The Pixel Hunt's Ithaca taking the Kickstarter route

• Announcements by Jack Allin
• Published:

Narrative road trip RPG from the creators of The Wreck and Bury me, my Love in production for PC

Road trips make for inherently great adventures, but usually that's because of what happens OUTSIDE the vehicle. The opposite is (at least somewhat) true in Ithaca, an upcoming narrative RPG from The Pixel Hunt, who are currently seeking financing for their latest project through Kickstarter.

Players control a 30-something woman named Penelope, an "environmental rights lawyer who has spent years trying – and failing – to fight environmental destruction through legal means." After deciding to join a "radical environmental movement," now Penelope finds herself "driving across the country toward a place called Ithaca." What's unusual (and unusually dangerous) about this particular road trip, however, is that it's being done "with a hostage tied up in [the] trunk." As the protagonist, players must make choices to shape Penelope through her various experiences on a journey "across a fractured country increasingly shaped by climate collapse." Amidst mounting emotional and psychological pressure, it's up to you to "navigate difficult conversations, political tensions, moral compromises, and the consequences of your own actions," and eventually decide whether or not to "keep the secret and finish what you started." 

In the indie French studio's latest "reality-inspired game rooted in contemporary social issues," following Bury me, my Love, Inua: A Story in Ice and Time, The Wreck, and Wednesdays, Ithaca features a stylish, low-poly 3D presentation. Here, however, you'll spend most – though not all – of your time in your car. In your travels across procedurally generated landscapes both urban and rural, you'll interact with over 30 fully voiced characters, whether through phone calls, text messages or "roadside encounters." Each person has "their own beliefs, contradictions and agendas. Some may help you. Some may manipulate you. Some may simply need someone to listen." How you approach your relationship with these characters, as well as what you decide to do with your time in between, will "shape Penelope’s personality" and guide the story in different directions toward "one of seven possible final destinations." 

Described as a "mature game about environmental resistance, political radicalization, grief, guilt, and hope," this narrative RPG isn't about solving puzzles but rather a character-driven exploration of "climate collapse – and the people living through it." Players can "investigate the inside of the car" provided by the group that arranged this trip (who "clearly haven’t told you everything") and make stops to "meet strangers and acquire items." Penelope will make some choices on her own, but character growth will be guided and tracked through RPG mechanics including "10 personality traits, 12 skills and around 20 perks." As you "unlock new contacts, hints, and conversation topics," some paths may be closed off while others open up to "a large variety of side stories" and "entirely new narrative paths." Designed for "high replayability," the game ensures that each playthrough is different, with "routes, encounters, stops and discoveries" varying each time. 

The theme of ecological collapse is a heavy one, of course, but the developers are "not making Ithaca to give players answers or to tell them what to think." Their goal is to explore "how helplessness can turn into denial, exhaustion, radicalisation, or the desire to regain some form of control over the future." The game is a space for roleplaying opportunities that "allow players to inhabit uncomfortable positions instead of simply observing them from a distance." The cast promises to include "characters with radically different opinions on activism, compromise, violence and responsibility," and you're free to decide whether to "confront, convince, ignore or simply listen" to them. Ultimately, the choice is yours "how far [you] are willing to go in the face of ecological collapse."

In order to complete financing of such a fraught project, The Pixel Hunt has launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise €25,000 by July 5th. Production will continue regardless, but if all goes well, Ithaca could be complete before the end of 2027. In the meantime, a playtest is currently available on Steam, including the "beginning of the road trip and several core systems, including conversations, investigations, exploration and RPG progression."