Five Reasons Why Little Orpheus Is a Journey Like No Other

It’s time for an epic journey. I’m delighted to confirm that Little Orpheus, the latest adventure from The Chinese Room, is now available on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S.

Having previously developed titles such as Dear Esther and Amnesia: A Machine For Pigs, Little Orpheus is a new type of game for us here at The Chinese Room.

Set in the 1960s, Little Orpheus is a subterranean twist on the twentieth century Space Race: a fantastical technicolor side-scrolling adventure that throws you into a quest to find the center of the Earth.

Little Orpheus has already won numerous accolades including the Apple Design ‘Best Game: Delight and Fun’ award and Pocket Gamer’s ‘Best Platform Game’ award, and we’re proud to finally welcome Xbox players to our adventure. Before you begin your quest, here are five reasons why Little Orpheus is a journey like no other.

---

An Unforgettable Story

---

Imagine ‘Journey to the Center of the Earth’ crossed with ‘The Land That Time Forgot’, and a hint of ‘Flash Gordon’, and you have a good approximation of Little Orpheus. In this extraordinary tale told across nine narrative episodes, you follow the journey of Soviet cosmonaut Ivan, who descends into an extinct volcano to discover a whole new world where dinosaurs still roam.

Little Orpheus sees Ivan explaining his past adventures to the intimidating General Yurkovoi by reliving his journey into the Earth’s core, where he discovered more than he bargained for. You’ll get to see beautiful locations, meet interesting creatures, and of course, enjoy the witty back-and-forth narrative between the two characters as Ivan attempts to spin a yarn of epic proportions and Yorkovoi disbelievingly interrogates our hero.

Our creative director Dan Pinchbeck went to extraordinary lengths when researching accuracy and tone. The final script is filled with real-life references and nods to little-known patches of history and legend.

Tonally speaking, classic lost-world books from the likes of Jules Verne and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle form part of the game’s genesis, as do Ray Harryhausen movies, but our inspirations stretch far beyond. We absorbed 1930s Republic Pictures serials such as ‘Flash Gordon’ and ‘Undersea Kingdom’, which are filled with cliff-hangers and subsequent unlikely escapes, as well as the 1936 Soviet science fiction film ‘Cosmic Voyage’. Books such as ‘Monday Begins on Saturday’ by Boris and Arkady Strugatsky and ‘Plutonia’ by Vladimir Obruchev, among others, also helped shape our game.

---

Its Humorous Charm

---

Little Orpheus doesn’t take itself too seriously. How could it when you’re hiding from a ferocious Tyrannosaurus Rex inside a human-sized egg, or talking about… milking chickens?

We worked hard to add mischief and comical one-liners as you explore these strange locales with Ivan, who has a habit of talking himself into trouble. Whether you’re a big kid, a little kid playing solo, or passing the controller among family and friends for an evening of gaming fun, our goal is for Little Orpheus to put a smile on your face.

---

The Awe-Inspiring Environments

---

When it comes to exploring stunning locations, Little Orpheus knows no bounds. Our journey features nine unique, stunning environments for you to pick through, featuring ancient underground temples of lost civilizations, prehistoric jungles teeming with dangerous predators, deep sea kingdoms, and even environments nested high above the clouds.

Every location feels different from the rest, with Ivan coming face-to-face with new and mysterious creatures in each chapter. Better still, each locale contains several collectibles for you to discover when you replay the game.

---

Ivan Himself

---

He’s the star of the show (well, game) and what’s not to love about our protagonist Ivan Ivanovich? We named him after the doll used in the Space Race’s Vostok Program; his name is the Russian equivalent of “John Doe”.

An unlikely hero, but a hero nonetheless, Ivan has a sense of innocence about him that we hope players will connect with. We also want you to chuckle along with his comical actions and jokes that make light of tricky situations… and there are plenty of those, for sure.

Tasked with exploring the center of the Earth, Ivan boldly goes where no man has gone before, quite literally, before disappearing. We join him three years on, when he finds himself in a secret bunker trying to explain where he’s been all these years and how, in fact, he allegedly saved the world…

---

The Catchy Tunes

---

A big part of building the atmosphere and setting the tone for any game is the music. For Little Orpheus we are once again blessed to present a score from BAFTA-winning composer Jessica Curry and Jim Fowler.

The perfect complement to Little Orpheus’s diverse range of other-worldly environments, the soundtrack is a mash up of all sorts of emotions – triumph, imagination, danger, and above all, adventure.

All of us here at The Chinese Room hope you enjoy the definitive edition of Little Orpheus, our award-winning adventure releasing on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S starting today.