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Game in early development. Right now have a stalker-placeholder names and lore, but will likely to change soon to match the actual lore I've planned for it.

Made with TMEngine for the Wasteland Game Jam #1

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The G.R.A.Y. Zone

☢️☢️☢️☢️☢️☢️

A terminal-based survival adventure set in a radioactive wasteland. Navigate the Zone, manage your radiation exposure and psychological stress, and escape before the contamination claims you.

THE ZONE AWAITS

You stand at the checkpoint gate, armed guards behind you and the Zone ahead. Your mission: retrieve a valuable artifact from the anomaly fields and escape with your life. But the Zone doesn't forgive mistakes. Every step increases your radiation exposure. Every dark tunnel strains your sanity. Every minute that passes brings you closer to death.

CONTROLS

Everything work brought the terminal: type help for starting list of commands

Type commands in the terminal (north/south/east/west to move, "use [item]" to interact, "talk [npc]" to speak with characters). Access your inventory, map, and notes via the overlay butto

ns.

SURVIVAL MECHANICS

Track two critical meters that determine your fate:

RADIATION (0-10) ☢️: Constant exposure accumulates as you explore contaminated areas. Enter anomaly fields, industrial yards, and metro tunnels at your own risk. Radiation increases automatically over time—the Zone is always hungry. Reach 10 and you collapse, another victim claimed by the wasteland.

PSYCHOLOGICAL STRESS (0-10): The darkness presses in. Night brings nightmares. Dark tunnels without light drive you toward madness. Zone artifacts whisper in your mind. Manage your mental state or lose yourself to the Zone's psychological warfare.

EXPLORATION & RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Navigate 16 interconnected locations through a text-based terminal interface. Each area presents unique dangers and opportunities:

- Search abandoned cars, ruins, and caches for supplies
- Interact with NPCs: guards, veteran stalkers, desperate scavengers, underground traders
- Collect essential items: bolts for testing anomalies, rations to maintain sanity, medkits for emergency treatment, flashlights for dark areas, gasmasks for radiation protection
- Use your Geiger counter to assess danger levels
- Find the keycard and zone artifact required for escape

ITEM USAGE

Your survival depends on smart resource management:

- BOLTS: Test anomaly fields before entering. Required to safely collect artifacts.
- RATIONS: Consume to reduce psychological stress by 2. Essential for maintaining sanity.
- MEDKIT: Emergency treatment that reduces radiation by 2 and stress by 1. One-time use.
- FLASHLIGHT: Illuminate dark metro tunnels and reduce psychological strain. Passive protection in dark areas.
- GASMASK: Toggle on/off to reduce radiation exposure by 50% in contaminated zones.
- GEIGER COUNTER: Check radiation levels in your current location and monitor your accumulated exposure.

TIME-BASED DANGER

The Zone never sleeps. Radiation accumulates every 60 seconds, everywhere. Nighttime (20:00-05:00) brings additional psychological stress every minute. Plan your route carefully—time is not your friend.

WIN CONDITION

To escape the Zone, you must:
1. Find the access keycard (hidden somewhere in the underground of the zone)
2. Collect a zone artifact from the anomaly field (requires bolts to test safely)
3. Reach the outer checkpoint with both items

Fail to manage your radiation or psychological stress, and the Zone keeps what it claims.

FEATURES

- Terminal-based text adventure with atmospheric visuals
- 16 interconnected locations to explore
- Dual survival system: radiation and psychological stress
- Time-based passive hazards
- NPC interactions and trading
- Inventory management with consumable resources
- Multiple endings based on your choices
- CRT effect and visual atmosphere
- Interactive map, inventory, and notes systems

The Zone doesn't forgive. The Zone doesn't forget. Will you escape, or become another statistic in the wasteland? ☢️