01.24.2011
Analysis by: Emily Greenquist
Blueberry Garden
“Blueberry Garden” is a platformer of maze exploration and hand drawn stackable treasures. Every asset and act is a flight and dip into the endearing fantasy of its master creator, Erik Svedäng.
As a sketched bird/man, the player flies around the “Blueberry Garden,” searching for largely scaled things - an apple, a wedge of cheese, a sand timer, a camera, a pencil, a salt shaker, a top hat, a die, a wrapped present, a flashlight, a milk jug, books, luggage, a picture frame. The conquest of each is so gratifying, that the objects themselves hold an empowered weight and all deserve to be listed. They are objects found in the typical home, but are re-imagined, enlarged, nestled in flowers.
As a sketched bird/man, the player flies around the “Blueberry Garden,” searching for largely scaled things - an apple, a wedge of cheese, a sand timer, a camera, a pencil, a salt shaker, a top hat, a die, a wrapped present, a flashlight, a milk jug, books, luggage, a picture frame. The conquest of each is so gratifying, that the objects themselves hold an empowered weight and all deserve to be listed. They are objects found in the typical home, but are re-imagined, enlarged, nestled in flowers.
Each found treasure is stacked on top of each other like a trophy, creating an increasingly tall platform for the player to leap from and find more. Eaten blueberries and other fruits help our bird/man fly higher, alter the terrain, and swim into a sea of blueberry juice. Adventures begin in the middle, a space notably named “Home.” The player can return to the safety of home at any time, to soar again in every direction, to uncover new spaces, to claim presents, to nibble treats, to frolic with beasts.
“Blueberry Garden” is an exercise in imagination. It reads like a lovingly drawn children’s book that adults flock to and gift. Fall into and/or give “Blueberry Garden” to claim and re-imagine homely objects into significance.
Play Blueberry Garden
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