Powerless

Powerless is an interactive fiction game set in London after a catastrophic solar flare cuts the city’s electricity. Electronic devices and transport no longer work, and you try to keep different Londoners alive without help from the digital world. The story explores how much society depends on electricity and what happens when communication, hospitals and running water lose power.

Survival challenges

Across 16 levels, you make decisions and control every action in narrated interactive stories. Challenges include landing a helicopter during a solar storm, delivering a baby without medical help, fighting a wounded gorilla, joining the army and becoming a sniper, escaping from prison and building a battery from scratch. The situations test your knowledge of the natural world and ask how people might survive without electricity.

Personas and choices

MAUDE (Mobile Assessment Unit of Doomsday Events), an AI, guides you through the game. You answer its psychological profiling questions, and it assigns you different Londoners, or Personas, to keep alive. Your choices can save lives or put you in danger, and your behaviour has consequences.

Each level contributes to your Survival Rating. The game assesses whether you are honest or lie, brave or avoid danger, resourceful or clueless about survival, and whether you help others or only yourself. Improving your rating unlocks new adventures and Personas. You can replay levels to raise your rating and unlock further adventures, and there are seven Personas to try to keep alive to complete the game.

Story and presentation

Powerless contains over 250,000 words of fiction, character artwork, sound design and special effects.