''J.U.L.I.A.'' is a 2012

indie video game An indie game, short for independent video game, is a video game typically created by individuals or smaller development teams without the financial and technical support of a large game publisher, in contrast to most "AAA" (triple-A) games. ...

developed by

CBE Software CBE Software is an indie video game developer based in the Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germa ...

. It is an

adventure game An adventure game is a video game genre in which the player assumes the role of a protagonist in an interactive story driven by exploration and/or puzzle-solving. The genre's focus on story allows it to draw heavily from other narrative-based m ...

with a heavy emphasis on puzzles,

mini-games A minigame (also spelled mini game and mini-game, sometimes called a subgame or microgame) is a short game often contained within another video game. A minigame contains different gameplay elements, and is often smaller or more simplistic, than th ...

and menu-based interfaces. The game is set in

2430 In contemporary history, the third millennium of the anno Domini or Common Era in the Gregorian calendar is the current millennium spanning the years 2001 to 3000 (21st to 30th centuries). Ongoing futures studies seek to understand what ...

when a scientific expedition is sent to a distant

star system A star system or stellar system is a small number of stars that orbit each other, bound by gravitational attraction. A large group of stars bound by gravitation is generally called a '' star cluster'' or ''galaxy'', although, broadly speakin ...

Story

The game centers on three characters –

Astrobiologist Astrobiology, and the related field of exobiology, is an interdisciplinary scientific field that studies the origins, early evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe. Astrobiology is the multidisciplinary field that investig ...

Rachel Manners, the ship's artificially intelligent computer J.U.L.I.A. and a remote-controlled landing craft MOBOT. Rachel is awakened by J.U.L.I.A. from cryogenic sleep and finds out that other members of the expedition are dead. She starts to investigate what happened. It takes her all over the solar system. She is helped by MOBOT who provides an exploration on

planet A planet is a large, rounded astronomical body that is neither a star nor its remnant. The best available theory of planet formation is the nebular hypothesis, which posits that an interstellar cloud collapses out of a nebula to create a ...

s and by J.U.L.I.A. who helps her with multiple puzzles.

Reception

The game received mixed reviews from critics who praised the story, puzzles, graphics and music, but criticized its gameplay, which many found boring. The game earned two Aggie Awards nominations in 2012. It was nominated in category for the best character (for character of MOBOT) and the best gameplay. It won neither.

Related games

spin-off Spin-off may refer to: *Spin-off (media), a media work derived from an existing work *Corporate spin-off, a type of corporate action that forms a new company or entity * Government spin-off, civilian goods which are the result of military or gove ...

game, ''J.U.L.I.A. Untold'', was later released. The game starts with discovering a partially destroyed backup database. Developers later started to work on ''

J.U.L.I.A. Among the Stars ''J.U.L.I.A. Among the Stars'' is a 2014 video game by CBE Software. It is a remake of '' J.U.L.I.A.'', featuring improved graphics, a different gameplay and an expanded story. Gameplay J.U.L.I.A. is an interfaced based point and click adventure ...

''. It was originally planned to be the Enhanced Edition of the game but thanks to success on Indiegogo, it became a remake with much different gameplay and story. The release date was 12 October 2014.

References

{{Reflist, 30em

External links

CBE Software site
2012 video games Adventure games CBE Software games Indie games Linux games MacOS games Puzzle video games Science fiction video games Single-player video games Video games developed in the Czech Republic Video games featuring female protagonists Windows games