An old witch and the strange feathered creature which keeps her company have an oath to keep in Coven of the Chicken Foot, the fantasy puzzle-platformer Wildflower Interactive have just revealed at the Geoff Awards. Wildflower are the new studio formed by ex-The Last of Us game director Bruce Straley, and they say their debut game’s calling card is the relationship between its protagonist, Gertie, and her mate.
Basically, there’s some mysterious evil force lurking within the leafy woods and dark dungeons of the rural wilds in which these two live, and as they work together to preserve an oath, their bond’ll be tested. Straley and co say their setting “winks at the tropes of traditional fantasy adventures” and that their tale’s all about pushing you “to reconsider who the real ‘heroes’ are, and how easily stories shift when told from the margins”.
Straley himself adds that Coven of the Chicken Foot “nods at the fun and simplicity of old school games, while also evolving the pairing of storytelling and interactivity in a new, challenging way”. If all that personification didn’t give it away, the studio have aimed to bring the game’s unnamed creature to life in as dynamic a fashion as possible, with his attitude towards Gertie and abilities changing in line with how the environmentally-told story and old lady platforming progress.
The trailer makes it pretty clear that things’ll start off all hunky-dory between the aged torch-wielder and the thing which looks a bit like a big lizard got into a fight with some old pillows. Later, we can expect some tension as secrets are unearthed. Those secrets being conveyed in this case by a door that wakes up by opening a Lovecraftian eye, as if to say ‘oi, what’s all that racket?’.
To me, Coven of the Chicken Foot’s appeal is going to hinge on just how hard it can hit you in the feels. The world has some enchanting charm to it, as do the central duo, but they’ll have to prove there’s enough unique emotion here to carry interest through all the jumping over gaps and placing stuff on pillars.
Coven of the Chicken Foot’s release dateless as of right now, but you can wishlist it on Steam if you’re so inclined. Now, on to more Game Awardsing.
