A First Look at Critter Crops

This month, at Patch Magazine, we got a first look at the upcoming game Critter Crops by SkyReach Studios and were lucky enough to catch up with them and have a talk about the game and what inspired the team to create it: 

What were your main influences for the game and why a witchy farming theme?

Critter Crops was heavily influenced by my early gaming experiences playing Pokemon, Harvest Moon, Monster Rancher and later games like Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing. I chose the theme of the game to celebrate my favourite holiday, Halloween, and my love for world monster lore.

Can I ask about the art style? It’s definitely different and stands out compared to a lot in its genre- was there anything that drew you to styling the game in this way?

I've been an artist my whole life. When I initially designed Sylvie, she was styled very differently. I quickly realized the impact of the complex nature of her original design on production flow and the fact that I just didn't have the animation skills needed to animate her and the other characters well enough. So, I switched gears from her original very anime-inspired design and took additional inspiration from simplified western cartoon styles to come up with a more in-between style that represented the visual aesthetic but also allowed me to more easily animate things on my own.

Is there anything you want people to take from the game?

The main thing I want people to take from the game is that not all things are what others might say and not everyone is who they appear to be in their outward appearance. If we share a mutual love with our world and those in it and give time and effort, we can overcome former hardships, bias and prejudice, and learn to do better as a community.

Thanks so much to the team at SkyReach Studios for taking the time to talk with us. Read more of the interview, and our first look review, in the newest issue of Patch Magazine and find out more about Critter Crops at https://crittercrops.com