World & Story
The world of A Long Climb Ago is one of knights and magic. Chivalry and wonder. And one that also seems to feature a frankly absurd number of magic climbing blocks falling from the sky. As fantasy worlds go, there are worse things, we suppose.
On top of mimicking the noises of horse hooves with coconut shells, and incoherently shouting "Ni!", knights in this world do actually get up to a bit of battling. And this story starts after one such battle, as heroic knight Amara returns to her country after fighting epic battles to realise that something is wrong with the castle she calls home. With the crystal at the top of the tower glowing ominously, and an impending catastrophe about to unfold, the tale of A Long Climb Ago begins.
.jpg "The first concept image of the key art.")
The first concept image of the key art.
.jpg "A colourful early version of the key art.")
A colourful early version of the key art.
A work-in-progress version of the key art.
The final, finished version of the key art.
It's pretty obvious just from glancing at it, but the eye-popping art style of A Long Climb Ago was inspired by classic Disney animations from the 1960s like The Sword in the Stone. Taking cues from the work of artists like Eyvind Earle and Mary Blair (who created concept art for movies such as Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, and Cinderella), the team sought to create a vibrant and gorgeous fantasy world whilst bringing their own special Mm flair to it. We think it's fair to say mission accomplished on that one.
Characters#
An image of the knight, Amara.
Amara#
Amara has been away battling unknown forces and returns to her castle to rest and be reunited with her love, Seren. However, upon returning, Amara witnesses a catastrophe that nips her fantasy vacation in the bud right then and there. Forced to climb the castle tower to avert further calamities, Amara takes on the mission of reaching and restoring the magic crystal before it wreaks untold havoc on the world. This might sound like a lot for the vast majority of people, but she's a professional knight. She's got this. By which we mean, you've got this.
An image of the mage, Seren.
Seren#
Seren, on the other hand, is a powerful mage. While Amara was away some... crystalline calamity... occurred, shattering the magical crystal that maintains peace across the world. Recognising that this tragedy needs to be immediately rectified lest the fate of the world is at stake, Seren helps Amara to climb the tower by creating the magical falling blocks that she can use to make structures to ascend the tower. When not saving the world from impending chaos, she much prefers relaxing in the Garden with the Whisps.
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