Clan O'Conall and the Crown of the Stag

I have a soft spot for games that do one mechanical idea really well and then trust it enough to build an entire world around it. Clan O'Conall and the Crown of the Stag is exactly that kind of game. HitGrab's hand-drawn action platformer asks you to hop between three Celtic siblings on the fly, and the whole six-or-so hours hinge on whether that single conceit is satisfying to operate. It absolutely is. The three O'Conall heirs each occupy a distinct role. Kilcannon the swordmaster can glide using his boar-hide cloak, reflect projectiles back at ranged enemies, and slash through red vines that block paths. Clakshot the huntress brings a double jump, a grappling hook for reaching high platforms, a roll to slip through tight crawlspaces, and arrows that fire in any direction to hit switches out of reach. Haggish the brute has the thickest health bar, punches through destructible walls and enemy shields, and can hurl bombs at obstacles the other two can't dent. The swapping is instant, and the puzzles are designed to make you feel clever for reading a room correctly, not to punish you for reading it wrong. Difficulty-seekers should note the challenge sits firmly in the accessible-to-moderate range. If you want a gauntlet, look elsewhere. If you want a well-paced Saturday session with a controller in your hands, this delivers. What makes the game quietly remarkable is how seriously it takes its source material while keeping its tone light. The bosses are the main exhibit. Jack-in-Irons, a chain-swinging giant drawn from Yorkshire folklore, fills the screen with whipping metal until you find the tiny breathing room left open for you. The Twrch Trwyth, an enchanted boar from Welsh myth, runs directly behind you through an entire level while you swap characters under pressure to vault obstacles and manage enemies simultaneously. The art style itself, hand-drawn with clear inspiration from illuminated manuscript illustration and bronze-age Celtic knotwork, carries visual ideas you rarely see in games. Reviewers consistently compared it to Cartoon Network output from the nineties, which is accurate but undersells the mythological research underneath. The game also layers in a progression loop: collecting golden faeries through each level funds character upgrades across four tiers each, and hunting down the little secret-bag gremlins hidden in awkward corners adds a completionist layer without ever feeling mandatory. The honest criticisms are real but minor. The story is a straightforward rescue mission told through handsome illustrated panels, and it does not aspire to more than that. Enemy variety thins out as the back half leans on recycled encounters dressed in new environments. Clakshot's grappling hook has a targeting window that occasionally refuses to latch when you'd swear you were close enough. There are no difficulty options and no multiplayer, which stings a little given how much the design echoes a co-op setup. The single-player-only structure works, but the Trine comparison will occur to anyone who plays it, and Trine had co-op. The game also caps out around six hours and there is no second-run incentive beyond a speedrun timer. Post-launch community reports mention a couple of broken achievements on Steam, something worth keeping in mind if you chase 100 percent completion. For what it is, though, Clan O'Conall is a genuinely crafted piece of work from a small studio. The original score by MoonWalk Audio sits exactly where it should, Celtic strings and percussion that shift mood between the lush forests, crypt sections, and Fae-world levels without ever becoming wallpaper. The hand-drawn animation has a bounce and character that most indie platformers cannot match. It knows its length, earns its ending, and does not outstay its welcome. Metacritic sits at a 78, which feels accurate. This is a confident, finished, specific thing.

Kai · Scout Team

Indie & narrative

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