The brave squire is a game that jumps off the page, literally. It takes place in a fairytale world rendered in adorable two dimensions thanks to co-director and former Pokémon artist instagram.com/jamesturner_42/”>James TurnerBut at certain points, the heroic main character can venture out into the real world and solve puzzles that mix 2D and 3D in clever ways. Sometimes, you're moving objects between dimensions; other times, you're rearranging words in a book to create new outcomes. It's as cute as it is creative, and right on Sony's style. Astrobot in what is turning out to be a very good year for family gaming.
The game puts you in the role of Jot, the game’s titular brave squire, who has the unusual ability to exist outside of the book he appears in. The two worlds are drastically different: the storybook interior is bright, colorful, and simple, while the real world is appropriately dark and realistic. They’re distinct, but through Jot, the worlds intersect as he sets out to save the book from an evil wizard. Solving puzzles involves turning pages to pull out items from the past, using language to get around barriers, and occasionally boxing a bear. It’s silly and heartfelt, and at times reminiscent of the 2D segments of Nintendo classics. Super Mario Odyssey and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds.
“The idea of contrast was very important to the game.”
For Turner, the initial idea for the game came during a lull, when he had just left Pokémon Developer Game Freak, but he hadn’t yet started working on All Possible Futures, the studio he co-founded with Jonathan Biddle. “I left Game Freak and then I had nothing to do,” he says. The edge. “To fill that void, I started drawing a web comic.” That comic, called x.com/JamesTurner_42/status/1289693386849411072″>Cosmicincluded a number of characters and ideas that would eventually come to be The brave squire as her fairy tale narrative took shape.
For Turner, who publishes frequently instagram.com/jamesturner_42/p/C91eDvWqS8K/?hl=en”>Fun combined illustrations and who designed notable pokémon like Polteageist — One of the goals of the game was to create a unique clash of styles. Not only the dimensions in The brave squire Characters should play differently, but they should also look different. It's an idea that came up early in development; initially, when Jot jumped into the real world, he was cel-shaded to maintain his cartoonish style. However, over time it became clear that a more realistic, almost toy-like version of the character worked better.
Image: All possible futures
“It reduced the realism of the outside world quite significantly in a weird way,” Turner says of the cel shading. “Even though the outside world was very real, if the object you’re looking at 90 percent of the time[isn’t]it starts to affect how you see the rest of the world.” He adds that “the idea of contrast was really important to the game.”
A good example is the beginning of The brave squire When Jot searches for a bow and arrow to complete a quest, he must go through a portal into the real world, traverse a cluttered desk filled with obstacles, and then jump onto a torn-out card. Magic: The Gathering to fight an elf. When Jot finally reaches his destination, there are three distinct art styles on screen: 2D storybook, realistic 3D, and detailed fantasy art. “I thought that clash of styles would be the most amazing thing,” Turner explains.
“There is a huge gap outside of Nintendo.”
Beyond its visual aspects, The brave squire It also stands out for being an experience that works very well for all ages. The action and puzzles have enough depth to be satisfying without being intimidating to younger or less experienced players. It's like a simplified game. Zelda Adventure, with some quality-of-life features, like an optional hint system that doesn't give too much away. It's a style of gameplay that can be hard to find outside of something from Nintendo (which includes the upcoming Echoes of wisdom). But titles like Astrobot and The brave squire They are showing that it is possible for other developers too.
“There are a lot of people who want to play those games and they haven’t been given the attention they should have been,” Turner says. “There seems to be a huge void outside of Nintendo and it would be nice if we had those games on a more regular basis. There is a need for them.”
The brave squire is now available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, Xbox and PC.
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