Sunless Sea and Mask of the Rose developer Failbetter Games has unveiled Mandrake, its very first project away from the Fallen London universe. It’s a rural life sim set in a “world of old, wild powers” where horticulture is forbidden, and it’ll eventually be making its way to PC.
Taking inspiration from British history and folklore, Mandrake casts players as the last in a line of horticultural sorcerers – one who finally returns to their family’s abandoned home in the ‘small, complicated’ village of Chandley after a long time away.
Initially at least, Mandrake sounds like pretty familiar stuff. You’ll tend to your garden, fish, forage, cook, and craft furniture to decorate your home; you’ll venture into the woods, to the beach, to the mine in search of minerals, and into the community to befriend the locals, learning their stories and becoming intertwined with their lives.
Mandrake announcement trailer.Watch on YouTube
But Failbetter’s announcement hints at something a little darker and more mysterious around Mandrake’s periphery, and it’s here the studio’s knack for the peculiar starts to peek through. Soon, for instance, you’ll be trading turnips and runner beans for stranger, more intriguing seeds; you can befriend a river, eavesdrop on the dead, drink with a god who lives in your chimney, and spend a haunted night at the Butcher’s Oak.
The eccentric locals, meanwhile, include a hunter who makes pacts with the woods, and a girl saved from the sea, who still hears voices calling to her from beneath the waves. Chandley is home to spirits and other strange creatures too, including the long-armed Granny Jakes who lives in a hidden orchard, and Hroame, “sometimes stone and sometimes not”. But not everything is friendly. “Don’t go out after dark,” Failbetter warns, “the night is not for you.”
Mandrake doesn’t have a release date yet, but Failbetter says that due to its complexity and “some very unusual features” it’ll be seeking player feedback as the game continues its journey toward launch. To that end, it expects to run a number of playtests prior to Mandrake’s release, so curious sorts should considering wishlisting it on Steam.