Dark Soil Demo

Story 

In Dark Soil you play a child who finds themselves in a bunker somewhere in an Eastern European-inspired country. The child has suffered traumas and develops paranoia feeling throughout their journey. The player experiences the game through the eyes of the child who wants to break out of the bunker because they mistrust the people there and want to go find their parents. They feel unsafe, threatened, and scared. Through trauma triggers, the child finds themselves in a parallel horror world. Otherwise, the fantastical folktale-inspired place makes the child feel safer. Navigating between these two worlds, one solves puzzles and learns the child's background story, as well as the reason for their stay in the bunker.

Setting

The atmosphere is oppressive, almost gloomy. Because of triggers in the fairytale-like world, the environment becomes more creepy and disturbing over the course of the story. The whole setting is during a war, which unfolds for the player at the end. With this game, we want to draw attention to the fact that it is not always about the worst forms of trauma and mental illness. Many trauma features can be invisible to others, and yet they are there. The point-and-click genre makes it more accessible for people who have no gaming experience but still want to explore this issue.

! Please consider that this game is for entertainment purposes ONLY and not for educational purposes. Any resemblance to living or deceased persons is purely coincidental. All our ideas are based on inspiration and come from our fantasies. !

Fennec Studio

During the Bachelor year at the Lucerne School of Art and Design Mascha, Melissa (@mellipond), and Darline came together to work on a bachelor project. Additionally, Mattia and Jonas joined our Team during the development of Dark Soil. We want to keep working together after graduating (July 2023) and be an independent game studio. We have a no-crunch policy and care deeply about each other's mental health. This is why we have a unique team management and communication structure, that allows us to not only work productively but caring and open with each other.