Handmade narrative adventure game Harold Halibut, which has been in development for more than ten years, will officially launch on 16 April 2024. The news was announced as part of the Future Games Show Spring Showcase 2024, with a fresh trailer revealing a better glimpse at the claymation-like action.
In the game, players will control Harold as he roams aboard a spaceship sunken into a strange ocean. Aboard the ship is a variety of crew members, each of whom are grappling with the nature of life. While days continue at a slow pace on board, Harold soon stumbles onto mysterious secrets, which then guide the course of the game.
“Having a release date is incredible and surreal to us!” the Slow Bros. development team said in a press release. “It represents the end of an era: The marathon of bringing this dream of ours to light. Now we can’t wait to see how it stirs players, what it makes them feel, reminds them of in their lives and maybe inspires them to do. Everyone finally gets to puppeteer Harold through this miniature world that shows our literal fingerprints which we built for them.”
Read: Harold Halibut preview – Why handmade games aren’t taking a step back in an AI-driven future
Beyond its neat plot, what makes Harold Halibut so intriguing is its art style, and the complexity of its creation.
The game has a unique stop-motion look about it, with each model in the game being 3D scanned from real life. As noted by Slow Bros., everything you see in the game is “created in the real world using classic sculpting and modelmaking techniques.” It makes Harold Halibut a real standout – and certainly a game to watch when it launches.
For now, those keen to dive in can look forward to the launch of Harold Halibut on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC (as well as via PC Game Pass) on 16 April 2024.
