Bel’s Fanfare Brings 3D Exploration, Bullet Hell Battles, & More; Kickstarter Goes Live on Feb 3rd

Developer Chibig has announced their next game in Bel’s Fanfare, an exploratory RPG experience that fuses bullet-hell style combat and shipboard secrets. As part of the announcement, Chibig revealed the short and stylish teaser trailer below.

Bel’s Fanfare – Announcement Teaser

As seen at the end of the above teaser, a Kickstarter for the funding of the game will go live on February 3rd, with promised exclusive rewards for backers. The game has also been confirmed for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 1 & 2, and PC via Steam.

Bel’s Fanfare puts players in the role of Bel, a small imp sent forth by her father, Belceboo, as a new aura cleaner upon The Witch of the Sea—the vessel on which they roost. Bel must use her blessed Ukoback gong-shield to cleanse the aura and scatter the manifestations of negative energy around the ship. Players will dovetail between exploration reminiscent of classic 3D adventure games, such as The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, bullet-hell battles inspired by Undertale, with the studio citing Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away as an influence on the game’s blend of fantasy and real world elements. For a deeper idea of what to expect, check out the synopsis below:

Bel’s Fanfare Overview

The Game

For many years, Belceboo and his many children have been left forgotten in the depths of The Witch of the Sea. Now, he has the chance to send his favorite daughter Bel to the outside, where she will serve the captain as the new aura cleaner.

Before parting, Belceboo grants Bel a final gift: the Ukoback gong-shield, an old family heirloom capable of disrupting and absorbing aura. 

To the passengers, Bel is restoring the ship to its former glory, but in secret, she is setting in motion a plan to free her family from their imprisonment.

Features

• Master the gong-shield for combat, exploration and puzzle-solving.
• Explore the many (hidden) rooms of the Witch of the Sea.
• Your choices matter. Push characters into a resolution and experience its consequences.
• Defeat hostile aura in expressive bullet hell arenas with surprises at every stage.
• Meet otherworldly beings. Sometimes friends, sometimes foes, and anything in between.

Bel’s Fanfare Screenshots

I’m interested in seeing what Bel’s Fanfare has to offer to the indie RPG space, interweaving its exploratory scale and bullet-hell elements with verve and aplomb. Something to perhaps keep an eye on as the year continues, no?

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