Moonrise Fall appears on horizon

Written by Jack Allin — January 6, 2019 at 11:20

Losing both of one's parents in a car crash would be devastating enough, but finding yourself lost in a supernatural forest immediately afterwards is even worse. And yet, as we'll discover later this year with the release of Made From Strings' surreal Moonrise Fall, in loss we can sometimes discover new beginnings in the most unlikely of places. 

Players control a (vaguely humanoid) boy who has suffered such a tragedy and now finds himself all alone in a most unfamiliar environment. Now, "armed with a clue-filled journal, a camera, and a lantern, he must unravel the mysteries of the forest and photograph the strange creatures that reside there." As you begin to explore, gradually you will come to understand "why the boy has been trapped in this strange place and by whom."

Presented in a semi-overhead, third-person view of "caves, mines, a lumber mill, as well as otherworldly locales" in retro-styled pixel art, Moonrise Fall promises to be a "puzzle-filled world mixed with classic adventuring, exploration, and collecting." Day turns to night and back through five distinct times of day, occurring either naturally or via your control, and playing the correct song on a musical instrument called the kalimba will "call down rain, summon a strong wind, and more." You'll use journal clues to "discover and photograph the strange creatures of the forest" in your travels, and you must decipher an unknown language along the way. The experience is meant to be a leisurely and "understated" tale of "loss and finding new life inspired by real life experience of divorce."

There is no specific release date scheduled for Moonrise Fall just yet, but the game is on track to be finished sometime in 2019 for PC, with other platforms to come later. To follow its progress while you wait, check out the official website for additional details.