Limbo of the Lost

This page details one or more prototype versions of Limbo of the Lost.

Watch on YouTubeLimbo of the Lost had a demo version released in 2005, containing only the Prologue, but with a number of differences compared to the final version. It was sent out as an early preview to websites focused on adventure games, such as Just Adventure. It was also available for £19.99 on a pendrive, the advertisement for which was contained in Carte Blanche, an adventure game from the same publisher.

Different main menu#

In the demo, the main menu is a scene that Briggs can walk around in, and clicking the buttons requires Briggs to walk up to them. When the main menu is first opened, he greets the player by saying "There is Destiny, and there is Fate. The choice is yours". There are two additional options: Controls and Prologue.

Different credits#

In the demo, the credits section presents the three developers as dismembered zombie heads, and shows more information when clicking their names. The final game instead uses a Lord of the Rings background and automatically cycles through text and concept art.

Controls#

This section of the main menu explains the controls. In the final game, these explanations are available only in the manual.

Prologue (a.k.a. the lore section)#

This section of the main menu provides a comprehensive explanation of the game's story. No such explanation is available in the final game, and even the manual includes only a small portion of the information presented here.

Cutscene differences#

Cutscenes are mostly the same as in the final game, but there are some subtle differences (as shown in the video linked at the top):

• Certain animations go for slightly longer, like the Arach animation shown below.
• When Nilmates does a minute-long ramble, Briggs falls asleep gradually instead of immediately.
• Edd the Head does an extra laugh at specific points, and has extra responses to re-entering the room (these can be seen in the Unused Cutscenes section on the main page).
• Cranny has an extra laugh at one point.
• Grunger has a different laugh during the cutscene of being knocked out.
• When Briggs knocks on the screen after an extended period of inactivity, the demo features one extra random animation that is not present in the final game (shown below).

Inventory differences#

The drop-down inventory has a different visual design, but the functionality remains identical.

Demo	Final

Item description differences#

When using the Look interaction on items in the inventory, the description screen looks notably different; some items have actual animations, and Briggs says a voiceline upon opening the description. One downgrade, however, is that you are unable to drop items into the center of the screen to cycle through the descriptions.

Demo	Final

Ouija Board differences#

The Ouija Board has a radically different design compared to the final game. It features an extended animation that plays only when opening it for the first time, but even the default opening animation is more elaborate (and longer) than in the final game.

Demo	Final

Compass differences#

Besides the different looks, the compass in the demo lacks the text area under it; the directions are instead shown next to the cursor.

Demo	Final

Loading and saving screen differences#

These screens look completely different in the demo, but function exactly the same. Note the typo in the load screen ("ressurection").

Demo	Final

Demo	Final

Looking out of the window#

There is a room where Briggs can look out of the window. In the demo, this is an interactable scene where the camera can be moved. In the final version, it's only a cutscene.

Demo	Final

Music#

At this point in the development, the game's composer, Marko Hautamäki, was not yet contacted to make the music for the game. This means that most of the demo relies solely on ambient sounds. There is music in the main menu, but it's mostly stolen from Clive Barker's Undying.