Strange New Tides
Welcome to Strange New Tides, where tiny creatures make a big splash!
You’ll play as Munch — a small, blue-tentacled Cthulhu trying to find his place in a strange, sandy world. Washed ashore in the quirky beachside town of Saltbay Cove, you’ll explore, collect tiny geodes and fish, and upgrade your humble (and tiny!) home into something glorious. Get to know you're new smol neighbors, who look... strangely appetizing too.
Key Small Features:
- Play as Munch: A hungry, little Cthulhu rocking some snazzy shorts.
- Explore: Wander around Saltbay Cove and meet kooky (and tasty-looking) tiny creatures.
- Collect & Upgrade: Build your sandcastle kingdom from a humble trash-can-sized home.
- Discover: Uncover who you are and find your place in this whimsical world of tiny surprises.
- Jazzy Soundtrack: Chill to the small, beachy beats of an original score.
Our Tiny Tale:
You play as tiny Munch. Your average little boy — 10 minutes years old, blue with tentacles, and a very hungry Cthulhu. But there’s a lot to learn in this strange new land! After a storm sweeps you from your familiar undersea world, you wash up on Saltbay Cove — a bright, beachside town full of small, unfamiliar creatures that look oddly… delicious. With nowhere else to go, a rusty pail for a home, and tiny new neighbors who could use a hand (or tentacle), you decide to make the best of it. But will your unquenchable hunger for these smaller creatures get in the way of your new life?
Get ready to dive into Strange New Tides! Tiny creatures with big hearts!
Controls:
- Control scheme: Keyboard and mouse
- Move: WASD and E
About the Developers:
At The Indie Game Academy, we’re all about crafting stories and adventures that spark the imagination — like rolling a natural D20 on creativity. With megajams, we set out to try and give early career devs a chance to have an AA experience and learn in the context of Ludum Dare! Our team is an amazing guild of industry veterans and brave new adventurers, questing together to bring indie games to life. For this project, we rallied about 40 talented folks for the Ludum Dare 56 Game Jam, where we had just 72 hours to conjure up something magical based on the theme “tiny creatures.”
This game is a true collaborative adventure, where every team member brought their own unique skills to the table. We’re beyond proud of the world we’ve created and how this experience united such a wide range of talent. We hope you enjoy this strange and wonderful new world!
Follow Us:
Join our journey, and let us know what you think — we’d love to hear your feedback! You can connect with us via our socials below!
Credits:
Willem Delventhal, Creative Director
Abram Buck - Art Lead - https://abrambuck.com/
Cody Getz - 2D Character Artist
Helen Vo - 3D Artist - https://www.helenvo-prod.com
Erica Chiem - UI/UX Designer - https://ericachiem.wordpress.com/
MB Chimid - https://mbcportfolio.carrd.co/
Jamie Wind Whitmarsh - Audio Lead, Composer - http://www.gameaudiowizard.com/
Paul Shelley - Lead Sound Designer - https://www.paulshelleyaudio.com/
Annie Okuhara - Lead Technical Audio Designer, Sound Designer, Voice Actor - https://www.annieokuhara.com/portfolio
Kyle Waldon - Technical Music Design, Composer - https://kwaldonmusic.wixsite.com/sound
Lisa Kachouee - Voice Actor - http://www.lisakachouee.com/
Nine Levitzki - Lead Game Designer - https://nine-levitzki-portfolio.super.site
Maria Shurupova - Game Design - https://www.toaddoesnot.com/
Marc Magruder - Game and Level Design - https://tinyurl.com/2s3e2aak
Sky Evans - Technical Design - https://skylarkblue1.itch.io/
Elliot Wurst - Engineering Lead - https://elliothwurst.wixsite.com/elliotwurstgames
Chase “Venera” Moudry - Systems Engineer - https://venera-program.itch.io/
Rohaid Bakheet - Gameplay Engineer - https://rohaidbakheet.weebly.com/
Sabrina Purswani - Gameplay Engineer - https://sabrinap.itch.io
Abhyu Sardesai - Gameplay Engineer - https://abhyu-sardesai-profile.netlify.app/
Beth Makielski - Marketing Lead - https://bethmakielski.wixsite.com/portfolio
Carli Velocci - Marketing and Writing - https://carlivelocci.com/
Luis Alvarez - Marketing and Design - https://www.ideomancer.io/
Euclid Marguez - Marketing and Design - https://yukisoba.itch.io/
Kristi Eckert - Narrative Design Lead - https://kristi-eckert.com/
Quain Holtey - Narrative Designer - https://www.quainholtey.com/
Ulises Rubino - Narrative Designer - https://urubino.my.canva.site/
Leilani Kaiser - Narrative Designer - https://leilanikaiser.carrd.co/
Enaree Kirkorian - Lead Producer - Superposepress.com
Riikka-Lotta Pehkonen - Producer - https://essillore.itch.io/
Doug Terhune - Technical Producer - https://juzek.itch.io/
Lauree Akhtar - Producer - https://linkedin.com/in/laureeakhtar
Hayley Durham - Lead QA - https://hayley-durham.gitbook.io/game-uxr-portfolio/
Sam Mardell - Technical QA
Martin Tsolov - Functional QA
Nathan Ellens - Functional QA
Claire Wilshire - QA Assistant, Production Advisor - https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairewilshire/
Rick Williams - QA Assistant, Engineer/Production Advisor - https://trensharo.itch.io/
Jessica Rowley - Community Wizard - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicarowley/
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Comments
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This game is so cute, it is insane that you got this much done and I especially love the little voices :3
I had so much fun playing this game, it's insanely impressive that this was done in 72 hours! I love the sound, dialogue, art, music and gameplay. Although, I would've loved to have been able to eat Amaretta....cause she's a jerk. I <3 Cici though!
Congrats on the game, it rules! great music+sound, character and environment art, dialogue, and a strong base for building up more mechanics! I got the first 2 home upgrades :D and loled when I was praised for my tall fishing skills.
what’s there is great, and i want more of everything! minigames, going into more buildings/my home, more neighbors, etc. day/night lighting would be fun as well.
It’s in great shape for so many folks in such a short time frame! Congrats to everyone involved!