About The Game
The Ballad Of The Thulhu is a whimsical Lovecraft-inspired platforming adventure built in Unreal Engine 5, originally created during the 2025 Epic MegaJam, where it went on to win the “Army of Two” category. What began as a fast-paced jam prototype is now evolving into a fully realised indie game focused on atmosphere, exploration, and musical storytelling.
In a mist-covered land filled with strange fungi and glowing soul lanterns, a small Thulhu creature simply wants to spend a quiet evening playing the organ. But when their precious music sheets are scattered throughout the mysterious Fungi Forest, the tiny composer must venture into a world of perilous platforms, strange structures, and dangerous traps to recover each lost page and restore their melody.
The game blends platforming, exploration, and environmental storytelling within a stylised environment inspired by the cosmic themes of H. P. Lovecraft. Rather than focusing on horror, the project takes a more whimsical and atmospheric approach, creating a dreamlike world filled with strange beauty and quiet mystery.
Built in Unreal Engine 5, the project focuses heavily on environmental atmosphere and stylised lighting. Using technologies such as Lumen, Nanite, and Mega lighting systems, theworld is designed to feel alive with glowing lanterns, deep purple tones, and warm orange highlights that guide the player through the environment. The project also experiments with a unique side-scrolling control scheme that allows players to subtly move the camera perspective while navigating the world, encouraging situational awareness.
Originally developed as a two-person collaboration for the Epic MegaJam 2025 under the theme “Here We Go Again!”. Following the jam, the project is now being expanded with the goal of transforming the prototype into a polished indie title. The development team is building upon previous Unreal Engine experience gained over decades of industry work as well as being some of the lead developers that contributing to the well-received Fallout: London mod project.
Moving forward, development will focus on expanding the world with new environments, additional gameplay mechanics, improved animations, expanded music systems, and deeper environmental storytelling. The goal is to deliver a charming and memorable indie experience that showcases how Unreal Engine can power distinctive, stylised games created by small independent teams.
A playable prototype and gameplay footage are currently available, demonstrating the core mechanics, atmosphere, and artistic direction of the project as development continues.
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