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Witchmarsh’s Goal is to be ‘Baldur’s Gate 3 with Platforming’

By Katelyn Mitchell Jewett

Published May 22, 2024

Katelyn has been a writer since they learned to hold a pencil, but was a latecomer to the world of gaming, gradually falling in love with video games over the course of high school and college. They first game they ever played was Dance Dance Revolution EXTREME. During their time teaching English in Japan, during which they lived in the real-world equivalent of Pokemon's Pastoria City, gaming got them through the long cold Sinnoh...er, Hokkaido...nights. Katelyn has been a professional writer and content creator since 2017. They got into game journalism in 2020, fell in love with it pretty much immediately, and hope to continue in that field for as long as they have ideas for articles and the ability to write them. Most days, Katelyn can be found with a controller or handheld console in one hand, a cup of coffee in the other, and at least a half dozen or more in-progress articles on their computer.

Summary

Witchmarsh and Tea Party of the Damned combine CRPG elements with platforming set in an alternate 1920s America filled with fantasy and horror.
The games draw influences from Wizardry, Shadowrun, and even recent games like Baldur's Gate 3 for rich story and character interactions.
Undertale, Lovecraft, and PG Wodehouse are also key inspirations for the quirky characters and unique setting of Witchmarsh and Tea Party of the Damned.

In 2013, writer and game designer Luciano Sgarbi approached his friend Joe Conway with a simple pitch: "I want to make a game that's like Baldur's Gate but with platforming." The result was Witchmarsh and its prequel Tea Party of the Damned, two CRPG/platformer hybrid games set in an alternate 1920s America inhabited by witches, warlocks, Lovecraftian nightmares, talking cans of oysters, and much more. Witchmarsh is still in development, while Tea Party of the Damned is set to release later in 2024. As both games developed, they grew significantly from the original pitch - but the ultimate goal of "Baldur's Gate with platforming" can still be seen at the setting's core.

The Best War Games spoke to Sgarbi about the development process of Witchmarsh and Tea Party of the Damned, and the writer listed a number of influences ranging from games to literature to music. The shorter, self-contained Tea Party of the Damned draws very heavily from the works of HP Lovecraft, includes a private eye character inspired by Chester Himes' Grave Digger Jones and Coffin Ed, and seeks to emulate the rich plotting and branching dialogue of successful fantasy CRPGs, including the Baldur's Gate series and particularly recent entry Baldur's Gate 3.

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Like Baldur's Gate, Witchmarsh Prioritizes Characters While Building A Rich Fantasy Setting

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When asked which games inspired Witchmarsh and Tea Party of the Damned, Sgarbi listed several, primarily story-rich RPGs with fantasy or fantasy-adjacent settings. His list included:

[Witchmarsh is] kind of like Baldur's Gate or the Wizardry: Cosmic Forge trilogy games, but as an action platformer. So they were another two big influences...we've been inspired by the Shadowrun Returns trilogy, that's absolutely fantastic... And finally, most recently of course, Baldur's Gate 3, because that's shown us what a truly great modern CRPG can deliver.

Like Wizardry, Shadowrun, and Baldur's Gate, Witchmarsh takes place in a monster-filled setting that isn't afraid to explore the horrific sides of fantasy. Tea Party of the Damned, in particular, takes place in a bizarre, sinister underground realm that has much in common with Dungeons and Dragons' Underdark, teeming with foes ranging from tentacled "jelly men" to enormous acid-spitting alien sea urchins. The games also focus heavily on dialogue and character interactions - in Tea Party of the Damned, everyone has hidden motivations, and players must interrogate suspects and even their own party members to learn what secrets they may be hiding.

Sgarbi admitted that one of the player characters, the Guardian, a wood spirit disguised as a human private investigator, featured particularly strong Baldur's Gate influence - being drawn somewhat from the Druid character he himself is currently playing in Baldur's Gate 3. He also said that 3 in particular inspired him to implement more in-depth NPC interactions and branching dialogue, after seeing the full potential of a modern CRPG.

Other Witchmarsh Influences Included Undertale, Lovecraft And More

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Luciano Sgarbi also cited Toby Fox's iconic indie title Undertale as an inspiration, particularly in Tea Party of the Damned. Undertale's use of a cell phone mechanic where players could contact the main characters to get their input on various plot events inspired the creation of a "guide" character in Tea Party of the Damned, a talking can of oysters who hangs out in the player's backpack. Another character with shades of Undertale is the streetwise fire elemental, dressed in "a full three-piece suit with pinstripes," who certainly brings to mind the similarly suave bartender Grillby.

In addition, Sgarbi listed literary influences including HP Lovecraft's cosmic horror and PG Wodehouse's humor, which will definitely make a fascinating blend when mixed together in Tea Party of the Damned. The Witchmarsh prelude is currently planned to release in Early Access on Steam later in 2024.

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