Kloa Child of the Forest is a Top-Down Mix of Zelda and Studio Ghibli Movies
Apr. 13, 2023Kloa Child of the Forest is a Top-Down Mix of Zelda and Studio Ghibli Movies
Kloa Child of the Forest is an isometric retro game that takes the best parts of the Legend of Zelda and Studio Ghibli.
Retro games are all the rage right now. With the upcomingSea of Stars, retro-inspired titles likeThe MageseekerandAK-xolotlare also quite popular right now. It seems like the public knows what it wants, as another Kickstarter success story has come to attention.
Developers Wildpad Games have created quite the looker in the form of Kloa Child of the Forest. This is a top-down action adventure RPG that mixes charms from many inspirations.
Kloa Child of Forest’s story takes place in a once-magical forest. The careful balance of things has been upset by what is only known as the “Ikari Curse”. This blight has destroyed the forest’s flora and fauna, creating twisted mockeries of the once thriving ecosystem.
The titular Kloa is the only individual powerful enough to turn the tide of darkness and restore balance to her home. She will travel through her forest home, but will also get to explore different nearby areas. Mountains, swamps, and lakes are just some of the different biomes that she can experience.
Developer Wildpad Games cite both The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Studio Ghibli’s movies as their biggest inspirations. From the former, they took elements such as beautiful and colorful landscapes, as well as a sense of wonder and exploration. From the latter, they took the intricate stories, and overall feel.
Our little heroine is no stranger to combat. Kloa Child of the Forest makes deadly use of her trusty katana and spirit bow. With this, she can fight with a beautiful mix of melee and ranged fighting styles.
Her spirit bow specifically makes use of pure energy as its projectiles. While it takes a bit of wind up to build strength, the end result is quite fantastic as the bow can deal more damage than the sword. Kloa can even make use of magical arrows to help her solve puzzles and access hidden secrets in the process.
She can also dash short distances, completely evading enemy attacks or even jump from one platform to another. She can also deflect enemy attacks, reflecting them back to her foes. In a pinch, she can just hold up her katana and just keep her guard up and absorb the blow.
Challenging Kloa is all of the natural wildlife of the forest. Cursed by the… well, curse, they have become corrupted “Ikari”. They are extremely violent and aggressive. All sorts of animals have succumbed to the curse, ranging from wolves, monkeys, bears, and even turtles. Oh my!
Just like The Legend of Zelda games, Kloa the Child of the Forest will encourage exploration. Hand-drawn pixel art will be your constant companion as you explore various environments. Players will collect Tanuki Leaves as the main currency, which will be used to purchase items and skills.
There are also four mystical Legendary Items, each aligned to one of the four elements. The Geta Sandals are a sturdy pair of sandals that allows Kloa to stomp into the ground, stunning nearby foes and dealing shockwave damage. Getting the Hyottoko Mask will grant Kloa a flame breath ability. A humble Tengu Leaf can be equipped to create a massive gust of wind that will knock enemies back. Last is the Water Daikarin, which can be used as a water bomb to stun foes.
Kloa Child of the Forest ran a very successful Kickstarter campaign last year. Just over 2000 people backed the project, with almost US$ 92,000 raised. According to the game’s Kickstarter update page, this April will be a crucial time for the team. Apparently, the game’s first public demo will be released sometime this month.
The game will be released on the PC first and foremost, but they will eventually create ports for the Xbox Series X, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch.
Auberon
Writer at Fextralife. I really like vanilla ice cream.
