This hand-embroidered medieval adventure game looks like a lovely, chill time—but I'm warning you, don't be fooled by its pleasant exterior

The protagonist of Scarlet Deer Inn, Elise, stands with her children and a goose in a forest. A ghost hovers to the right of the image.

Before I explain to you why Scarlet Deer Inn is one of my most anticipated games of this year, I urge you to download the demo on Steam and play it for yourself. It's hard to describe why I'm so excited by it without spoiling the very specific moment I realised it had serious juice, so I highly recommend you take 20 minutes to give it a try.

Alright, you've been warned. Scarlet Deer Inn is a side-scrolling adventure platformer created by Czech husband-and-wife team Attu games, distinguished from all the other games of its ilk by having an "embroidered" art style. This description is not entirely accurate. The backgrounds are actually hand-painted. But the characters—and every frame of their animation—have been created with a sewing machine rather than drawn, then scanned into the digital realm.