Surreal cosmic adventure Genesis Noir reveals a new trailer at the PC Gaming Show

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We took our first look at Genesis Noir in early 2018, when we described it as "a stark romp through the entire universe." That's a very sweeping sort of description, isn't it? Fortunately the website at genesisnoirgame.com has a little more of a prosaic breakdown: It's "an adventure game with an emphasis on exploration, simple interactions, and generative art."

Ah, but then we're back to the weirdness. The game takes place on Earth, in our universe, and in higher dimensions, telling "a unique cosmic story" about narcissistic artist Golden Boy who loves to create and destroy, Miss Mass, an alluring jazz singer who attracts all who come close, and you, No Man, a watch peddler stuck in a deterministic hell. Your ultimate goal? Stop the Big Bang before someone gets hurt.

It all sounds a bit like something that would come from Amanita Design, the studio that made Samorost and Botanicula, and they're actually listed as inspirations for the project. So are "the abstract storytelling of Cosmicomics by Italo Calvino and the tactile gameplay of Windosill by Vectorpark," along with Sun Ra, William Blake, Alphaville, psychedelic poetry, jazz, and Neil deGrasse Tyson, if that helps give you an inkling of an idea about where it's coming from.

If not (and hey, that's totally fair), there's always the more practical approach, which is how I'm taking it: I think the new trailer revealed today at the PC Gaming Show looks really interesting, and even though I may not "get it" just yet, I'm eager to try figuring it out. Not for a while, though—a release date has not yet been set.

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Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.