Content Warnings

Flashing - photosensitive players can't play yet, but in final build we will provide a safe, non flashing option

Pixelated blood - in final version there will be a bloodless option

Sexy dancing - pixelated pole dancing scenes by animals

Project Introduction

The animals on Kiyo's planet used to live as they do in our world. In the wilderness, hunting, grazing, mating, all that jazz.
However, one day, the rabbits started doing something weird. Walking upright, talking, building stuff, using smartphones, and so on. They essentially started behaving like humans. (The player will later discover that they actually found a way to spy on us and copy our behaviour!)
This allowed them to stop being bullied by pretty much anyone. They built cities, created corporations and started running the place. It'd be nice if they opted for equality, but now everything that's not a bunny is pretty much second-class in that world.
The Owl, Kiyo and his friends are fed up with all that and need a Human’s help.
By a stroke of luck, it’s you. Join the resistance group, defeat the bunnies and restore the natural order!

Gameplay and Features:
Think about a combination of Thief, Splinter Cell and Oddworld, but in 2D pixel art.
You will explore Rabbithole City and tackle levels by sneaking, fighting and solving puzzles.
You will enjoy:
• Stealth gameplay
• Dynamic lights and shadows that influence the gameplay
• Physics-based ninja rope and archery
• Semi-open overworld (4 vibrant Asia-inspired city neighborhoods, connected by a metro system)
• Enemy AI that responds to visual, audio and environmental inputs (important while sneaking)
• A complex story with a narrative alluding to real-life societal issues
• Fast-paced platform and puzzle gameplay
• Original synthwave soundtrack
The game is built from scratch, starting from our in-house 2D pixel art engine that applies 3D lighting to plain old sprites, offering a unique look.

About Developer

Pixel Rats is a self-funded, two people studio founded in 2022 by an AAA coder gone rogue (Federico Sauro) and a visionary artist (Isolde Kuijper).
We strive to create truly original hardcore indie games, combining fully handcrafted content, in-house technology, and a striking art style. Our goal is to surprise players, give them something to think about and put a smile on their faces :)

We traveled all over Europe in order to make our first game, Kiyo. When we decided to partner up and start making the game, we lived in London. But, as a self-funded indie studio working full time on the game, living costs there were too high. So, we decided to move to Madeira,
Portugal, where we started our first year of development. After a year, we moved to Verona, Italy, where Federico is from. Often we spend a month or so in Amsterdam too, where Isolde is from. We hired a freelance music artist from Bulgaria, Victor Aleksiev, and an SFX studio in Milan, DPStudios.
We visited, and will be at various gaming conferences in Germany (Games Ground Berlin, Hit conference, Caggtus in Leipzig, Indie Game Fest in Cologne) and integrated into the fun German indie game scene. Our company is registered in London. So, we definitely feel like a European indie game studio,
as we developed the game in, and have members from, many different European countries :)