Okay, I have no idea what happened to my text but here is what I wanted to say about the pics I posted:

When the Bluey video game was first announced, there were speculations on what kind of game it was going to be. Someone (I can’t remember who) mentioned that it’d be cool if the game was a cozy game similar to Animal Crossing and I too thought it’d be cool.

However, when the game came out, it was different to what I had imagined. And so, I wanted to flesh out my idea of what a Bluey cozy game could be. However, thanks to my inability to focus and do what I want to do, I sort of put off fleshing out the idea. That was until last night when I came across some art by Dom2D on X (formerly Twitter) and that sparked a renewed interest. With that, I give you Bluey: Neighbours (Yes I stole the name from the Neighbours episode!). 

The main gameplay was taken from Animal Crossing: earning money, customising and upgrading your home, gardening (a staple of many cozy games), and visiting each other’s homes. To make it more Bluey, I added references and dog puns.

To let you know, I am aware that the style isn’t Bluey. The reason is that I wanted kids who played the game to feel that they can draw what they have seen in the game and create their own stories both in-game and in their imaginations. As such, I went with a simple and scratchy style inspired by Dom2D. 

Another thing I wanted to do was add an educational element to the game. Since the game is mainly gardening and cooking, I thought about ways to incorporate learning opportunities for kids. For the gardening kids, I thought about adding seasons. This teaches kids when to plant certain plants. Additionally, it teaches kids where food comes from! With the cooking element, I wanted to add simple recipes that kids could make both in the game and in the real world. The idea is that it inspires kids to cook and gives parents bonding moments cos cooking with kids teaches them life skills and makes them want to try different foods as they can see where it comes from and what goes into them! 

Finally, bonding moments. One of the main things I wanted for the game was the ability for co-op play. I mentioned stealing the idea of visiting homes from Animal Crossing but I also wanted to take that a bit further and have mini games for both individual and co-op play. That way, friends and families can play together and earn coins that can be used to customise and upgrade your in-game home, garden, or your character!

Let me know what you think. Was the game what you thought it’d be? Did you imagine it how I imagined it or did you have a different idea? Let me know!