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<\/p>\nWhat to know<\/p>\n
A Toronto-inspired video game called Capy Castaway is turning the famous 2016 High Park capybara escape into a cozy adventure game set around themes of family, friendship, and home.<\/p>\n
The game was created by Canadian creative director Saffron Aurora and Toronto-based Kitten Cup Studio, and draws inspiration from Toronto culture and history, featuring local easter eggs like TTC subway cars and references to the escaped capybaras Bonnie and Clyde.<\/p>\n
It uses a painted art style inspired by titles like Untitled Goose Game and A Short Hike, with simple \u201cpick-up-and-play\u201d gameplay and two-player co-op.<\/p>\n
Capy Castaway is expected to launch later this year on Steam and Steam Deck, with the official release date set to be announced during the Wholesome Direct showcase on June 6.<\/p>\n
One of Toronto\u2019s most beloved animal escape stories is getting a second life, this time as a cozy indie video game.<\/p>\n
Canadian creative director Saffron Aurora told Now Toronto she was thinking about what her next game development project would be in 2023, when she remembered the social media fad of capybaras just a few years prior.<\/p>\n
\u201c[I] just sort of formed this video game around the capybara and around Toronto, and around all of these sorts of things that we\u2019re passionate about locally, and of course the capybara that escaped 10 years ago were perfect inspiration,\u201d Aurora explained. \u201cIt all sort of came together really nicely, and they\u2019ve served as a great inspiration both narratively and mechanically in the game.\u201d<\/p>\n
What is \u2018Capy Castaway\u2019?<\/p>\n
In May 2016, two capybaras, named Bonnie and Clyde, escaped their High Park-based enclosure and led zookeepers on an over month long expedition as they evaded them until the end of June of that same year, according to multiple news outlets.<\/p>\n
Aurora said she translated the antics of the two real-life capybara into her upcoming game Capy Castaway.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt features very heavily on themes of family, found family, friends, and this feeling of home, especially because all of the characters are affected by a big devastating flood that displaces all of these characters,\u201d she explained. \u201cSo, it very much has lots of funny moments, and also heartwarming moments.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Bonnie and Clyde aren\u2019t the stars of the show in the video game, Aurora said they are referenced heavily, along with other Toronto easter eggs from around the city and in its history.<\/p>\n
Why does the game feel like a love letter to Toronto?<\/p>\n
From the classic red-seated subway cars to signs from retail stores\u2019 past, the game is one big love letter to the city.<\/p>\n
Gameplay of Capy Castaway (Courtesy: Saffron Aurora)<\/p>\n
Aurora said making the game so Toronto-centric was important to her and her team with Kitten Cup Studio.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think both for the game and us as a studio, we\u2019re based in Toronto and Ontario, and and I think we\u2019ve always sort of been proud of that fact, we wear it on our sleeve that we\u2019re a Canadian developer,\u201d she shared. \u201c\u2026We also like to make sure that we\u2019re being sensitive, that we\u2019re referencing things, but also that we\u2019re connecting with people, and I think that when you do the research and you make sure that you\u2019re clear with the intent of what you\u2019re referencing, that comes across and it connects better with people.<\/p>\n
The game is an experience for players visually as well, with a painted art style inspired by popular games such as Untitled Goose Game and A Short Hike, another Canadian-based game.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope that fans of Untitled Goose Game, and also A Short Hike, are both fans of our game. They both feature little chaotic guys who want to just be curious and creative in a new world,\u201d Aurora shared.<\/p>\n
She said her game, despite not being released yet, has already gained a lot of positive reaction online.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been really nice, I think getting the support from our local community, and talking with with people who are like, \u2018I saw that on the news, that\u2019s the capybaras, I totally know what that is,\u2019 or even like trying to collaborate with other businesses, other devs, other people in the city, it\u2019s been very heartwarming,\u201d Aurora said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
When does Capy Castaway release?<\/p>\n
Aurora describes Capy Castaway as a \u201cpick-up-and-play\u201d experience designed to feel relaxing, accessible and easy to return to. The calming atmosphere of the task-based game makes it easy to get into.<\/p>\n
The game has two playable characters, something Aurora said would be nice when a parent and child play together.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of communication that happens between the two players, of the intent that they want, so I do think it helps with a fun bonding moment with your game,\u201d she explained. \u201cBut it\u2019s also very chaotic and silly.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Kitten Cup Studio has yet to announce a specific release date and price point for the game, Aurora says the information is releasing very soon.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will be announcing our launch date soon, in June, as part of the Wholesome Direct<\/a>,\u201d she said, talking about an online streaming showcase of \u201ccozy\u201d style games happening on June 6.
As of now, the game is expected to release at some point this year, and will be available for purchase on Steam<\/a>, online and on Steam Deck.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What to know A Toronto-inspired video game called Capy Castaway is turning the famous 2016 High Park capybara…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":60677,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[26263,26264,26265,13434,26266,48],"class_list":["post-60676","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-toronto","tag-bonnie-and-clyde","tag-capy-castaway","tag-capybara","tag-high-park","tag-kitten-cup-studio","tag-toronto"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60676","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60676"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60676\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/60677"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60676"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60676"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60676"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}