You’re going to need a big bowl for this salad! 🥗 Nature has a way of giving us some big surprises every now and then, and few things are bigger than the carrots that you can see in the horizon. In these forests, these vegetables grow very large. And if you stick around for dessert, there’s a lot of chocolate to be had as well! 🥕
It’s time for our Tour of Explora to take a healthy stroll in the woods! If the bandits of Lawride Town were too rowdy for your liking, then you might want to meet some cuddly friends instead. And none are cuddlier, fluffier and full of life than the bunnies from Burrowburg!
Built alongside huge forests and farmlands, Burrowburg is a town where the residents' hearts are as big as their giant carrots! During the season, their crops grow to enormous heights, which allow the bunnies to carve them for materials, to make homes out of them and, of course, eat them! While they can quickly wither in winter, the fresh soil and water guarantee a bountiful harvest for the next season!
If you have a sweet tooth instead, then head up to the Chocolate River! Completely natural, safe and clean for the consumption of any species in this world (not for bunnies in real life), and, obviously, delicious! If you're lucky, you might even find a giant brown carrot roaming around! Isn't that sweet?
But if you want some peace and quiet after a day of hopping around, head up to Nibble Grove, where Nibbles himself will give you a tour of his farmlands, where he grows, what else? Carrots! And if you go south west, you’ll reach the Stone Bunny. A natural rock formation in the form of a big bunny. It’s tradition to hop to the top, although not many are as nimble as the bunnies. Don’t try it at home!
You better like company, since the local babysitter, teacher and merchant Fluffyroll always has a party with her! Aside from keeping an eye on the kids and educating them, she somehow still has the energy to also run the main store for visitors and merchants from abroad. Always lively, always patient, always caring, that’s Fluffyroll! Make sure to check her wares for all kinds of bunny, plushie and carrot paraphernalia! 🐰
Fluffyroll is very well educated in the surroundings of Burrowburg, so she’s a natural at teaching. Explora has a ton of different cultures and environments to explore, so she keeps the kids entertained with tales and stories that she hears from other merchants.
While you’re likely to be fascinated by the Stone Bunny and the Chocolate River in Burrowburg, the rest of Explora is also rich with awe-inspiring sights! Previously on the tour, we’ve already visited the surface of the ocean, plains, farmlands and even a colourful swamp! If you want more than blue and green in your life, you can find the Golden Forest on this side of the world! Despite its perpetual-autumn vibes, its forests are flush with foliage and life. And bees have even taken home at its outskirts! Don’t get stung! 🐝
At the west side of the Golden Forest, some witches have set up a firefighting base, known as Firewatch Witches. They’re allegedly preventing fires from happening in the zone. But if you’re lucky or rather, unlucky, you might see them at work, trying to put down a fire they very likely caused themselves. You might also sometimes spot a bee playing video games while resting atop the tallest tree in the forest.
Those are only some of the various curiosities that can randomly occur around Explora! Keep your eyes peeled, for locations that you have seen before might change every now and then. Does the marsh frog play the banjo all the time? Can crabs take a rest and party down? Fun stuff is always happening all around the world. You just got to see it for yourself as you explore around! Don't forget to snap a picture to remember too! 🧭
For our behind-the-scenes section this time, we're going back to the Townseek archives! For the first time, we wanted to show some concept art of our early character selection process. After we settled on the idea of turning Townseek into a full game, we sketched a bunch of characters and possible candidates for town hosts. We don't want to show all of them here, as to not spoil which characters did or did not make it in, as there's still a lot of surprises to come!
However, as you can see, we made concepts involving a wide variety of shapes, forms and races. We didn’t want to bind Townseek to a single concept like fantasy, furries, or magic. Yet, we also wanted everything to make sense and be connected in the setting and world-building, so a lot of our ideas for towns began with quickly designing characters and then figuring out their place in Explora’s vast setting.
Fluffyroll was designed specifically as a “welcome to our game” character, without many design frills or narrative baggage. Given her simplicity, we needed to make her visual design say more at a glance. And unlike characters that immediately show their race and personality, she displays a lot more about her lifestyle thanks to the presence of the bunny children in the picture. Wouldn’t you think of her as a caring aunt? 🐇
If you enjoyed your visit to the Burrowburg and the Stone Bunny, then you’re going to love where we’re going next! Unlike the people of Burrowburg, don’t expect a fuzzy reception from our next stop, as the citizens of the rocky town of Stonehedge don’t really move that much to begin with. So let’s head over there, slow but steady! 🗿
Before we wrap up the tour, we remind you all that our Art Quest is live on our Discord Server! If you got a knack for digital art, and haven't given it a shot, come give it a try and have your art featured in the game, credits and all! And, as usual, let us know if this tour stop had everything you wanted! Or let us know if there’s anything else we can do to improve the experience! 🖌️
Well then! Time to head towards the stone metropolis next. Let's rock and roll! Cheers! 🪨
– Whales And Games 🐳