Away: Journey to the Unexpected

AWAY: Journey to the Unexpected is a colorful first person adventure game that combines action, negotiation and rogue-lite elements

Progress through the levels and the story, choose your path, but above all, recruit allies. All the strange characters you meet in game can be played in first person, and it’s up to you to find the right answers to get them to join your team!

Idiotic workmen, mysteries from outer space, oddball friends, and fast combat await!

FAQ

WHICH PLATFORMS WILL BE SUPPORTED?
We're aiming for a release on Steam (Windows), Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and PS4.

WHEN WILL IT BE OUT?
Developing a game on multiple platforms is a lot of work - we will provide more details about this later once we're 100% sure.

WHAT'S PLAYDIUS?
Playdius is the new label from publisher Plug In Digital, pushing original content on PC and consoles.

They're lovely people, you can reach them here for all business or press related questions. If you live in the US, you can contact their local PR here as well.

WHO IS MAKING THIS GAME?
"AWAY: Journey to the Unexpected" is made by 2 people: Aurelien Regard (code/art, "The Next Penelope", Arkedo Studio) and Jim Gennisson (who worked as level designer on the Rayman franchise and on "Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom").

We're a super tiny team, so feel free to send us some love on Twitter - it's always appreciated!

WHERE DID THE ORIGINAL IDEA COME FROM?
Aurelien: I've been a long-time fan of first person games, but most of the time, you're either facing realistic war or very experimental universes.

I've been waiting for a long time to play this type of game in a different, colorful setting, filled with joyful or wacky characters you can interact with.

Also, sometimes I really miss the silliness of the 90's anime shows we grew up with in Europe. This is how this project started, and I hope others will enjoy this experience as much as we enjoy creating it!

ARE THE CHARACTERS IN 2D?
Yes, we're trying to mix the soft, cartoony look of 2D animation with a 3D first person gameplay. Surprisingly, it works pretty well!

HOW LONG THE GAME WILL BE?
We're aiming for an 8-10 hour experience. Remember, we're only 2 people! We're not making Skyrim, but a small, silly, satisfying experience.

THE SONG IS PRETTY CATCHY, WHO MADE IT?
Kazuhiko Naruse (composer) and Aya Majiro (vocals), with their friend Boukichi who wrote the lyrics. Fun fact, we didn't plan to have an opening in Japanese in the first place. But Kazuhiko is such a fun and kind person, we couldn't resist at the end of the day.

Should you want to hear more songs, chiptune, or even chill piano tracks, here is his Soundcloud.

ARE THE DEVS ALSO MAKING THE ANIMATED INTRO?
Our friend Jerome Perrillat has been working on it for months now (frame by frame animation looks great but is a lot of work). Want to cheer him on? You can find him on Twitter.

I'D LIKE TO HELP, ARE YOU GUYS HAVING ALPHA/BETA TESTING?
That's very nice of you! We will indeed need playtesters in the coming weeks and will make an announcement when everything is ready for this.