Mini-Devlog #4: Story & World

Giannis and Barry here today to talk about the story of BIRDCAGE, where the ideas behind it came from and how the game delivers our story to the player. Despite taking place over the course of only a day or so, BIRDCAGE marks a key point in a long history of a world headed for destruction.

What will you uncover, in the DRYAD MEMORY?

FLEDGLING

The idea of a shoot ‘em up titled BIRDCAGE goes all the way back to 2017 (which we’ll cover in a future development history blog!). However, the seed that grew into the tree that is BIRDCAGE’s story was the mythological tale of Alcyone and Ceyx, two lovers who drew the wrath of the gods with their romantic hubris and were transformed into birds as punishment. This was soon mixed with the mythological “cosmic egg”, a motif that appears across numerous cultures around the world, and we had the main elements that would become the core of the world of BIRDCAGE.

Steam post image -The Pilot awakens in the cockpit of the HALCYON-

BOXING DAY AD 2226

The story of BIRDCAGE really begins some 100+ years before we meet The Pilot. While advanced space travel was heralded as an unparalleled breakthrough, the truth is that in the 23rd century, humanity is on the brink. Global conflict escalates amid climate disasters, famine, disease and rampant social inequality. World powers turn to hopes of large-scale off-world colonization and frontier genetic science to secure their futures. At this critical moment, a desperate coalition of nations willing to champion unity and the discovery of a mysterious artefact, change the course of humanity’s trajectory forever.

After a fleeting period of peace, much of humanity is cast off into the solar system by what will eventually become the SELENE Authority. These humans, living off-world in ever deteriorating social and material conditions adopt the name “Orphon”. What follows is a turbulent period of conflict that sets the stage for the events of BIRDCAGE.

BE 2342. Mankind has branched into space and two opposing factions have emerged. One on side, SELENE, in control of the Moon and what remains of Earth. On the other, RADON, in control of the space colony CAGE.

Led by Mother ROENTGEN, the RADON Daughters have ordered GENOME Control to create a new breed of weapon. A weapon to end Earth’s reign and birth a new universe, the WORLD-EGG.

Deep inside the CAGE, a pilot awakens in the cockpit of the HALCYON - an experimental RADON gunship. Inside the newly-hatched Pilot’s mind, a Voice echoes: Destroy the WORLD-EGG.

JUST COMMUNICATION

One of our goals with the design of BIRDCAGE was to try and impart the stages with a sense of character and context, for those who are interested in exploring it. From the earliest prototypes, a Call System was in place and has been part of the game’s DNA since.

In STORY Mode, it was particularly important to us to have small windows into the psyche of the RADON Daughters, the bosses who talk to you before and after their encounters. Additionally, during gameplay you might receive an Optional Call, which can be answered by pressing the PAUSE button, granting you further insight into the events of the game. Boss and Optional calls also help put faces to the characters behind these gunships, which we hope will make them more memorable for players.

And, crucially, ARCADE Mode strips all calls and in-game dialogues out for the classic arcade experience.

Steam post image -Thesis confronts The Pilot-

DRYAD MEMORY

Much of the game’s back story, as well as information about the characters and their ships are available in the game’s database, the DRYAD MEMORY. By playing BIRDCAGE, the player earns an in-game currency called NEURO. NEURO can be spent within the DRYAD MEMORY to unlock the aforementioned additional story information, as well as new window borders, to customize your gameplay experience!

Steam post image -DRYAD MEMORY database entry on the RADON Fleet-

…AND MORE!

We hope that gives you some idea about the wider world and the history of BIRDCAGE.

Please look forward to exploring even more within DRYAD MEMORY and maybe you can even decode some of the mysteries surrounding the WORLD-EGG and its creation.

Good luck, Pilot!

-PB Team