<s>
Horace	B-Application
is	O
a	O
2019	O
video	O
game	O
developed	O
by	O
British	O
indie	O
developers	O
Paul	O
Helman	O
and	O
Sean	O
Scaplehorn	O
,	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
505	O
Games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
originally	O
launched	O
for	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
on	O
July	O
19	O
,	O
2019	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Switch	I-Application
port	O
released	O
on	O
October	O
21	O
,	O
2020	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
is	O
also	O
set	O
to	O
release	O
for	O
PlayStation	B-Operating_System
4	I-Operating_System
and	O
Xbox	B-Device
One	I-Device
on	O
February	O
28	O
,	O
2023	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Players	O
control	O
the	O
titular	O
Horace	B-Application
,	O
a	O
sentient	O
robot	O
who	O
is	O
adopted	O
by	O
a	O
wealthy	O
British	O
family	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
a	O
period	O
of	O
dormancy	O
,	O
Horace	B-Application
is	O
reactivated	O
and	O
finds	O
himself	O
searching	O
for	O
a	O
sense	O
of	O
purpose	O
in	O
a	O
war-torn	O
post-apocalyptic	O
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
gameplay	O
of	O
Horace	B-Application
primarily	O
features	O
action-adventure	O
and	O
platform	O
game	O
elements	O
,	O
with	O
guided	O
non-linearity	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
utility-gated	O
exploration	O
and	O
progression	O
typical	O
of	O
the	O
Metroidvania	O
subgenre	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Horace	B-Application
was	O
met	O
with	O
a	O
generally	O
positive	O
critical	O
reception	O
for	O
both	O
PC	O
and	O
console	O
platforms	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Horace	B-Application
is	O
presented	O
as	O
a	O
story-driven	O
side-scrolling	O
video	O
game	O
with	O
2D	O
pixel	O
art	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
order	O
to	O
complete	O
objectives	O
and	O
progress	O
through	O
the	O
story	O
,	O
players	O
must	O
navigate	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
title	O
character	O
,	O
a	O
sentient	O
robot	O
named	O
Horace	B-Application
,	O
through	O
a	O
labyrinthine	O
series	O
of	O
rooms	O
presented	O
as	O
a	O
platform	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Acquiring	O
key	O
items	O
or	O
ability	O
upgrades	O
for	O
Horace	B-Application
enable	O
players	O
to	O
explore	O
areas	O
that	O
were	O
previously	O
impossible	O
to	O
reach	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
platform	O
gameplay	O
of	O
Horace	B-Application
is	O
characterized	O
by	O
fine	O
control	O
and	O
careful	O
timing	O
,	O
as	O
the	O
player	O
guides	O
Horace	B-Application
into	O
running	O
and	O
jumping	O
over	O
hazardous	O
obstacles	O
like	O
trap-lined	O
ceilings	O
and	O
spike-filled	O
ravines	O
found	O
throughout	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
many	O
levels	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Prior	O
to	O
its	O
ending	O
,	O
Horace	B-Application
can	O
be	O
continuously	O
played	O
without	O
triggering	O
a	O
"	O
game	B-Application
over	I-Application
"	O
scenario	O
:	O
whenever	O
Horace	B-Application
dies	O
,	O
he	O
is	O
immediately	O
transported	O
back	O
to	O
the	O
last	O
checkpoint	O
within	O
the	O
same	O
room	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additional	O
orb-like	O
"	O
shields	O
"	O
or	O
hit	O
points	O
collected	O
by	O
the	O
player	O
allow	O
Horace	B-Application
to	O
survive	O
what	O
is	O
otherwise	O
a	O
lethal	O
hit	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
predominantly	O
optional	O
,	O
a	O
few	O
sections	O
of	O
Horace	B-Application
require	O
the	O
successful	O
completion	O
of	O
a	O
mini-game	O
before	O
players	O
are	O
allowed	O
to	O
progress	O
through	O
the	O
story	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Minigames	O
may	O
involve	O
gameplay	O
elements	O
such	O
as	O
fighting	O
,	O
shooting	O
,	O
