BLACK CATGAME LABS
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BLACK CAT GAME LABS PRESENTSIn development

ALPINE

The truth is in the details.

Begin your first shift

Take your place at an analyst’s desk. Examine case files, investigate details in images and connect your findings on an analysis board. Train, specialise and move your investigation forward with limited resources.

AI-generated atmosphere study · not gameplay
PERSPECTIVEFirst person
EXPERIENCEInvestigation & intelligence analysis
DEVELOPMENTIn development
INSIDE THE INVESTIGATION

The office. The evidence. The bigger picture.

YOUR FIRST SHIFT

Your desk. Your questions.
Your investigation.

ALPINE puts you in the role of an analyst starting work at a fictional analysis centre. In first person, your office becomes the place where every part of an investigation comes together.

Read the briefings in your computer’s tasks application. Identify the questions, examine the attached material and take note of any deadline. Your desk, computer, phone, archive cabinet and analysis board are all part of the same workspace.

WORKSPACE / TASKSALPINE
INCOMING CASE

The first question.

A photograph. An unknown location. A movement to understand.

  • 01WHAT?
  • 02WHERE?
  • 03WHICH WAY?
AI-generated concept imagery + interface study · not gameplay
EXAMINE THE DETAILS

Looking is only
the beginning.

Select a specific object in an image, then decide which in-game information source could help you investigate it. A vehicle, a piece of equipment, a person or a building can each lead to a different question.

Researching the vehicle will not necessarily tell you where the photo was taken. A façade or a detail in the surroundings may be a better starting point. Choose the object and the source with your question in mind.

VISUAL ANALYSISSELECT AN OBJECT
A QUESTION TO FOLLOW

The vehicle

What kind of vehicle is it? Look for structural features that a relevant source could help identify.

A QUESTION TO FOLLOW

Its equipment

What might it carry? The equipment and individual parts may call for a different line of research.

A QUESTION TO FOLLOW

The building

Where was this photographed? Examine the façade and surrounding features for clues to the location.

IN-GAME INFORMATION SOURCES
AI-generated concept imagery + interface study · not gameplay
MAKE THE CONNECTIONS

Gather the information.
Connect it yourself.

Bring your findings to your analysis board. Arrange photographs, add your own notes and join pieces of evidence with red threads. Describe what you think connects them.

Two images of the same place, complementary information or a relationship that needs another look: your board gives the investigation a structure you can work with.

ANALYSIS BOARDRELATIONSHIPS / WORKING NOTES
IMAGE / OBJECT DETAILS
IMAGE / SURROUNDINGS
?

A connection is a question.
Find the evidence to support it.

WHERE?
Photographs + your notes + relationships
AI-generated concept imagery + interface study · not gameplay
MANAGE YOUR RESOURCES

Every enquiry
has a cost.

Decide which material deserves your attention and which source to consult next. You cannot follow every detail at once.

Energy and the searches remaining on a piece of material are separate resources. Plan around both, while keeping track of your in-game working day and any case deadline.

YOUR WORKING DAYALPINE
PLANINVESTIGATEREVIEW
01

Energy

Consider your available energy when choosing the next step.

02

Examination attempts

Each piece of material has its own remaining search allowance.

03

In-game time

Plan your working day and work towards the case deadline.

Three separate limits. One investigation.
AI-generated concept imagery + interface study · not gameplay
DEVELOP YOUR EXPERTISE

Grow into
the analyst.

Complete training and solve cases to earn XP. Progress through the skill tree and shape your expertise step by step, with fields such as cryptology and regional knowledge.

Unlocking a skill can require a level, prerequisite knowledge, skill points or in-game research time. For example, regional expertise in Rossaya has level and language requirements, and opens up regional clues and local context.

ANALYST DEVELOPMENTALPINE
TRAINING + CASESExperience / XP

Regional expertise: Rossaya

Develop regional knowledge and local context. This specialisation has level and language requirements.

Cryptology

Follow a specialisation in cryptology as you develop your analyst. Meet the requirements shown for a skill before progressing.

LevelPrerequisitesSkill pointsResearch time

Requirements vary by skill. XP, skill points and research time have different roles.

AI-generated concept imagery + interface study · not gameplay
06 / THE WORLD OF ALPINE

A fictional world.
Concrete questions.

A FICTIONAL WORLD. A HUMAN PERSPECTIVE.
AI-generated atmosphere study · not gameplay

Work through incomplete information from fictional regions and institutions, including the Northern Pact Joint Analysis Centre. Behind each case is a question you must understand before you can find the evidence to answer it.

A quiet office, physical documents and focused software keep your attention on the work. The computer, the board and the room around you belong to one investigation.

CASE STUDY / THE FIRST QUESTIONS

One photograph. A military vehicle.
Three unanswered questions.

A local account shares a photograph of a heavy military vehicle passing through a city street. No location or date is given. Other vehicles are reported to have travelled in the same direction.

Your task is to investigate the vehicle’s nature, the location and the direction of movement. Where will you begin: the vehicle, its equipment or the building behind it?

01 / IDENTIFY

What is the vehicle?

Examine its structure and equipment.

02 / LOCATE

Where was it seen?

Look for clues in its surroundings.

03 / ASSESS

Which way is it moving?

Bring the findings together before drawing a conclusion.

ALPINE / IN DEVELOPMENT

Examine the information.
Make your assessment.

A file is waiting on your desk. It does not hold every answer. But it may hold the details that help you find them.