Dropsy is a point-and-click adventure centered on a clown named Dropsy. Players control Dropsy while exploring an open world in which they can interact with the environment, solve puzzles, and talk to non-player characters. In the game, Dropsy becomes an outcast after a fire at his family's circus and must work to discover the truth behind it in order to clear his name.[1] The game contains no text, so dialogue is represented by visual icons.[2][3] The game features over 50 minutes of live music composed and performed by Chris Schlarb.[citation needed]
Development
Dropsy began on the Something Awful forums in 2008 as a choose-your-own adventure game illustrated by Jay Tholen about a clown named Dropsy; forum commentators would suggest what the character would do and the choices would be illustrated and added to the story. The character originated from a platform game created by Tholen in 2004.[4] Demand for a playable version of the story increased and so Tholen began designing a game based around the story with the help of some members of the forum.[4] Tholen cites games such as EarthBound, Grim Fandango, and The Neverhood as inspirations for the game.[5] In 2011 a Kickstarter campaign raised $225 USD to fund a software package to help development, followed by another campaign in July 2013 which did not reach its $25,000 USD goal.[2][6] A third campaign, started in October 2013, asked for $14,000 USD and finished with nearly $25,000 USD raised.[citation needed] On October 31, 2013, Tholen released a short horror-themed side game titled Dropsy and the Black Lodge.[7] In November it was announced that Devolver Digital would be publishing the game, providing quality assurance and marketing, but not directing where the Kickstarter funds would be spent.[2] On September 17, 2014, indie studio A Jolly Corpse joined the team.[8] One year later on September 10, 2015, the game was released for Microsoft Windows, OS X and Linux.
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The PC version received "favorable" reviews, while the Switch version received "average" reviews, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[9][10]
^Orry, Tom (September 15, 2015). "Dropsy Review (PC)". VideoGamer.com. Recero Network. Archived from the original on May 15, 2021. Retrieved December 3, 2022.