Amid the glitz and glam of E3 2015 there was one cutesy platformer that stole the hearts and minds of the gaming community: Unravel. Cutting through the trade show’s white noise with its delightful aesthetic and charm, Coldwood Studios’ new IP fast became one of the most-talked about projects of the moment, and according to a recent fiscal earnings report, publisher Electronic Arts will release the platformer during quarter four of fiscal year 2016 – which translates to anytime between January 1 and March 31, 2016.
Centering around Yarny, Unravel bears semblance to LittleBigPlanet and, in many ways, Child of Light. Coming out of a huge corporation like EA, the low-key, beautiful title is a departure for a company synonymous with sports and FPS franchises. Mind you, in the fallout of E3, Executive Vice President Patrick Söderlund noted that Coldwood’s indie venture has the publisher’s full backing, and it’s a daring creative venture that EA wants to see more of in the future.
For me, it’s about not necessarily where EA has been, but what we should become. I believe that we have a responsibility as game developers to push new things, whether that’s internal or external. I believe in bringing a great game to players out there when we see one and have the opportunity to sign one. We will continue to seek great ideas and great teams, whether they are internal or external. Unravel was something that crossed my desk. When I saw it, I said we had to get this.
Strolling through a number of lush environments, Unravel is a puzzle platformer at its core, but considering that it has inspired confidence from EA, Coldwood’s title could prove to be much more important for the publisher in the long-run, encouraging the company to experiment beyond the walls of its sports-centric comfort zone.
Unravel will spin its own tale of adventure when Coldwood Studios’ low-key puzzler arrives in early 2016.