There’s this indie game that’s been circulating around for a month or two, and has taken a portion of the internet by storm. What’s the game called? “Endacopia.” At first glance, Endacopia seems like a small, cute, quirky game that will be lighthearted, goofy, and overall just a fun little point-and-click adventure, but there’s so much more to it. I would even argue that this is one of the best indie games of the year. So, here are 5 things that make it such an enjoyable and unique experience:
- Endacopia Isn’t What it Appears to Be
As previously stated, Endacopia starts out to have a kind of cute aesthetic in a way, seemingly inspired by 90s point and click adventure games. It pulls players in with a nostalgic aspect. The player progresses with the thought that everything will be cheerful, but darker material subtly arises, bit by bit. This is a major part of the experience because it creates layers to the game, and provides the backbone for the deeper story and lore. Contrast is a very effective tool to create memorable, jarring situations, which is just what Endacopia does.
- The Player isn’t the Main Character
Around 90% of video games have the player be the protagonist, but Endacopia has the player form a relationship with the protagonist. The game describes the player as a sort of guardian angel that protects and guides Mellow, the main character. It forges a different feeling from a classic adventure game and really adds to the game as a whole. It’s like To Kill a Mockingbird, where you view the world through your own lens, but everything is filtered by a young, innocent protagonist.
- “What the Heck is Going On?!”
Imagine just playing hide-and-seek and all of a sudden an eldritch horror pops out of nowhere, with its glazed eyes, terrifying stature, horribly deformed mouth, and the music starts to rise and now you’re in a fast-paced chase scene. One minute later, everything seems completely normal and cheerful. Andyland, the developer of Endacopia, expertly employs a horror-filled, eerie, fever-dream environment that constantly makes the player question everything they’ve seen. All the different zones and characters in the world of Endacopia are so drastically different–in art style or in tone–yet cohesive at the same time. And this doesn’t just make the game extremely more interesting, but also provides an environment-driven explanation, which keeps the player hooked. Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it also makes Endacopia so enjoyable.
- The Constant Gameplay Variety
While Endacopia is mainly a point-and-click adventure game, in reality, it’s a bunch of different game genres in one. The pacing is amazing and constantly has the player doing new things or learning new skills. The puzzles always differ in how they are solved and incentivize interaction with other characters, pulling the player deeper inside the world. Sometimes, you’ll randomly get caught in first-person combat. And there is a plethora of minigames including fishing, whack-a-clown, bingo ball, surgery, and a soccer ball challenge. Andyland also grants the player much flexibility on how they want to complete the game by adding open-world aspects to Endacopia. The game never gets repetitive, but doesn’t have to constantly give the player new methods of entertainment, it just twists something already introduced into something familiar, yet new. And mutilating common ideas is a core rule in Endacopia, whether it be the gameplay, art, or interactions, and that generates the overall vibe for the strange world.
- The Incredible Amount of Detail
What would an adventure game be without exploration? But Endacopia goes above and beyond, as the game rewards exploration by making every single thing you could even think of interactable. If you go into a room with 3 items, the walls would be interactable too. Andyland put in so much detail everywhere, creating easter egg animations, secrets, hidden jokes, and optional interactions, letting curious players dive into every single crevice of the world of Endacopia. Best of all, there are multiple endings, giving the player a reason to come back for more. Knowing someone put so much heart into the game makes it all the more touching.