Team17 has announced a new gaming venture with Swedish developer Villa Gorilla in order to bring a new interesting genre-mixing title to consoles in 2018.
The game, Yoku’s Island Express, stars Yoku the Dung Beetle, who has arrived on Mokumana Island in order to remove resident pterodactyl postmaster from his duties. Nothing beats delivering packages on a tropical island!
Unfortunately, our little hero will soon discover that not all is well in paradise. Our heroic dung beetle discovers an ancient island deity is currently trapped in a deep sleep. The so-called paradisiac island is overrun by quakes and storms caused by the deity’s recurring nightmares. Thanks to an interesting blend of platforming and pinball mechanics, Yoku must go around the island to help its residents and ultimately pull the deity out of its restless sleep.
The studio behind this original title, Villa Gorilla, is headed up industry veterans Jens Andersson and Mattias Snygg who have both worked on a plethora of AAA titles such as Chronicles of Riddick, Syndicate, The Darkness.
Here’s what Jens Andersson, Co-Founder of Villa Gorilla, had to say about this new exciting venture:
“With Team17 we’ve found a publishing partner that cherishes innovation and style – something we recognized way back when we played Alien Breed on our Amigas. We feel that their commitment to quality and fun gameplay is a perfect match for us, and we are incredibly excited to be working with Debbie and the team to finish and release Yoku’s Island Express.”
CEO of publisher Team17, Debbie Bestwick, MBE, added:
“Yoku’s Island Express has such a beautiful, distinct style with a unique twist on the platform genre. It’s a true gem, we’re looking forward to working with the very talented Villa Gorilla and welcome them to our growing games label family.”
Yoku’s Island Express will release sometime in 2018 for PC, PS4, Nintendo Switch and Xbox One.
