First details leak out from Trüberbrook

Written by Jack Allin — September 10, 2017 at 12:28

A remote spa in the West German countryside may sound like the ideal getaway cure for stubborn writer's block, but we'll soon discover that there's more to the titular town of Trüberbrook when the largely hand-crafted adventure is released next year.

Trüberbrook casts players in the role of an American physicist named Tannhauser, who is having trouble with his PhD thesis and seeks relief in the "ageing but beautiful health resort somewhere in the densely forested countryside of West Germany." But something about the town seems "strangely spaced out", and before long the deceptively serene setting "evolves into a puzzling sci-fi mystery." Aiding Tannhauser in his investigation is Gretchen, a "paleoanthropologist seeking to unravel the folkloristic mysteries surrounding the village," and the "enigmatic inventor Lazarus Taft, a stranded traveler yearning for home."

Created by btf, a collective of former German art students, Trüberbrook promises a distinctive aesthetic combining hand-crafted scale model sets with digitally created characters and effects, as teased in the initial promo video. Inspired by the surreal atmospheres of television series like Twin Peaks, The X-Files and True Detective, the game aims to meld elements of "German folklore with a gripping sci-fi storyline, covering universal themes like love, friendship, loyalty, rootlessness, self-discovery and dinosaurs."

With a target release date for PC and consoles tentatively set for sometime in 2018, a crowdfunding campaign is planned at some point to help get Trüberbrook to the finish line. In the meantime, you can follow the game's progress through its official website.