Mysterious Cities Of Gold Reaches Its Kickstarter Goal

I would burst through the door, not paying heed to anything, just rushing to the living room. On the way,  I would be taking off my shoes, dropping my jacket and throwing away my backpack on the floor, as if I would never need to use it again. However, there was always a reason for my daily rush, the “Mysterious Cities Of Gold” was about to start. I would just sit there, right in the centre of the room with my eyes glued to the TV, accompanied with a grin on my face. The show was not only one of my favourites to watch when I was a kid but it was also an indication, telling me that it was the start of the after-school cartoon schedule, another day of exciting episodes from G.I. Joe, M.A.S.K. and SWAT Kats ! That daily habit was and always will be, my cherished memory.

Now fast forward a decade and we have a Kickstarter for the official game. A game which promises to bring back Esteban, Tao and Zia. The dynamic and likeable characters from the classic TV show. Also, did you know that originally, the game was just supposed to be out in French, as that’s where the new season of the show was about to start? However, due to an overwhelming amount of response from fans everywhere, the developers have decided to bring this game to the PC as well, but to do that they needed your help on Kickstarter, and fortunately they got that help as the game has just passed its goal, with still 23 more days to go!

 

According to the Kickstarter page,

• The basics : The game is a balanced mix of puzzle and infiltration, in top-down perspective, where you alternatively control one of the three heroes (Esteban, Tao and Zia) and combine their abilities to go through the levels. Influences include Lost Vikings or, more recently, The Cave.

 

• The controls : We offer two main control schemes. A touch-screen approach for kids and mobile gamers, and, on the consoles, a regular, direct stick and buttons control for people who like traditional controls. Of course, the Wii U version offers both; and for a PC version, we’ll be using point & click based, mouse and keyboard controls.

 

• The story : We tried to be as faithful as possible to the story-line. The game starts at the exact place where Esteban, Tao and Zia, begin their journey in search for the far eastern City of Gold. Each level is a transcription of the places they explore in the series, and, between the main groups of levels, cinematic cut-scenes from the animated series guide the player through the story arc.

 

• The universe : We based all of our work on the actual assets of the series. Character models, enemies, props, places, animations : for all of these, we started from the graphics that were used in the animated show and transformed them into game assets. All this work has been done hand in hand with the series director and creative director, with, once again, only one goal in mind : loyalty to the spirit and the atmosphere of the show.

• The music : Because music has always been one of the key elements in the Mysterious Cities of Gold universe (starting with its theme song), it was unthinkable for us not to include it in our game. Every environment of the game has its own musical theme, coming directly from the series.

 

• Get Bonus ! While we think beating all the puzzles and infiltration phases of the game will be a challenge in and of itself, we didn’t forget those power players among you who wish to explore absolutely everything or do perfect runs. So we added collectibles, hidden chests and challenges like finishing a level without being detected by the enemies or under a certain amount of time. Those challenges unlock original artworks from the TV series, showcased in a gallery.

 

• The numbers : 30 levels, about 6 hours of game-play in average, around 20 different puzzle mechanics that combine into hundreds of possibilities, 17 different environments faithfully rendering the places which the heroes of the series go through, 26 cinematic scenes.

 

Again, be sure to check out the Kickstarter Page, support the project if you happen to be a fan and expect the game to come out on PC, iPad, iPhone, Wii U and Nintendo 3DS. Lastly, be sure to watch the stunning intro to 2012’s season of the series!