Moomintroll: Winter’s Warmth is now available on PlayStation 5, bringing players a new adventure set in the beloved world of Moominvalley.
The game launched on September 18 and marks the studio’s second title based on the Moomins universe, following Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley.
In this new adventure, Moomintroll wakes from hibernation while winter is still in full force, only to find the rest of his family still asleep.
With spring nowhere to be seen, he sets out on a journey to bring the warmer season back, wake those closest to him, and reunite with his best friend Snufkin in Moominvalley.
The developers say the game draws heavily from the works of Tove Jansson, the Finnish author and artist who created the Moomins.
The first Moomin story was published in 1945, with Jansson shaping the world partly as an escape from war and fascism. The game also includes references to her personal and artistic life, including the character Too-Ticky, who was inspired by Jansson’s life partner, Tuulikki Pietilä.
Hyper Games says its goal was to create the feeling of an interactive picture book, using a watercolor-inspired visual style that reflects Jansson’s original artwork.
To achieve that look, the developers combined 3D environments with hand-painted 2D elements, while custom shaders and textures in Unity were used to make scenes resemble watercolor painted onto paper.
Snow also plays a much bigger role than simply serving as a visual backdrop.
The developers created a deformable snow layer on top of relatively simple terrain, allowing it to react to the movement of characters and other objects.
As a result, walking through the environment creates the impression of pushing through deep, soft and heavy snow, giving the winter setting a more tactile and convincing feel.
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