Roykfern is a new point and click adventure game, being developed by Arrow Games in Dundee.
Born out of the Honours project of co-founder, Calum Robb, Roykfern bills itself as a musical narrative adventure.
Arrow Games is currently crowdfunding the game, looking for £50,000 for a full PC release. The campaign has over 40 days left to run, so there’s plenty of time (and at least one payday) to help fund the project.
Pledges start from a mere £1, with a well thought out range of tiers and rewards on offer (including a week in Dundee, which should turn a LOT of heads…), as well as stretch goals, should the project exceed it’s target.
So, what’s Roykfern all about then? According to the team:
It is a journey about self-discovery, music, dealing with mental health, and what it means to be yourself. You play Roland, an inquisitive and anxious young Roykfernian, who by accident ends up on a journey to the furthest reaches of Roykfern to find the Lord Magistrate of Music and to unlock the secrets of his past, as well as saving his beloved homeland.
Music and audio have a huge role to play throughout the game. From the history of the realm:
Long long ago, in the Kingdom of Roykfern, music was loved by everyone. However, Princess Lorfla, the firstborn child of the King was not like other children. When every other child cried, she remained silent. When every other child danced, she was confused. Whatever any other child could hear, she could not.
Heartbroken, the King called for the Magistrate of Music. The King offered him everything in exchange for his daughter’s hearing. Alas, he failed. Furious, the King decided that if his daughter cannot enjoy music, no one should. He banned music from the Kingdom and exiled the Magistrate into the distant lands of silence.
40 years later, we meet Roland, a young pyramid-shaped Roykfern. Legend has it, that Roland is the last Roykfern of his kind. Having only a family heirloom with him, he wishes to uncover his origins, and find out more about who he really is.
Arrow Games is aiming to have chapter one of the game (which will be available to everyone who donates £10 or more) in summer 2020.
The project has a lot of personal meaning for Calum and promises to be something far more interesting than many of the point and click games of the past, which were played more for laughs than emotional engagement.
You can find the Roykfern Kickstarter page here. If you can afford a quid (or more), then please consider helping the team out and funding what promises to be a musical narrative adventure.
Good luck to Arrow Games. It’s great to see a young team with ambition trying something new and different.