Here’s an indie title you might find interesting: For My Brother, the latest effort by indie developer Crooked Tree Studios, has begun its run on Kickstarter to raise $150,000. A 2D puzzle platformer built with the Unreal 4 Engine, the game looks to be a thoughtful and visually striking entry to its genre.
For My Brother casts the player as a young girl who, for reasons currently unknown, must defeat a series of monsters and inherit their powers in an effort to save her brother. The twist is that as she gains these powers, she also becomes less human and less recognizable, most notably to her brother.
The game also features a striking visual design, drawing heavily from Insular Art, a style of art from the early Romanization of the British Isles that is very intricate and imaginative. The game will also be 3D, but will be set on a 2D plane.
The game’s soundtrack will be handled by Machinae Supremacy, a Swedish rock group that blends various subgenres of heavy metal with the nostalgic sounds of 1980s videogames.
Gameplay will largely revolve around platforming and puzzle solving in an “enemy-sparse environment with epic bosses,” with the game taking its cues from Shadow of the Colossus, Megaman, and Super Metroid. As the player character defeats bosses, she gains new abilities that allow for a variety of new gameplay choices.
With 28 days to go, For My Brother has so far amassed $12,109 of its $150,000 goal, so there’s still plenty of time. Kickstarter backers will be rewarded with a variety of gifts, ranging from having their names in the credits to keychains and plush dolls to laser-cut wood scenery from the game.
Crooked Tree Studios consists of eight individuals and are currently working on Throw Trucks With Your Mind, game that utilizes the NeuroSky Mindwave, a headset that translates electrical signals from one’s brain to gameplay input. The game had a successful Kickstarter run and recently achieved Beta status.