racing	O
,	O
flying	B-Application
sequences	I-Application
,	O
and	O
rhythm	O
action	O
sequences	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
optional	O
objective	O
for	O
players	O
to	O
complete	O
is	O
to	O
have	O
Horace	B-Application
clean	O
up	O
at	O
least	O
1	O
millions	O
units	O
of	O
rubbish	O
by	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
end	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Horace	B-Application
was	O
primarily	O
developed	O
by	O
Paul	O
Helman	O
across	O
seven	O
years	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Three	O
years	O
after	O
the	O
development	O
of	O
Horace	B-Application
commenced	O
,	O
Helman	O
received	O
some	O
assistance	O
from	O
programmer	O
Sean	O
Scaplehorn	O
,	O
who	O
helped	O
create	O
a	O
game	O
demo	O
for	O
a	O
conference	O
in	O
London	O
which	O
drew	O
the	O
attention	O
of	O
some	O
publisher	O
representatives	O
in	O
attendance	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
505	O
Games	O
eventually	O
approached	O
Helman	O
with	O
a	O
publishing	O
deal	O
;	O
the	O
company	O
assigned	O
Helman	O
a	O
producer	O
and	O
allowed	O
him	O
creative	O
freedom	O
to	O
develop	O
Horace	B-Application
for	O
four	O
years	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
of	O
the	O
major	O
influences	O
for	O
Horace	B-Application
included	O
Helman	O
's	O
past	O
work	O
experiences	O
with	O
the	O
Die	B-Application
Hard	I-Application
Trilogy	I-Application
as	O
a	O
one-time	O
employee	O
of	O
Probe	O
Entertainment	O
;	O
the	O
development	O
of	O
a	O
video	O
game	O
called	O
Boom	O
TV	O
which	O
was	O
eventually	O
canceled	O
as	O
a	O
result	O
of	O
the	O
September	O
11	O
attacks	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
presence	O
of	O
the	O
World	O
Trade	O
Center	O
buildings	O
as	O
a	O
destructible	O
environmental	O
element	O
;	O
and	O
the	O
sights	O
and	O
surroundings	O
of	O
the	O
industrial	O
town	O
of	O
Sittingbourne	O
where	O
Helman	O
resides	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
scope	O
and	O
scale	O
of	O
the	O
Final	B-Application
Fantasy	I-Application
role-playing	O
game	O
franchise	O
informed	O
Helman	O
's	O
desire	O
to	O
make	O
an	O
"	O
arty	O
platformer	O
"	O
which	O
gradually	O
expands	O
into	O
a	O
sprawling	O
in-game	O
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
plot	O
of	O
Horace	B-Application
,	O
a	O
satirical	O
story	O
about	O
a	O
robot	O
who	O
is	O
unwittingly	O
elevated	O
into	O
a	O
prominent	O
public	O
figure	O
and	O
is	O
attempting	O
to	O
reunite	O
with	O
individuals	O
he	O
consider	O
to	O
be	O
his	O
family	O
,	O
is	O
inspired	O
by	O
the	O
story	O
arc	O
of	O
the	O
protagonist	O
of	O
the	O
1979	O
film	O
Being	O
There	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
self-professed	O
pop	O
culture	O
enthusiast	O
,	O
Helman	O
promoted	O
Horace	B-Application
as	O
a	O
game	O
that	O
appeals	O
to	O
nostalgia	O
:	O
he	O
intentionally	O
seeded	O
numerous	O
cultural	O
references	O
or	O
in-jokes	O
to	O
classical	O
music	O
,	O
cinema	O
and	O
video	O
games	O
throughout	O
the	O
in-game	O
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Windows	O
version	O
of	O
Horace	B-Application
was	O
launched	O
on	O
July	O
19	O
,	O
2019	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
port	O
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Switch	I-Application
was	O
released	O
on	O
October	O
21	O
,	O
2020	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
limited	O
physical	O
release	O
for	O
Horace	B-Application
was	O
available	O
through	O
Super	O
Rare	O
's	O
website	O
,	O
limited	O
to	O
a	O
purchase	O
of	O
two	O
copies	O
per	O
person	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
review	B-Application
aggregator	I-Application
Metacritic	O
,	O
both	O
PC	O
and	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Switch	I-Application
versions	O
of	O
Horace	B-Application
has	O
received	O
generally	O
favorable	O
reviews	O
.	O
</s>
