Hello Hosts!

What would come to your mind when you think of sock puppets? Would it be super fun childhood memories with DIY tricks or creative shows with cute characters? Well, it is a different story in ‘Hello Puppets!’ as the moments the Sock Puppet AI jumped out have been recognized as the most terrifying scenes in the game by a lot of players.


The Sock Puppets show up in a few places and march around on predetermined paths. Originally, though, they were a systemic AI system that roamed around the map and were constantly hunting you. We had a version of the game running like this, and the problem honestly was that it was too scary.


You couldn’t focus on the story, or enjoy interacting with Scout, or anything, because every two seconds this Sock Puppet was bearing down on you. And even once we tuned him to be less aggressive, you knew he was close by, and it made people jumpy and uncomfortable. There’s always a balance in ‘Hello Puppets!’ between ‘ha ha!’ moments and ‘aaaaah!’ moments. The Sock Puppets pushed it too far to the latter. That’s why we tweaked it into the current version and made it “less relevant” in some plots to let you be able to focus on solving the puzzles with Scout.

Was it surprising to know that the Sock Puppets were even SCARIER during the development phase? Let us know what you think about the AI for this specific enemy on Discord[discord.gg] and Twitter!

Sincerely,
Otherworld Crew

Hello Hosts!

Happy early Thanksgiving from the Puppets crew! The Steam Awards of 2020 has started its nomination period and we would appreciate it if you can help nominate us in

.
If you've enjoyed solving complex, challenging puzzles with Scout or screaming from the pop out scares that lurk around the corners, please cast your vote! We believe we've managed to expand the boundaries of horror and humor in virtual realm, please nominate us if you do too!

Nominate Now

We appreciate your support and will continue to provide better Virtual Reality experiences to you!

Happy Thanksgiving and eat a lot!

Sincerely,
Otherworld Interactive and tinyBuild

Dear hosts,

We are back with the third DEVLOG discussing the ‘Puppet Mode’ today!

Many of you must have enjoyed fitting into small spaces and observing the studio from Scout’s perspective when there were puzzles that only Scout can solve. If you felt like you had gotten closer with Scout through this mode, then you must have done it right! For others who had to listen to Scout’s mean comments, we send our condolences but please note that it is perfectly normal.

From the very beginning, the idea of shrinking down into ‘Puppet Mode’ seemed really cool to us. It was one of the first prototypes we made. We had this room full of old assets from other games, and all you could do was walk around and shrink into ‘Puppet Mode’, but even that was super fun. And yet, for a long time, we weren’t sure it was actually gonna make it into the game, because there were so many questions that were hard to answer: once you’re in ‘Puppet Mode’, what’s fun to do there? Should you be able to do it anywhere, or only in certain spots? And how do we handle Scout in those moments, is she aware of what you’re doing and can she talk?


Eventually, we decided that letting the player go to ‘Puppet Mode’ anywhere would be way out of scope, but if they could only do it in certain spots that felt kinda lame, so we hit a middle ground: we saved it for the second half of the game. We kinda expected people to abuse ‘Puppet Mode’ constantly and try to break the game, but actually almost no one does.


If you’ve enjoyed this log, why not go back into the game and try to mess around with the mode now? We are sure Scout would love that. And as always, don’t forget to follow us on Twitter and join the Discord[discord.gg] family to discuss the game, report bugs and send us your suggestions!

Sincerely,
Otherworld Crew

Dear Hosts,

How have you been getting along with Scout so far in ‘Hello Puppets!’? Did you find the puzzles enjoyable or a little too hard/simple?

Today’s Devlog introduces how those puzzles were created during the development of the game and how they were specifically made to fit with Scout’s character and capabilities. Without further ado, let’s get started!

Trying to design puzzles for Scout and the player was an absolute bear. We got so stuck on it that we had an all-hands meeting where the entire team, even people who normally don’t do level design, locked ourselves in a room with a white board. We refused to leave until we had something. For hours, we were just stuck, because we kept trying to invent environmental puzzles that Scout could solve.


We eventually stumbled onto the idea that the only fun way to game-ify Scout is to create machines that are designed specifically FOR her, like a test. Once we had that, the art team started mocking up concepts that were just inherently funny and bizarre and felt compelling. The entire story had to be rewritten to fit it, but we made it work.


Hope you enjoyed the second Devlog on puzzle creation, stay tuned for next week’s log on ‘Puppet mode’, you may be surprised by how the mode was designed to alter your gameplay experience!

As always, don’t forget to follow us on Twitter and join the Discord[discord.gg] family to discuss the game, report bugs and send us your suggestions!

Sincerely,
Otherworld Crew

Hey Hosts!

Puppets crew here!

'Hello Puppets!' has been released on Steam for almost two weeks and thank you all for playing through the game and providing feedback! Releasing It surely made us nostalgic for the crazy days of developing it.

We have always claimed the game as a horror title with touches of comedy. For a lot of our fans, Scout was the main reason that this game can be a "comedy" as well. Her foul-mouthed character and bizarre personality was not an easy one to anticipate. To spice things up for you, here is a behind the scenes story about how Scout was born and how the whole idea of "puppet on hand" came together.


