Demo brings Blunted in The Malen into sharper focus 

• Announcements by Jack Allin
• Published:

Side-scrolling point-and-click adventure coming to Windows PC on Steam in early 2025

No personal human tragedy is ever just a single event, but rather the culmination of a lifetime of choices and actions in the making. Outgate Studios' upcoming side-scroller Blunted in The Malen is all about piecing together the particular evants that will ultimately lead its protagonist to a seemingly premature demise.

Story details are intentionally sparse, but the game stars a "revolutionary" named Sharp, who lives with his new wife Gwen and their pet cat Rattles in the "corrupt" titular city. In 1916, Gwen is a writer who's found recent success having her work shared theatrically over the radio, while Sharp continues to engage in activities she considers "dangerous and illegal." Believing that Malen is like a powderkeg waiting to go off, Gwen is eager to leave this place behind, but over the course of eight distinct time periods, each with its own main focus and challenges, players will discover just how Sharp's life progresses to lead him to his inevitable fate. 

While very much a classic adventure at heart, Blunted in The Malen's presentation is as unique as its control scheme. It's a side-scrolling experience that combines wonderfully animated pixel art and voxel art in various layers on the screen, giving each location a slight sense of depth. It's technically point-and-click, though here you guide Sharp around by right-clicking and holding as long as you want him to walk, releasing to stop. Once stationary, things become much more traditional, with hotspots highlighted by a smart cursor and a simple left-click used to interact. Progress is linear, but to advance through each chapter you'll need to overcome a variety of puzzles and challenges, from fixing a broken radio to "investigating a suspiciously abandoned neighbour's house" and even feeding a pesky cat if you're up to pursuing side quests along the way. 

The full version of Blunted in The Malen isn't due out until early 2025 on Steam, but you can grab a sneak peek right away, as a playable demo is already available for download on Windows PC.

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