Greenlight Highlight | The First Tree

Title: The First Tree
Developer: David Wehle
[Greenlight Page]

What type of game is it?

Platformer, Exploration

What’s the 30 second elevator pitch?

Two stories intermingle, a couple who have suffered a loss, and a fox attempting to find it’s family on it’s journey to The First Tree.

What do we like most about it?

While the promise of an emotional story about loss is certainly a lure, and it’s clear that the soundtrack is going to be extremely strong -what with the name’s mentioned so far on the page. It’s the visuals that have really pulled me into the game.

Foxes are always a strange choice of character in games (although we’ve seen about 6 or 7 promising/prominent games make use of them this year) if not due to the fact that they are considered a graceful animal, but also due to the fact that for three seasons of the year their orange-brown fur makes them stick out stark against the area they call home.

The First Tree’s world is bright and colourful, leaves fluttering and grass swaying in the wind.  Strange moments, like the elements of story about the couple, the moments where you walk across water and, the moments where you leap entire hills, are there to remind you that the fox’s role in the story is symbolic of a journey, rather than a pure adventure.

Regardless of that -of which I have no doubt is emotional and engaging- the game does look amazing, relaxing and thoroughly enjoyable.

When’s it due?

The First Tree is set to release in early-to-mid 2017 for Windows PC & Mac.