Bramble: The Mountain King growing closer to 2022 release

Written by Jack Allin — July 18, 2021 at 10:34

Perhaps the scariest part of many dark fairy tales is that they happen to children. It's the same feeling of (relative) helplessness that drives the emotional impact of modern puzzle-platformers like INSIDE and Little Nightmares. The next game to tap into this children's nightmare scenario is Bramble: The Mountain King, a new horror adventure unveiled by indie Swedish developer Dimfrost Studio.

After sneaking out of their home one night to venture deep inside the nearby forest, a "shy boy and his adventurous older sister" come across an ancient ruin to explore. Unfortunately, "the ground suddenly collapses, and they tumble down through a sinkhole to the lost and magical world of Bramble." There they encounter a number of "curious and strange spirits," some of whom they're able to befriend, while others mean them only harm. When a huge troll captures the girl, her younger brother is left alone, "lost in despair." If he's to survive this ordeal and find his sister, the boy must now "find strength inside of him in order to face all the horror and monsters ahead of him." In doing so, he'll also begin to unravel the "dark curse that has sickened the world."

Originally conceived as a platformer before being redesigned as a full-fledged adventure, Bramble promises a combination of "atmospheric environments, high-end graphics, cinematic moments and casual gameplay." Both the landscapes you traverse and the creatures you meet are "inspired by the nature, fables and fairy tales of the Nordics." Here in this beautiful mythical land, unfortunately, "something dangerous is lurking in the shadows below the mountains." If you're to succeed, you will need to keep your wits about you to escape danger and ultimately defeat a series of "David vs Goliath bosses" that stand in your way. 

There is no firm target release date just yet, but Bramble: The Mountain King is due to launch on Steam for Windows PC sometime next year, along with as-yet-unspecified console versions. For ongoing progress reports in the meantime, you can sign up for newsletter updates through the official website.