First details venture forth from Back to the Collis

• Announcements by Jack Allin
• Published:

Beautiful hand-drawn, wordless point-and-click adventure coming to PC on Steam

Being a grumpy old recluse is fine and dandy when everything's going well and you have no need of people, but sooner or later you'll probably have to interact with those you've been avoiding. Certainly this is true for the star of Back to the Collis, a gorgeous upcoming point-and-click adventure from indie Georgian developer SollersTech.

Benjamin is something of a misanthropic hermit. He used to live in the titular "charming town on a hill," but he's long since left to live by himself in the cozy comfort and seclusion of the nearby forest. However, when faced with a water shortage that appears to be affecting Collis as well, there's no choice but for Benjamin to head back to his old romping grounds to investigate. While there, players will get to know the eclectic townsfolk, including the "social problems" they experience. There will many obstacles to overcome, and as you progress, you may even come to understand what drove Benjamin from this place so many years earlier.

Featuring a gorgeous hand-drawn art style, Back to the Collis beautifully melds the colourful autumn ambience of its natural woodland setting with an almost steampunk form of makeshift technology. It plays like a classic point-and-click adventure, complete with "lots of engaging environmental quests and logical puzzles" to solve along the way. But the developers aim to tell a mature, thoughtful story as well, touching on "important social themes" such as love, ignorance, responsibility, and the challenges we face in our attempt to peacefully co-exist. What's more remarkable is that they aim to do it entirely without dialogue, as all communication is conveyed strictly through animation and thought bubble pictograms.

Back to the Collis is still fair way off from its release on Steam for Windows, Mac and Linux, but hopefully we'll soon be getting a taste of what to expect, as the developers are currently putting the finishing touches on a playable demo.