A Fox Tale

We wishlisted this all the way back in 2021, but then mostly forgot it existed and just kind of assumed it was never gonna come out. Fast forward to today, when it's in our steam wishlist as on sale? Wait, it actually released?? A couple months ago? Heck yeah! Played through the demo, immediately went and bought the game. It feels really good to play, the controls are tight, the level design is really good. It's tough, it does _not_ go easy on you, but NOT in an unfair way. It's more "yeah you got this! give it another go!" than "hahaha you wimp" or something. And that's before getting to the art. Wow, the ART. Literally everything about it is just so well done. The colors, the animations, the little sparklies, it's just beautiful. The first world's level select picture particularly wowed me, lovely purple hues and I really like how the purple tinted the fox there. The dialogue box portraits are also outstanding. But really yeah, the whole game is. You knocked it out of the park with this one. It was so worth the wait. -- Frost

minor gameplay spoliers: this is an absolutely amazing game. the controls are simple and customizable, the music is great, and the art is absolutely beautiful. the movement is clean, and the levels, frustrating at times, are very, very well put together. 5 things to say though: 1. im a little upset that i cant have both joystick and d-pad set to movement. 2. i wish there was a quicker way to skip dialogue (the next three have a video attached) 3. the 3rd yingyang in leviathan laboratory is slightly glitchy. if you dash into the goop while standing on the ground, it doesnt let you collect it. you are required to jump first 4. you can very easily clip inside the blocks that move when you dash 5. im missing the achievement for all stars despite having them all. all levels say i have them all, but the overall file says 30/31 https://youtu.be/CkR0Tx1wI6Y

On the more relaxing side for a precision platformer, which fits the vibe well. Most rooms are simple and straightforward, with more complex ones sprinkled throughout. Overall the game plays nicely, the controls are very smooth. There are a few too many edge cases though that lead to awkward interactions making a room feel frustrating. It's not as clean as the likes of Celeste, but still definitely above average for a small indie game. The atmosphere is beautiful, though the lack of a consistent pixel size can be a bit strange sometimes, and there are a few instances where it's not clear what is or isn't a platform. But other than that the graphics are very pretty. A bit short, but still a lovely experience.

The game is overall very nice, though a bit of my experience is muddied by the fact I've played other platformers with similar mechanics (Namely, Celeste), and had the expectation that some of the mechanics might be similar off of muscle memory (The purple dash-through blocks, for example). There are some parts of the game that I find very nice, like some of the gameplay aspects and the overarching story as well, as well as how some of the collectables work (Yin-Yangs, specifically). I find that some of the collectables are TOO in-your-face and along the main pathway, to a point where it becomes more of a distraction than a side-quest to collect them. While it is understandable to make it this way due to the limited layout of the game, it causes issues in later parts of the game where the UI for collecting the Star Bits will cover parts of the level (Ruins of Elio) and make it difficult to see where you are going. Overall? Game is enjoyable and I would recommend it for casual gameplay! :)

I hate to say it, but i think this game had been abandoned. What a shame; it had some good ideas.

Fun! I will be getting a controller soon because im just not precise enough with keyboard