Hello, Wickroot

Hi everyone,

I’m Dalibor, and I’m making Wickroot: a pixel-art fantasy adventure about going out into a strange world and having somewhere worth coming back to.

It started with a character walking around. I wanted to learn pixel art by building something I could actually play. One tree became a forest, a few creatures became fights, and eventually I found myself asking a different question: what makes the return home interesting?

The first person you bring home

Near the beginning, you find someone being attacked. Save him, and you discover he’s a carpenter. You gather the materials and choose a plot; he builds a cabin. It has a bunk bed, because he needs somewhere to sleep too.

That small detail helped the game find its direction. You’re a wizard out on adventures, but you’re also making decisions about the place you return to. The people you help can bring skills you don’t have.

What’s beyond the river?

The current prototype has a bridge to build, another stretch of woodland to explore, and a lantern that lets you head underground. There are three cave floors and a first boss. They’re an early testing ground, rather than a finished adventure.

I’m working on the small things alongside that larger loop: how a charged wand feels, how bushes react when you walk through them, and how falling leaves give the woods a little movement.

A cauldron, not a shopping list

Another experiment is brewing. You can mix up to three ingredients in an outdoor cauldron. Ingredients have their own properties, and certain combinations do something extra. Discoveries are remembered, so experimentation gradually becomes knowledge.

I want that moment of “what happens if I add this?” to matter. It’s one of the systems I’m looking forward to spending more time with.

Still early. Still learning.

The game is a working prototype. I’m drawing and redrawing the art, testing the combat, and learning what belongs in this world. There’s no release date or public demo yet.

I’ll use this journal to share progress: a new place, an animation that finally feels right, or a mechanic that surprised me. Small, honest updates as the game takes shape.

Thanks for stopping by the woods.

— Dalibor