How I Successfully Combined Two Opposite Genres With Brok the InvestiGator is out March 1st

How do you stand out in such a crowded indie market? That’s the question I asked myself when I left my regular job to become a full-blown “solo game developer” eight years ago.

For me, the answer was to mix two genres that I love but are diametrically opposed: point and click adventure games like Sam & Maxand beat ’em up a la streets of anger. A real challenge! I called this new genre “Punch & Click”.

It really makes sense. Are you faced with a door you cannot enter? You can use your brain and try to find a way to unlock it… or you can just smash it! No more frustration with illogical puzzles that plague the point and click genre.

After an initial “rapid” release (the quirky adventure Demetrius), This great project took six years of work to bear fruit. I published first Brok the Investigator released on PC a few months ago, which turned out to be a real success.

Whine is visually inspired by early 90’s cartoons, filled with anthro animal characters but with deep characters that will interest you and an emotional storyline. If you think “TaleSpin” when you see it, it’s no coincidence. I even had my script edited by Jymn Magon, who helped create popular franchises of the time like Ducktales and A Goofy Movie!

However, this story takes a darker turn. I describe this universe as a “lightweight cyberpunk” set in a futuristic dystopia where the rich live in a dome protected from pollution while the poor struggle to make ends meet outside.

Despite great player reviews, I’ve still listened to the feedback and continued to improve on the original release (and the prologue released on Xbox during last Summerfest). In particular, I’ve made combat even more dynamic and studied what’s happening frame by frame to ensure gameplay is tight with more predictable opponents.

The adventure parts on consoles use direct controls (as opposed to moving a cursor) and I designed the game from the start with controllers in mind.

Whine is a grand adventure that spans 15-20 hours on the first playthrough, and with replayability through multiple choices has a real impact on the outcome (see will want to see all 11 endings)

I also had the chance to work with talented voice actors like Michael Kovach (Hazbin Hotel, Lackadaisy) and Bryan Olson (Max von Streets of Rage 4), which provides the two main char acter lines, for a full 23,000-line voice acting.

A large fan base has already gathered around her Brok the Investigator

(Fanart may be submitted for inclusion in the game extras). Upon release, I was surprised by the number of players who said they don’t usually play point and click games, but really enjoyed it, so I think this is the perfect game to start the genre . It has built-in hints (through ads that can be collected in-game) so you’ll never get stuck permanently, as well as multiple ways to solve puzzles and a very user-friendly interface.

If you’re interested in this new breed of adventure, pre-order it now on Xbox with a special 20% discount ahead of its full release on March 1st, 2023. And be sure to follow me on Twitter @COWCATGames for updates.