Demo opens the door to Dad's Monster House sequel

• Announcements by Jack Allin
• Published:

Follow-up to Cotton Game's surreal 2021 black-and-white puzzler coming to Steam for Windows and Mac

What are the chances of becoming trapped in not one but TWO different houses (or at least, the same house twice) filled with all manner of odd and terrifying creatures and devious puzzle traps? Well, in real life, hopefully pretty slim. But for fans of Cotton Game's surreal 2021 puzzler Dad's Monster House, you'll soon get the chance to come back for more in the upcoming sequel, subtitled Medal.

While the first game saw the protagonist willingly enter the creepy old house he hadn't been to in many years after receiving a desperate call for help from his father, here there's no such enticement. Instead you're unwittingly plucked from your bed by a massive claw and carried back to that same run-down place that has "haunted your dreams," before being unceremoniously dropped through the roof. Now, as "giant eyes peer through the windows, a mysterious hand knocks from behind the walls, and bizarre creatures await your interaction." In order to escape, you'll need to "gather medals of Courage, Love, and Curiosity scattered throughout the house," then power up a rocket and "blast off through the roof into the vast unknown." Even then, the end may not be what you expect, as "a heartbreaking twist awaits, leading to a profound conclusion about love and sacrifice."

As with its predecessor, Medal is a stylishly hand-drawn point-and-click puzzle adventure, presented almost entirely in black and white except for eye-catching splashes of bold colour. With no dialogue to guide you, other than the recorded entries in your journal, you'll once again gradually advance through the house by solving a series of inventory and standalone logic puzzles, from "wiring circuits to piecing together jigsaws, cracking codes to matching musical rhythms," each with its own set of optional instructions. Along the way you'll encounter all sorts of "bizarre creatures" that don't pose a threat so much as obstacles to overcome. The only way through is to "feed caterpillars, help a pear-headed man saw wood, trade with a Spider-Man" and perform other unusual tasks. Observant gamers can also keep their eyes peeled for twelve different portraits of scientists and novelists, allowing you to "explore their stories and unlock a special collection" if you find them all. Just remember that however you decide to approach the game, your choices will have consequences.

There is no target release date for the full version of Dad's Monster House: Medal just yet, but there's already an open house to welcome curious visitors, as a playable demo is available on Steam for Windows and Mac.