Amanita Design, the developer of Samorost, Machinarium, and Botanicula, teased a new project late last year called Chuchel. It didn't reveal much at the time, except that the titular character looked very much like a furry acorn with anger management issues. Today the studio released the game's first proper teaser, and by all appearances that early impression was exactly right.
Amanita described the game's lead character, Chuchel, as "an angry hairball, basically, who is as pleasant as screaming kids and as intelligent as a potato." But he's also a hero, of sorts: He has an insatiable passion for cherries, and he'll do anything to get them.
"Chuchel looks and plays like a point-and-click adventure game—you point at things, you click on things and you solve problems—but there are no extremely complicated puzzles spread across multiple levels," Amanita said. "Although several stages are likely to squeeze Chuchel’s tiny little brain, the goal of this game is to keep you laughing (or at least smiling if you’re a grumpy person) until the very end."
It will also feature some "unconventional takes on classic games": Poor Chuchel will be "hunted by a swarm of savage Pac-Men, squashed by mean tetrominos, and threatened by invaders from space."
The teaser is very reminiscent of the outstanding Botanicula, and Chuchel will in fact be scored by DVA, the two-person Czech alt-rock group that created the Botanicula soundtrack. I think it's fair to say that it looks very much like Chuchel will remain true to the studio's well-known storytelling style: lighthearted, easy-going, and deeply bizarre. It's expected to be ready for release in early 2018.
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