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. 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!

• Twitter/X: IGA Jams @CommunityI87378
• LinkedIn: IGA Jams
• YouTube: IGA Jams

Credits:  

Willem Devlenthal, 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 Designer - 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