Publisher HandyGames with developers Honig Studios and Quantumfrog have announced the release date of its upcoming game El Hijo – A Wild West Tale. The game will launch on PC via GOG and Steam along with Google Stadia simultaneously.
El Hijo is a spaghetti western and stealth game. The game follows a 6-year-old boy as he goes on a quest to rescue his mother, a farmer. Both are living peacefully until bandits raze their farm. She decides to leave El Hijo behind to protect him. The child is not content to sit and wait and decides to escape to search for her.
El Hijo has to rely on stealth to survive in the world. But as he continues forth, he gains self-confidence and improves his methods to get past enemies. The child’s journey will take him through a remote monastery, a stretch of an unforgiving desert, and a dangerous frontier town.
However, the game is not violent. Players have to utilize the shadows to protect the child as he moves forth. Variations of the stealth gameplay are slowly introduced and then combined to increase the challenges ahead. El Hijo will always have to think ahead to survive the dangerous world around him.
While stealth is an important part of the game, El Hijo also has to solve tricky environmental puzzles. This may include hiding behind flower beds, using a slingshot to distract enemies, or using curtains as cover until the enemy walks by. The protagonist has a playful arsenal of toys available to accomplish his missions.
A short trailer around two-minutes long introduces the story of El Hijo. The graphics of the game are presented in a painterly way, almost like an interactive cartoon.
The trailer also shows some of the exciting moments from the game, such as El Hijo’s mother riding a horse and then jumping on a train. She is also playable at one point, with players having to direct her of the perfect moment to detonate the dynamite.
El Hijo’s journey will take him through many locations, but it’s up to players to help him reunite with his mother. The developer also states that as El Hijo moves forward on his journey, his tale may inspire other children on their path to freedom.
El Hijo previously won the Best Indie Game at the 2019 Gamescom Awards.
El Hijo – A Wild West Tale launches today on PC via GOG and Steam plus Google Stadia.
