If they hate then let ’em hate and watch the (FIG) money pile up
Allow me a moment to tell you about a quaint little town known as Rainy Woods.
Nestled in nature and surrounded by forests in England, Rainy Woods is a happy village with happy people living amidst charming architecture from the Middle Ages. The residents say they’re the happiest people in the world. They also turn into cats at night, waking the next morning with no memory of the transformation. It’s the type of place a Yank would picture when asked to describe a small town in England, complete with cobblestone streets, five pubs, and a babbling brook where the bloody body of Elizabeth, the pastor’s wheelchair-bound daughter, has just been found; stabbed through her heart with a medieval sword.
Yes, Rainy Woods is quite the curiosity, and you know what they say about curiosity, don’t you?
From White Owls, the studio founded by Deadly Premonition creator Swery, The Good Life is a Murder Mystery Debt Repayment Life Simulation RPG – probably hobby grade too – that puts players in the shoes of Naomi, a photographer from New York who is deep in debt. Her ticket out of the red is this gem of a town and the people who live there. I’ve been following The Good Life since we first got word of it not too long ago and I wasn’t that entertained by the initial reveal. Now that I’ve read about its intentions, I’m in awe of its ambition.
Obviously inspired by Twin Peaks, it looks as though Swery is doing everything he can to give people a real sense of what it would be to live in a town as odd as that one. The life simulation aspects of The Good Life sound intricate. Players will have to monitor Naomi’s health and well-being, her finances, her alcohol intake and more. Apparently, you can turn her into a straight-up alcoholic if you so choose. Naomi makes money by taking pictures of residents and filing reports on the town, as well as doing odd jobs for the people who live there. The townies of Rainy Woods operate on their own 24-hour schedule similar to Deadly Premonition that can change depending on the weather and season.
The photography mechanic also sounds incredibly detailed with aim and focus factoring big into the picture quality. There’s also camera upkeep to worry about like buying new film, charging batteries and cleaning it. You’ll also have to buy toiletries so you don’t get sick, get a bite to eat once in a while so you don’t starve, strike up conversations with the weird-ass people of this town to solve Elizabeth’s murder, and, oh yeah, turn into a cat at night for some goddamn reason.
Of course, all of this will come to fruition if White Owls meets its fundraising goal. Swery is seeking $1.5 million in funds through FIG and honestly, with everything this game is looking to accomplish, I’m surprised it’s that low. White Owls is developing the game with Republique developer Camouflaj and G-rounding, a studio founded by Phantom Dust creator Yukio Futatsugi.
For non-investment backers, rewards for the campaign start at $29 for a digital copy of the game. The next tier is at $69 — nice — which nets you the digital download, wallpapers, soundtrack, digital concept art portfolio and digital storyline overview. Now, if you have $35k to spare, you can become a resident of Rainy Woods and eat dinner with Swery in the game. Your avatar can also be brutally murdered, which would be the highlight of any yearly Christmas letter.
Oddly enough, if you want to have a real dinner with Swery, that’s not available in the highest tier but it is in the Swery Super Fan tier at $15k.
I am a little shocked that, at this moment, there is no physical copy rewards for the game. I imagine that will change when a publisher picks this up because we all know that’s what is going to happen here. Currently, the aim is to launch The Good Life in the later part of 2019 on PC and unnamed consoles, so feel free to ready your “Switch Port Please” comments for below. [Update: It has been confirmed this game will launch for PC and PS4 first, with a Switch version maybe possibly coming via a stretch goal.]
