You might have seen it: a hauntingly realistic, rainswept vision of late-night Paisley that captivated the internet, racking up over almost half a million views online and even catching the eye of STV. Now, the digital artist known as ‘Bovine’, the creative force behind the viral sensation, is inviting you to help bring a full game inspired by this moody digital world to life with the launch of the Crystal Garden Kickstarter campaign.
With around 15 years of freelance experience in audio production, visual design, and multimedia projects for musicians, film, and commercials, Bovine began recreating favourite local locations as digital art. Testing these environments in a game engine proved “very pleasant,” sparking the idea for Crystal Garden. Now, what started as a personal exploration has, thanks to online encouragement, evolved into an ambitious game project ready for development, with your help.
‘Crystal Garden’ plunges players into what Bovine describes as “always a dark and wet time of the year on the West Coast of Scotland.” Your mission? To navigate a town eerily reminiscent of a gothic Paisley, a place “overflowing with subterranean skeletons in its antediluvian aqueducts.” With the guidance of an “elusive ectoplasm,” you’ll delve into mysteries that have been “obscured for a good reason.”
Your only sanctuary in this urban environment, unexpectedly, The Crystal Garden Chinese takeaway “long rumoured to conceal primordial powers in the fabric of its foundations, ancient things…”
This is largely a solo endeavour, and Bovine makes a direct appeal on Kickstarter: “While there are other people involved creatively at times, this project hinges solely on one person and that person is you, friend. Only you have the power to electrify this Promethean project to life with your current-cy of cold hard cash.”
Having self-funded the project until now, a successful Kickstarter campaign will be transformative. “Having this Kickstarter succeed will immediately allow me to work at a rate that can make this game not only possible but very nice indeed,” Bovine explains. The funds raised will directly support all crucial stages of production. This includes further research and modelling of the real-world locations that inspire the game’s visuals, comprehensive story, character, and puzzle development, and the production of detailed visual assets.
A significant portion will also be dedicated to crafting an authentic soundscape, covering environmental audio, music, sound effects, and voice acting. The funding will also enable the production of the game’s soundtrack and even in-game live-action video elements, promising a unique multimedia experience. Technically, the support will fuel the core construction of gameplay mechanics, coding, and debugging, alongside the ability to hire specialist audio, visual, or software freelancers to contribute to the project’s polish. The initial aim for the completed game is a release on Steam for Windows PC, with aspirations for other platforms further down the line.
For the Scottish Games Network community, the Crystal Garden Kickstarter isn’t just another indie title: it’s a fabulous example of local creativity supported by a global online community. It’s a project born from a distinct sense of place, artistic vision, and the joy of a late night trip to the local takeaway. Supporting this Kickstarter means investing in an original voice and helping to bring a uniquely Scottish experience to players.
The journey from viral video to potential cult hit game is underway, and the Crystal garden Kickstarter offers some genuinely creative ways for backers to leave their mark on this distinctive world. Pledge tiers offer the chance to have your name appear on an in-game door nameplate, a photo or image you provide used as a framed picture within a scene, or even your name or a short phrase immortalised as graffiti on a virtual wall. For those wanting a more direct presence, you could lend your voice to one of the game’s many door buzzers or even work with Bovine to have a ‘small 3D object’ of your choosing (within reason, of course!) included in the game world itself.
If you’re ready to explore the rain-soaked streets and unearth the primordial secrets hidden within a West Coast Chinese takeaway, now’s your chance to get involved.
Head over to the Crystal Garden Kickstarter page to watch the latest footage, learn more about Bovine’s vision, explore the full list of inventive rewards and their pledge amounts, and help “electrify this Promethean project to life.”