There's a foxy tale of sadness in The First Tree

I hold a rare distinction among RPS writers in that I never call a game “lovely” in the headline and I nev-- oh no, I did! I once said that The First Tree [official site], a colourful game about a fox going on a sad journey to find her family, looked “lovely”. I’m so sorry, reader. I’ve destroyed my brand. But take solace in your new vulpine friend, because the foxy adventure came out yesterday. It follows a woodland animal, yes, but there’s an underlying story, delivered in snippets of audio, about a human son and his estranged father in Alaska. It all sounds very sad. But it's also about "the source of life", so maybe not?

The vixen’s cub (or cubs) have gone missing and she’s on a quest to find them. Meanwhile, the presumably off-screen humans are dealing with their own family loss. The two stories will intertwine by the end of its two hour wandering, we’re told, rather than being solidly separate tales that crossover only in theme. Maybe the fox part is some allegorical yarn? Or maybe she really will stumble across a human in the snow at some point.

I guess only creator David Wehle knows. He previously made the first-person short story Home Is Where One Starts which is, allegedly, another heart puncher.

The First Tree is on Steam for £5.59/$8.