The Well's Blessing

Game concept

A narrative-driven first-person exploration and puzzle game in which three animal-like teenagers embark on a journey of self-discovery as they wander the mystical Sanctuary of the Old Well, uncovering its history and meeting other curious visitors.

Synopsis

After a severe fire and a hurried restoration, the Old Well sanctuary finally reopens its doors. Home to the well whose water has long been linked to a series of superstitions about “starting anew,” the natural park’s reopening draws all kinds of anthropomorphic animals who wish to turn their lives around... or simply take a pleasant stroll through nature, far from their daily worries.

The grand opening unexpectedly reunites three teenagers who, despite once being quite close, lost touch after finishing compulsory secondary school. As they get to know each other better and reflect on where their lives are headed, they begin to sense that the sanctuary may have a life of its own.

Key aspects

• Open-ended exploration that externalizes the protagonists’ inner discovery
• Audio-oriented puzzles “hidden” in the environment which are closely intertwined with the protagonists’ development
• Interactive soundtrack and experimental retro art direction
• A lighthearted yet introspective coming-of-age story that explores the contemporary tensions between tradition and modernity

About the project

The Well's Blessing is currently in development! While the full game will be 2–3 hours long, we’re currently focused on building a 20-minute demo for this year's Now Play This experimental game design festival. The demo will be released here for free on April 11th.

Originally conceived as Gerard San Miguel's Final Degree Project in Audiovisual Communication at Pompeu Fabra University (Barcelona), The Well's Blessing is supported by ARSENAL's GAMEPLAY university incubation program for alternative videogames. Since then, the project has grown to include an amazing team:

• Gerard San Miguel (adpa): direction, design, programming, writing, production, audio design, art direction
• Tancla: music, audio design
• Kel: production, concept art, animation
• Aina: concept art
• Oscar: 3D art
• Roland Sierra (Delta): writing and level design support
• Alex Baciu (Zoot): writing and level design support
• Carla: animation support
• Gabi: writing support
• Kat: programming support

Join our discord community to follow our journey and stay up to date with the latest news!

You can also find us on Bluesky and Twitter ^^