Factsheet

Developer:
Tiny Red Camel
Based in Copenhagen, Denmark

Release date:
May, 2018

Platforms:
single player
PC / Mac

Website:
shrugisland.com

Regular Price:
-

Description

Everything is alive, but how do you talk to it? Shrug Island is a hand-drawn musical adventure game set in the inviting world of shapeshifting beings called the Shrugs. An episodic story of a group of friends seeking to find their places in an unpredictable family, and the seasonal reawakening of a powerful dream. A puzzling exploration inspired by nordic landscapes and folk patterns across the world, an artful experience between Flower, Machinarium, and Miyazaki films, Shrug Island is a personal fusion of genres crafted by a small team of music and nature lovers.

History

Early History

The Shrug characters were imagined by Alina Constantin to embody the enthusiasm and wonder of being a child in nature and engender dialogues around themes of connection, community and change. Their world was introduced in her animated film, Shrug, which won a Junior Jury Annecy Award in 2009. Following a period of clay house building in Danish ecovillages, she returned to the Shrugs in 2011 with the first ideas for puzzles and conflicts that would form the basis of an adventure game. With support from the Danish Film Institute, lessons from game jams and an art residency at Viborg’s Open Workshop, Alina experimented with bridging aesthetic narrative and game mechanics. The Danish indie community got involved, with developers Amazu Media and Nicklas Nygren collaborating with her in developing and releasing prototypes such as the mini-game, Shrug Song.

Shrug Island Production

The next steps came with a crowdfunding campaign so the production of Chapter 1 of Shrug Island could begin in earnest. Michael G. Rose and Alina connected from two sides of the successful Kickstarter over tweets on composition. They met offline over pancake batter, improvised music to a screening of a Shrug Song, recording old oaks in the forest, and a friendship ensued. With a diverse experience from classical performer to research in digital audio and game technology, Michael provided an ideal balance and in September 2014 they began working together as Tiny Red Camel. Milos Jovanovic, Serbian programmer with a degree in tropical forestry joined the unusual duo when Tiny Red Camel contracted Borg Interactive to build the game. This trio of programmer, musician and artist is the international team behind Shrug Island Chapter 1 to be released in 2017.

Chapter 1

Play as two separated friends, Li and Shri, as they reconnect with the living home they've been away from for a season. Switch between them, discovering their abilities to explore and change the Island. Shri transforms and moves his surroundings by playing music. Li reveals a hidden layer of the world where forgotten things lie broken, and puts them back together. As a strange call resonates throughout the land, you use their different skills to awaken the Island and its people on their path towards each other.

Features

  • Mysterious shape and music puzzles
  • Organic soundscapes and dynamic voices
  • Magical character animations in a handdrawn style
  • Dreamy exploration of a responsive storyworld

Videos

Shrug Island Release Trailer YouTube

Shrug Island Teaser YouTube

Kickstarter Video YouTube


Images

download all screenshots & photos as .zip (11MB)
SC1.png
SC2.png
SC3.png
SC5.png
SC6.png
SC7.png
SI_Screenshots_S5_Watcher.png
Screenshot_Watcher.png

logo
logo

Shrug Island on Twitter
twitter.com.

Shrug Island on Facebook
facebook.com.

Shrug Island on Steam
store.steampowered.com.

Shrug Island on Pinterest
pinterest.com.

Kickstarter Campaign Page
kickstarter.com.

Gamesauce.org Interview with Alina
Finding the Art of Expression in Gaming - gamesauce.org.

Shrug Song Player Videos
Player video reviews and walkthroughs of Shrug Song - youtube.com.


About Tiny Red Camel

Sharing a passion for games as a form of expression, Alina Constantin and Michael G. Rose formed Tiny Red Camel to pursue their vision of developing games that are an experience to savor and have a story to tell. Tiny Red Camel aims to make games that help foster a sense of community and inspire creativity,

More information
More information on Tiny Red Camel, our logo & relevant media are available here.


Shrug Island Credits

Alina Constantin
Director, Game Design, Art, Animation

Michael G. Rose
Producer, Composer, Sound Design

Milos Jovanovic - Borg Interactive
Programmer

Contact

Contact Tiny Red Camel
info@tinyredcamel.com

Web
tinyredcamel.com


presskit() by Rami Ismail (Vlambeer) - also thanks to these fine folks