We’d kind of been thinking that hand puppets in VR had a lot of potential for a few years, and we kept looking for the right way into it. Then one day, we were working a totally unrelated project, a sort of anthology horror thing, and we stumbled on this picture that someone on the internet made of evil Muppets. They had their eyes blacked out, they looked really creepy. We started thinking about a horror adventure based around evil puppets, with one stuck on your hand talking to you, and the others stuck on other peoples’ hands who are hunting you.


This idea of taking away one of the player's hands in VR and turning it into a talking, thinking character just seemed really exciting, and nobody else had even tried it that we could find. That’s when it all started and Scout was born.

Hope you enjoyed the log, we will continue to post a series of Devlogs that show you behind the scenes snippets of how the game was inspired and created along the way, stay tuned and enjoy the show!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1426280/Hello_Puppets/

Sincerely,
Otherworld Crew

Hello hosts!

While Scout took you wandering around the Mortimer's Handeemen studio, we’ve been actively collecting your feedback and reports since the launch. Thank you for sending us the awesome ideas and bug reports, those are very helpful for us to improve on the game and make sure you have a nice journey with Scout. Please do not hesitate to keep sending anything you spot or want to share through our Twitter and Discord[discord.gg].

Now, without further ado, let’s check out the list of patch notes:

Full Patch Notes:

• Fixed issue where Scout pin wasn't attaching properly due to a null ref.
  
• Fixed save bug where Scout pin pieces weren't registering properly and the player could prematurely beat level.
  
• Added a new checkpoint before the stage main room.
  
• Fixed an electrical box save state cosmetic issue.
  
• Implemented priority checks to Scout VO lines in Riley's Lab to ensure players can progress as intended.
  
• Moved keys out of the drawer under Death machine to try to avert bug where players cannot pick up keys.
  
• Pin can no longer be removed from Scout on the Stage to avoid possible bugs with losing pin.
  
• Cosmetic: Rat Paw Prints now spawn earlier.
  
• Implemented new colliders in the Stage and the Sewers that prevent the player from accessing inaccessible areas as both Scout and the Host.
  
• Fixed issue with cranks not resetting on player death.
  
• Quietly updated appearance of a fan favorite and his shadow.
  
• Rebaked lighting for Stage level to hopefully fix lighting issues experienced by some players.
  
• Performance fix in the Sewers level that may have caused some lag.
  
• Adjusted the Rosco chase speed intensity for balance in the Sewers.
  
• Fixed a sequencing issue with the final crank that stopped players from completing the puzzle if they died the first time.

Let the ghoul times roll and have an extra spooky time in this immersive horror VR game with touches of comedy, we wish you all a happy Halloween!

Sincerely,
tinyBuild and Otherworld Crew

Hello hosts!

We’ve been looking forward to your visit! "Hello Puppets!" is now available on Steam with support of Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and Valve Index! Join this adventure in the burned down remains of an old children's show studio to unravel the mysteries behind, you’re about to get more than you bargained for.

"Hello Puppets!" Store Page

Without further ado, let’s check out what you can experience from this immersive VR horror game:

Twisted Storyline:
In 1986, a fire destroyed the studio where "Mortimer’s Handeemen," a failing children’s show starring hand puppets, was filmed. Eight people died, including the show’s creator. Ever since, rumors have swirled that the burnt-out shell of a warehouse was haunted. Play as a college reporter and break in to see if the rumors were true.


A Unique Companion Stuck On Your Hand:
A sarcastic, foul-mouthed sentient puppet named Scout will be stuck on your hand and will serve as a guide for you throughout the journey (not necessarily a reliable one). She isn’t your usual companion character: she doesn’t like you and you don’t like her, but you’ll have to work together to escape the evil cast of "Mortimer’s Handeemen." You’re on the run from psychotic puppets, and your only friend is a puppet who is, by her own account, "slightly less evil."

Don’t think of Scout as a bland character, she’s alive, and you can interact with her using revolutionary mechanics only possible in VR. She remembers how you treat her, and reacts differently to situations based on what she thinks of you.


Complex, Challenging Puzzles And High-intensity Pop Out Scares:
Remember, you are not here for sightseeing. Solve fun VR puzzles to test your ability to work with Scout. But be extra careful since you and Scout are on the run from evil sentient puppets, and they may or may not jump out and snatch your soul while you navigate your way. Try not to scream too loud!


Fun "Puppet Mode" That Alternates Gameplay Perspectives:
The "Puppet Mode" lets you transform into Scout and see the entire world from a radically different perspective. Use "Puppet Mode" to solve puzzles, escape enemies and learn secrets about the world of "Hello Puppets!"

While enjoying the game, please also remember to follow us on Twitter as Scout has messages left there for you! And don’t hesitate to send us Twitter DMs or join our Discord server to report issues, provide feedback or just show off your awesome screenshots!

Follow Us On Twitter And Join Discord:

• Twitter
  
• Discord[discord.gg]

Explore the rich lore hidden throughout the world and figure out the secrets behind this horrifying and darkly comic story, enter the game before Scout gets impatient!

"Hello Puppets!" Store Page