Kickstarter Project of the Week: Akurra
For this week’s Switch Kickstarter Project of the Week, we will be looking at Jason Newman and Craig Lee’s Akurra. The game is slated to release in late 2021 on PC, with Nintendo Switch being a very promising stretch goal.
Here’s the overview:
Push blocks into holes and over pits, avoid spikes, explore caves, and ride sea turtles in order to find keys, gems, and stars that unlock new paths and friends to aid you as you explore a collection of islands chock-full of puzzles and secrets. Akurra is a retro style block pushing, island hopping, puzzle and exploration game similar to classic games like Chip’s Challenge, Adventure’s of Lolo, Star Tropics, Sokoban, and Zelda. Akurra features a rich, high quality and very mystical soundtrack that goes perfectly with the relaxed atmosphere of go-at-your-own-pace puzzle solving.
The puzzles in Akurra build complexity over time as you unlock new areas and islands, with new puzzle pieces and mechanics. You can complete any puzzles available to you in any order you choose: Stuck on a screen? Just leave it and come back at a later time and you might have a fresh take on it! This game is enjoyable for everyone from puzzle novices who just want to take their time and explore, to hardcore puzzle masters that think they are up for the incredible challenge of achieving a 100% completion rate!
But Akurra is more than a Sokoban clone. With a classic Zelda style layout as well as an oceanic overworld scattered with islands to discover, you as the player have a lot of freedom to move around and explore compared to many traditional single screen puzzle games. Akurra also features a mysterious story told visually, which unfolds as you play through the game. The demo hints at some puzzling questions. Who is this castaway that has the power to move impossibly heavy blocks and ride sea turtles? Who are these godlike beings with wondrous powers to share? And who is that mysterious woman!? All these questions and more will be answered in the full game!
There were a lot of fantastic contenders for our Kickstarter Project of the Week (and I mean a lot), but nothing caught our eye quite like Akurra. For us here at Switchaboo, and for a lot of our readers, The Legend of Zelda franchise holds many special places in our hearts. Akurra looks to be born from a labour of love, with clear inspirations from Link’s Game Boy adventures such as The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening and the Oracle of Seasons/Ages games. However, Akurra appears to avoid many pitfalls that other fan projects do: mimic the games too closely. Akurra looks to bring forth its own unique personality, with unique aspects like a physically strong protagonist who travels a truly wide world. Akurra needs to be on every Legend of Zelda fan’s radar!
Akurra required US $12,000 and it is currently sitting at US $12,413 after 245 backers with 23 days remaining and yet to secure a Nintendo Switch port, the project requires US $18,000. If you’d like to support the development of this game to help it reach its Nintendo Switch stretch goal, click the link below to visit the Kickstarter page.
Thank you to our $5 and up Patreon Backers for their ongoing support:
- Andrew Caluzzi (Inca Studios / Camped Out!)
- Belinda Cubitt