A Monster's Expedition expansion and Sokobond Express announced
Along with a Bonfire Peaks release date
Draknek, developer of puzzles games such as A Monster's Expedition and Sokobond, broadcast their own 'Draknek Direct' earlier this evening. It's six-and-a-half minutes of puzzle game goodness, and it brings news of a free Monster's Expedition expansion, a release date for possession-burning puzzler Bonfire Peaks, and the announcement of a brand new game.
The new game is Sokobond Express, a mashup of Sokobond and Cosmic Express, and you can see it and all of the above in the video below.
I'm used to the best puzzle games coming in ASCII art packages, and only one in six deigning to add some sprites. Draknek's work has becoming increasingly polished and beautiful, however, and I am here for the slickly presented video above.
A Monster's Expedition expansion is good news. It's a puzzle game about pushing and rolling logs to navigate between islands and explore curious expeditions. In our A Monster's Expedition review, Jay Castello said it had a beautiful design and atmosphere that made her feel clever and made puzzle games feel accessible. (Disclosure: Former RPS staffer Pip Warr was a writer on A Monster's Expedition.) The new, free expansion promises new puzzles and exhibits to explore, and will launch in a little over a week, on August 5th.
The next segment revealed a September 30th release date for Bonfire Peaks. It's being published rather than developed by Draknek, but it has heavy Draknek vibes. It's a puzzle game about navigating to the top of a mountain and burning all of your possessions along the way.
Sokobond Express ended the presentation with an extremely brief trailer. It's a mashup of two other Draknek puzzle games, and seems to involve building tracks Cosmic Express-style for the Sokobond-style atoms from Sokobond to travel along. It's again just published by Draknek, and developed by José Hernández. I'm curious to see more.