Space Boat embarks on Kickstarter

Written by Jack Allin — October 5, 2021 at 09:48

If you think the almighty dollar rules most of our own world's developed countries, wait'll you see you capitalism running amok on a galactic scale in Space Boat, an upcoming sci-fi adventure by Recombobulator Games starring an alien feline detective disguised in a humanoid mechanical suit. Perhaps it's only fitting, then, that a Kickstarter for the game has been launched in order to help finance its production.  

Players control a four-legged furry Felinien named Domino, who shares a remarkable resemblance to human cats and works for the Royal Cosmic Narwhal Police. Since your innate form is hardly conducive to operating a criminal investigation, in order to "track down an elusive shape-shifting jewel thief" aboard the titular luxury intergalactic cruise liner (a kind of "cosmic Club Med" called the Princess Andromeda), you're going to need a "playable digital puppet" to pursue your case undercover. Getting on the ship won't be easy even in disguise, however, as there's a "literal paywall" on the Jelly Shore Boardwalk, and Dale the Whale isn't about to just let a "pleb" like you access the "designated premium pass area" to continue your quest. Even when you do succeed in boarding, you're going to have to assist the "whimsical crew to survive the perils of space travel." 

Space Boat is a third-person 3D adventure whose vividly coloured early boardwalk locations are filled with "various carpet-based lifeforms." This universe was first conceived over thirty years ago by Luis Alonso, whose AAA credits include work on the likes of the Mass Effect, Dead Space, Need For Speed, and Thief series. In the debut offering from Alonso's own indie studio, everything that can be monetized is greedily over-monetized, and there may just be a "sinister antagonist" behind all the degeneracy, though what that has to do with the stolen jewel remains to be discovered. This "humorous investigative narrative game" will offer plenty of unique characters to interact with and puzzles to solve along the way, including some that involve abandoning your suit "so you can sneak through places that only a Felinien can fit."

Intended to be the start of an ongoing series while telling a complete story in its own right, Space Boat will need some help in order to get the franchise off the ground. To that end, the developer has launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise a little over $30,000 US by November 4th. If successfully funded, we should see the game released on Steam for Windows and Mac sometime before the end of 2023, with console versions possible later on. For a taste of what's in store right away, you can check out the neon-fueled demo available now on itch.io or via Steam codes available from the Kickstarter page, providing a 30-45-minute introduction to the game.