Murder of Crow

By Studio Skull Crush Critters:

• Executive Producer: Marcus Der 

• Co-Producers: Tea Romanzin & Haley Skjersven 

• Lead Designer: Cassia Lumby 

• Visual Artist: Maria Rusic 

• Audio Artist: Cassia Lumby 

• Writers: Tea Romanzin & Haley Skjersven 

• Programmers: Maggie Lacson, Leah Sheptycki, & Silin Song

Controls:

•  WASD or Arrow Keys to Move 

• Space or Enter to interact 

• M to toggle the murder board 

• Escape to open menu

Intended to be a cute, somewhat lighthearted game feel paired with intrigue and mystery.

The player character is a detective who resembles an exaggerated film noir protagonist. He has an extremely serious and dramatic view of the world which actually makes him appear more cartoonish and silly in comparison to the “normal” NPCs.

Our core mechanics are centred around exploration and investigation. The “hub and spoke” structure of our game and semi-linear story structure affords the player more freedom and choice in how to approach the mystery (e.g. where to go first, who to talk to, what objects to look at).

We are using a minimalistic, primarily monochromatic colour scheme to evoke a dark noir aesthetic. Colour will be used deliberately and in restraint as a visual cue to draw the player’s attention to key objects, interaction points, clues, or other such elements. Moreover, the characters are all anthropomorphic animals which are drawn in a cutesy cartoon art style. This design emphasizes the light-hearted and fantastical undertones of our story. The stark visual contrast is meant to create curiosity.

Our music will reference soundtracks of classic noir films, with the use of string instruments (cello, bass, violin), piano, and realistic drums. It will borrow from jazz and combine old styles with classic video game 8-bit music to generate a modern style fitting a pixel game. The atmosphere will shift from suspenseful to quirky and fun as our player character interacts with different NPCs and explores different areas.