Color channels
Progress in Absence of Color follows the three color channels red, green and blue. Each channel has a value from 0 to 255, as with colors on a screen. To win, the hero raises all three to their maximum (255 / 255 / 255) and defeats the Dark Ruler, who is completely black (0 / 0 / 0).
Which color needs which channels
Every color in the game belongs to a set of channels. It only appears once all channels of its set are back. Until then it stays faded.
| Color | needs |
|---|---|
| red, green, blue | its own channel |
| yellow | red and green |
| cyan | green and blue |
| magenta | red and blue |
| brown and skin tones | red and green |
| black, white, gray | nothing, always visible |
An example: with only red back, the red hues return, but wood and paths stay pale. The browns only come in with green.
How a channel comes back
As currently planned, every defeated guardian brings back one channel at once. Whether hues return gradually while you explore an area is still open. In the prototype, the recovered color spreads as a wave from a color shrine.
The channels also count in combat: a channel that is still missing plays no part there. More under light vs. darkness.
This page describes the prototype. Whatever changes on the way to the finished game will be added here.
AI notice: Written with AI (Claude) from the game's design documents. This English version is an AI translation of the German original.