Fans of 2D platformers like Celeste may want to check out Greenhouse: Schism, an indie title that has recently dropped its $5 price tag and is now free for everyone. While it is clearly not as large in scope as Steam games like Celeste, it still offers an experience that fans of the genre are likely to appreciate.
Steam’s free-to-keep promotions were not exactly exciting in the second half of June. So far, July’s lineup of free Steam games also looks underwhelming, with only three games set to become 100% free. Hopefully, that changes soon, allowing PC users to claim more interesting titles on Valve’s storefront at no cost. That said, a generous solo developer has made their 2D platformer free to claim on Steam, which should help make up for the lack of additional promotions.
Steam Users Have Limited Time to Claim Free Keys for a Cozy Game, But There Is a Catch
Steam users looking for free-to-keep games can grab a key for one of five cozy games currently available at no cost, though there is a catch.
Greenhouse: Schism Used to Be a $5 Game on Steam, Now It’s Free
A couple of days after the game’s first anniversary on Steam, solo developer Volpanic! shared a community post announcing the decision to make the game free for everyone. “I’m making the game free,” their post reads, encouraging players to check out their work now that there is basically no barrier to entry. They admitted that sales were not exactly great and said that they would feel better if more people played the game than sold a couple more copies. According to SteamDB data, Greenhouse: Schism used to cost $4.99 USD, but it has now joined the roster of free-to-play indie games on Steam.
Greenhouse: Schism’s Gameplay Features
- Challenging platforming missions
- 6 boss fights
- 6 explorable areas
- Spell-casting mechanics
- Hidden secrets to discover
- A difficult NG+ mode
- Pixel-art graphics
- Retro-style music
One thing to note about Greenhouse: Schism is that it is a short indie game to beat, but it is a long ride for those looking to master it. Even developer Volpanic! admits they have not unlocked all the game’s achievements. However, the solo developer has avoided adding an easy mode to keep things as intense as possible for fans of pixel-art platformers.
Greenhouse: Schism is not demanding and can run smoothly on most low-spec PCs.
Greenhouse: Schism has only a handful of Steam reviews as of this writing, but none of them are negative. Developer Volcanic! said, “[The game] doesn’t have any negative reviews as of yet, so that’s pretty good in my book.” They also added that Greenhouse allows them to expand the project well beyond the current release. Hopefully, making the game free to play will help bring more attention to it and motivate the solo developer on their journey toward making more interesting titles.
Volpanic! explained that they created everything in the game by themselves, including the retro soundtrack. The only other person involved was an illustrator who contributed the backgrounds and some of the key art pieces. Steam has proven to be a perfect platform for solo developers, helping boost many indie projects like Schedule 1 or Hollow Knight to the top of the charts. Volpanic!’s Greenhouse: Schism is still relatively unknown compared to Steam’s biggest solo-dev hits, but it definitely deserves to be seen, especially now that it is completely free to play.
