The minds behind all this peculiarity are Kyle Gray, who worked on the sadly underappreciated Henry Hatsworth In The Puzzling Adventure, and World Of Good veteran Allan Blomquist. Which sounds rather heavy but it’s all presented with a thick line in dark humour, and with some unexpectedly excellent music. Obviously we don’t want to spoil the game’s surprises but despite appearing to be nothing more than a virtual toy it actually has something serious to say about consumerism and the environment.
![little inferno story little inferno story](https://media.wired.com/photos/593380244cd5ce6f96c0db66/191:100/w_1280,c_limit/littleinfernofeatured.png)
Meanwhile, occasional weather reports hint that there is a purpose to the seemingly nonsensical burning of valuable objects, and that everyone in the game world is doing the same thing. At first it’s not obvious that there is a story, but then you start getting letters from a female admirer. It’s not just that virtual pyromania is fun, but that the game is framed by a surprisingly effective backstory. Everything burns and crackles in an evilly enjoyable way and there’s always some sort of gag related to each object, whether it’s a cup of coffee that screams in agony as it melts, a horde of spiders that burst from an egg, or a 8-bit demo disc that temporarily turns the flames all green and pixelated.Ī few of the objects can affect others, such as the ice cubes that freeze anything else they touch, but apart from waiting for more expensive items to arrive that’s really it.Īnd yet somehow the game is still strangely mesmerising. This is not to undersell the sheer joy of playing with fire, especially fire that you know is not going to leap out and burn your house down.