 Ninth Exodus (n.d.). "About the game". 90s.graphics. Ninth Exodus. Archived from the original on 14 Jun 2026. Retrieved 20 Jun 2026.
  11. 1 2 Wery, Jackson (2 Sep 2021). "Peripeteia Coming to Consoles". Dread Central. Archived from the original on 12 Jun 2026. Retrieved 15 Jun 2026.
  12. ↑ Welch, Matthew (n.d.). "White Rabbit". I Shot the Serif. Square Gear Productions. Archived from the original on 14 Aug 2020. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
  13. ↑ Ninth Exodus (28 Mar 2026). "20260328.19006". Peripeteia Steam News. Valve Corporation. Archived from the original on 12 June 2026. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
  14. ↑ Shodanon (29 Nov 2020). "Peripeteia by Shodanon, Eighth Exodus". Itch.io. Itch.io. Archived from the original on 29 Nov 2020. Retrieved 14 June 2026.
  15. 1 2 Ninth Exodus (14 Aug 2021). "The PERIPETEIA Kickstarter Campaign has begun!". Peripeteia Steam News. Valve Corporation. Archived from the original on 19 Mar 2025. Retrieved 20 June 2026.
  16. ↑ Ninth Exodus (17 Aug 2021). "PERIPETEIA: NOW 100% FUNDED ON KICKSTARTER". Peripeteia Steam News. Valve Corporation. Archived from the original on 5 Mar 2025. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  17. ↑ Ninth Exodus (14 Sep 2021). "PERIPETEIA Kickstarter Campaign closes at an amazing 370% funded!". Peripeteia Steam News. Valve Corporation. Archived from the original on 26 Feb 2025. Retrieved 20 June 2026.
  18. 1 2 Gordon, Lewis (21 Feb 2025). "Peripeteia offers beguiling, maddening cyberpunk beauty". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 21 Feb 2025. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
  19. ↑ Nikolaev, Vladislav (23 Feb 2025). "Cyberpunk Immersive Sim Peripeteia Launches in Steam Early Access". VGTimes. Archived from the original on 12 June 2026. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
  20. ↑ Kuhnke, Oisin (21 Feb 2025). "If you miss Deus Ex and retro Thief, new stealth FPS Peripeteia is made for you". PCGamesN. Archived from the original on 21 Feb 2025. Retrieved 16 June 2026.
  21. ↑ IndieDB; Kralich/David (27 Dec 2022). "Players Choice - Best Upcoming Indie 2022". IndieDB. DBolical Pty Ltd. Archived from the original on 27 Dec 2022. Retrieved 14 June 2026.
  22. ↑ Reismanis, Scott; IndieDB (28 Dec 2025). "Players Choice - Indie of the Year 2025". IndieDB. DBolical Pty Ltd. Archived from the original on 28 Dec 2025. Retrieved 14 June 2026.
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