Sometimes, playing games that are a little sad can sometimes make you feel warm inside. How? I don’t know, I’m not a scientist. Regardless, that’s how I felt when playing the demo for Madison Karrh’s Birth.
Birth is a beautifully hand-drawn adventure puzzle game made by sole developer Madison Karrh, and is a game in which you must make yourself a partner from spare bones and parts that you find. It’s a tender exploration of loneliness, and what it’s like to be one little guy in a big city.
Today, Karrh announced on her personal Twitter that her game would be released on Steam on February 17th and that other platforms will be announced later on.
Birth, with all its bones and organs, is coming to Steam on February 17th!
in 29 days!https://t.co/kgvQfo8WTN
🫀🦷🦴🔪🫁🧠 pic.twitter.com/CrvReDfGpg— madison (@handfulofbugs) January 19, 2023
The game was first shown off as part of 2022’s Day of the Devs showcase and has proceeded to be an absolute hit on the convention circuit. When discussing the game in a press release announcing the launch date, Karrh says:
“I think about the limitations of mortality every day and I want my portrayal of death, decay and loneliness to be as soft and gentle and genuine as possible. Day-to-day loneliness can be an embarrassing thing to admit to feeling. I hope the tender art style and the silly physics of the game make it feel more like having a contemplative, clumsy conversation with a friend.”
As somebody who gave Birth a go (the game, not the action) during October’s Steam Next Fest, I have to say I’m really excited for its full release. If you played A Little To The Left and felt like it was too feel-good and needed more melancholic, simplified classical music covers in the background as well as a looming sense of sorrow yet hopefulness, this might just be the game for you.
Despite that sadness though, Birth also feels strangely satisfying (once again, the game, not the action). Every piece fits, everything is connected, and one action leads to another. Collecting bones and organs feels well-deserved with every puzzle finished, and every puzzle just looks so beautiful.
If you’re interested, check out the Steam page.
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