I could go for a Knuckle sandwich!
Claymatic Games, the developer behind acclaimed stop-motion animated shmup Platypus Reclayed, have revealed that their upcoming arena brawling party game Knuckle Creek is coming to Steam on October 29th for $5.99 / £4.79 / €5.79! Using a combination of clay animation, scanned clay models and 3d modelling, Claymatic brings their distinctive clay look to an arcade game that lets you smack your way through a series of solo stages, or join up with up to 8 friends in couch play or online battles as you compete to become conqueror of the countryside! To commemorate the release date announcement, Claymatic Games has unveiled an all new trailer.
Knuckle Creek’s solo campaign takes players through dozens of varied stages as you brawl your way to victory. Play as Hot Dog Man fending off peckish crows, assume the role of the local vampire facing off against pitchfork-wielding townsfolk, or defend your title as champion boxer Apollo Crude as he faces the Karate Club. Ascend the leaderboards as you compete with friends for the fastest time across Knuckle Creek’s bevy of bite-sized challenges.
Unlock hundreds of colourful cosmetic costumes by completing stages and achieving star times. Take on Random and Endless Challenges for more friendly leaderboard competition and unlockable cosmetics. Mix and match hats, jackets, shoes, hair and more to create anyone from a badass bumpkin to a gutterpunk bruiser to a funky disco dude, plus robots, pirates, monsters and more, all portrayed in glorious clay detail!
Gotten the hang of rumbling in the solo missions? Now take on your friends in PvP or team skirmishes across local and private online matches. Up to 8 players can join on one machine. Practice against bots or take them on as a team! Extensive customisation of match settings are available, or you can jump straight in. Taunt your opponents with insults, then hit them with a fish, a can of beans or a live chicken, or just a well-placed fist or foot. Eliminated players can even lay traps from the sidelines.
“Last year we got heaps of praise for our clay-animated shmup Platypus Reclayed, and Knuckle Creek continues in a similar visual style (which I developed years ago working as a stop-motion animator), but this time we’re using a blend of 3d animation and scanned clay models combined with traditional stop-motion” said Anthony Flack, Lead Games Designer at Claymatic Games. “We actually started Knuckle Creek before Platypus Reclayed, but as a more ambitious game it’s been in development for longer. Control is more complex than Platypus’ one-button gameplay, but still relatively simple for its genre. It’s all about positioning, making use of weapons and reacting to emergent chaos, rather than learning complex combos.
"With a low barrier to entry but high skill ceiling, Knuckle Creek is the perfect ‘afterparty’ game, where anyone can hop in and have a good time. We really leaned into the comedy too, with all the silly characters and situations - I recorded thousands of voice samples to bring the cast to life and we put a lot of jokes in. It is a very slapstick game where you can drop an anvil on somebody’s head or throw a pig. We want to make people laugh.”
Key Features
- 48+ handcrafted solo stages, as well as endless and randomised solo challenges
- Up to 8-player local and online multiplayer, including bot support
- Hundreds of cosmetics included — hats, jackets, shoes, hair, all in glorious clay
- Bluegrass and blues inspired soundtrack
- Friends Leaderboards and star-ratings for every stage
- Made with a mix of stop-motion techniques and 3d graphics by the Platypus Reclayed team