Unstable Scientific is a pixel art platformer with an emphasis on storytelling and often hilarious emergent physics gameplay.

You’re Dr. Lev Hoffman, a theoretical physicist competing for a multi-million dollar grant. But when your rival blows up your lab, you and your partner have no choice but to accept an offer to rebuild on lawless and mysterious Toromiro Island.

Toromiro is rich in absurdium, a strange mineral that can supercharge your experiment! But to collect it, you need to face down corrupted drones and rescue fellow researchers left burned in the Absurdium Rush.

You’ll have a variety of weapons at your disposal, letting you wreak utter chaos or take the non-violent way out. One even lets you rocket-jump to the skies without hurting yourself. And you can befriend the creatures using the banana gun!

There's a diverse cast of characters, from your core friends on the island to all the different researchers you get to meet in the wilds of Toromiro. Forge deep relationships and make friends with everyone you rescue, and you’ll have a cozy laboratory to come home to after each adventure.

Each character has their own story to tell, and when you help them complete their research, you also find out more about the secrets behind Toromiro Island and its strangeness. Come for the action and adventure, stay for the intricate stories, cute characters…and the science!

Will you choose to simply finish your own experiment? Or will you go further and make discoveries that will shake the entire scientific world?

Here are some of the experiences you may have while playing Unstable Scientific:

(parts of the cutscenes that you’ll encounter)

We’ve playtested Unstable Scientific with hundreds of people to work out bugs and gameplay issues (still a lot to go!) and shown it at several different events. One thing about Unstable Scientific is that it’s relatively easy to pick up, but people have a hard time setting it back down. Typically at events we have to ask players to let others have a turn!

Masha keeps the door to her art studio open for visitors, and local kids regularly wander in asking to try the game!

Showing Unstable Scientific at Seattle Indies Expo! If we weren’t so busy we would have gotten more videos…

Timeline:
2017: Casually start working on the game as a small hobby and create the core set of characters.

2018: We sort of have a playable prototype with core mechanics, enough to take it to small shows, have people try it out, and get meaningful feedback.

2019: We try and fail to get into Seattle Indies Expo. We learn a LOT.

2020: It’s the pandemic and there’s nothing to do so we just ramp up development. It’s sort of a serious hobby right now.

2022: We get into Seattle Indies Expo! We have kind of a vertical slice!

2023: Now we’re really excited so we’re effectively working on the game part-time.

Mid-2024: Completion? (If we can work on this full time!)

What we’re looking for from publishers, and what we can offer in return:

We know that there were over 1,300 2D platformers released on Steam in 2022. It’s a tough market out there. However, Unstable Scientific also overlaps with the rising genre of “cozy” games, known for building friendships, unlocking stories, and creating a home to return to after adventuring. Often cozy games focus on rustic and magical settings, but the academic dystopia theme may have a surprisingly large niche market!

Its heavily tested core loop is fluid and addictive without using any dark gameplay patterns, accessible to players of a wide range of ages and experience levels. Players as young as 6 can easily pick up the game and enjoy the action, while older players engage with the story much more. Some players enjoy facing the challenges head-on, while others choose a more careful and non-violent style of play. But the target audience that finds the story engaging gets very into it.

The handmade art and original soundtrack give Unstable Scientific a unique look and feel. Even though it’s pixel art, its style has a different focus. Both the core and side characters all have diverse backgrounds, allowing a wide range of players to find someone with whom they identify in the game.

All in all, we believe that with the right guidance and marketing, Unstable Scientific can hit the right audience and can be a successful game in your portfolio!

We’re looking for…
Funding to work on this project full time and give it the attention it needs.

Guidance and mentorship from experienced people in the industry.

Porting and localization help to reach a wider audience.

We hope you find Unstable Scientific as fun to check out as much as we enjoy making it!

Cheers!

Masha and Dustin Soodalkov

YouTube links:

Trailer: https://youtu.be/VLhH0R2-zSo

Extended gameplay version (for Seattle Indies Expo Online): https://youtu.be/xLK0ZjQQWBI