As that title suggests, the heart of Book of Travels is about your journey and your stories, threading together as one. Through wandering and roaming your adventures will unfurl, in traversing and trundling your discoveries will enrich them. Mostly this will be done by foot, but respite can be taken on boats and trains, and from time to time magical means might see you travelling in more unexpected ways. Today we’re dipping into these gameplay possibilities, we look forward to your thoughts!



A single train track runs around the central basin of Braided Shore in a loop, stopping at the busy city of Kasa and the town of Crossings. Other stations will be open along the way as further areas of the land open up beyond early access. Each station has a warden who you can speak with to find out when the next train leaves, and if you see a train about to leave you’ll be able to call out to the warden to get that extra few seconds to climb aboard. Trains are fairly frequent so if you need a break from walking or just want to take a journey with a fellow Traveller, a scenic ride to Kasa might be just the ticket (ahem).[/b] Of course train travel will not take you to the outer wilds and all that lies beyond the middle ways, but it should be a merry treat and might save time if your adventure involves getting to a faraway destination or the need to pick up some supplies in Kasa. And if you're looking for somewhere to stash some items, you'll be able to leave them safely at a tarin master's chest (there's one in the gif just below).





If you want to cross between the western and eastern islands of Braided Shore, you’ll need to cross the great lake known as The Verve, which currently requires travel by boat (no air travel exists in the region as yet). Boats travel regularly from Myr and are a very relaxing way to get to the island of Bat Saha and the north west lands beyond. As with trains, boat stations have wardens who will let you know when the next boat taxi will depart. Travellers can also find abandoned boats around the shores of the region and can be unlocked for use through Endeavours, so these journeys will be for pairs or small groups and will take you to places off the beaten path.



Draisines are small carts that require two people to lever them across tracks. We don’t expect draisines to be any use in closing distances since they cover a small area. But if you’d like to meet with a friend and spend a little time spending some energy on a metaphorical mini journey of friendship, these might be the wheels for you. Funded by one of our Kickstarter stretch goals, we are looking forward to finding out how players engage with their draisine mini-travels when early access comes this summer.



We’re not going to give too much away here, but for now we can reveal that the magic unlockable in knots and tea might also lead you to magical means involving travel... Shapeshifting can also be explored as a means to taking on the travel abilities of another animal or being, and a Travellers’ Portal, also from our Kickstarter, will allow you to skip the arms in a candle!

That’s all for now, but before signing off I want to thank Nippon Ginko For suggesting this topic on Discord – great idea! If you have ideas for things you’d like to hear more about please do post them below or in Discord In the future we’ll be sharing more about travel, including how distance is measured and how you might acquire skills for navigation and finding folk.

Thanks again for taking time with us! We’d love to hear your thoughts on this and all things travel and RPG so please do drop them below!

Best Wishes

Helen & the Dev Team




https://store.steampowered.com/app/1152340/Book_of_Travels/

Sign up on our mailing list for news and an in-game treat in our upcoming game at https://m-n-d.games/BoT/Steam/update.

The T in TMO signals an alternative to the more common industry standard MMORPG (Massive Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game) putting 'tiny' in the place of 'massive'. That means fewer meetings, which we think means more magic... Read more here: What is a TMORPG?!

We’ve been deeply gratified to read all your comments on Kickstarter, Steam and Discord. In particular those that have lead us to books, art and other media that you feel share similarities with our TMORPG. Therefore we’ve dedicated a post to the key inspirations behind Book of Travels.
Read more in this post: Inspirations for Book of Travels!

Later this year Book of Travels will be available for Early Access on Steam. In Chapter Zero parts of the Braided Shore will be open, and among the places to visit is the gem of the region – the city of Kasa. Read more here.

Join our super friendly Discord to exchange ideas on all things Book of Travels as well as art, games and books. Join here.

There are many ways in which we’d like to bring you closer to the world of Braided Shore - in music, travel guide and lore readers of this post have come to know how it feels to live in its woods and wilds and to travel its age old roads. But there’s no better way to understand a land than by listening to its people, and in this week’s post we hear a little bit about life for four of the region’s denizens. Below, a Travelling Merchant, Historian, Farmer and Bandit give us their views on how life is for them. We think you’ll find that there’s much to ruminate on in the hopes and fears that their words reveal.

We hope you enjoy your acquaintance with them- please do say hello and drop your thoughts in the comments section, they are always well received!



"The road is long but my pack of trade goods is light - I can ill-afford ample stock. Unless I spy a possible customer I keep my eyes and my nose to the sides of the road. Now and again a little something to eat appears among the bushes and the undergrowth like a Sefra’s bounty. Now and again I meet someone who is looking to trade for something. Like my grandfather taught me, I keep little samples of the things I have to trade hanging from my pack in little colourful strings so that wayfarers might readily spot them. I am so very hungry all the time, and my legs ache along with the soles of my feet. But I know of a Nomad’s rest some way up ahead, and who knows maybe some Wind-spun luck will be lingering there. It is a long road, but it is my home. And should I settle in some bountiful place, I know I would soon get homesick."



"Yes, the university City of Rivenleaf is a site to behold for sure. But I prefer to muddy my sandals in the field, digging in the dirt and lost ruins for the truth. Sadly, a large part of my time lately is spent in the teahouses, trying in vain to open the eyes of the faculty professors to the implications of my findings in the Potter’s Field and the emerging revelations in the writings on the Maratesh shards! I’m most upended at how the old professors refuse to support new discoveries. That they value the comfort of their reputations as experts rather than embrace curiosity over new evidence is a disgrace to our profession. Knotting these lines, I now realise how I’ve wasted my time. I will grab my shovel and join my servants in the Potter’s Field! Thank you for helping me realise where the true value of my work lies!"



"It’s hard work drawing bounty from the earth. We must spend most of our daylight hours tending the fields, keeping only the dark of morning and evening to tend to ourselves. But though hard, there is a feeling of security in the strict repetition of each day, and each evening's rest is a welcome reward. We enjoy good food, with vegetables and meats traded with our neighbours, taken with the hum of song and pipe of the family’s music making. I feel fortunate to live in these times, where the climate is mild, the wardens keep the beasts of the wild from our doors and the tax burden is fair for all. The old folk reminds us it has not always been so, and the wiser among us try to set something by for a future that may not be as kind as the present."



"I used to work one of the wool carders in the Milomak Weavery. I had seven younger siblings and parents who seemed to take me for granted. Every day I felt the monotony crush me little by little. Every day the same work, the same people, the same places - like eating gruel at every meal. One day I broke away, walked into the forest and wandered. I guess I got lucky - a group scooped me up before the woods took me - the Broken Lantern Gang. We are banded together now, like-minded and free! The carding made my arms strong and I am good with a blade. Tomorrow we might clash with some nasty bandit gang, the next day we’ll lighten the purse and knapsack of some overfed merchant. I might be taken by a warden but what does it matter? Today I'm the hammer and the world the anvil. Tomorrow the roles might change."

Travellers, thanks again for spending your time getting to know Braided Shore. The world is growing so fast now and early access is a place not too far away - just a few months! If you like our game we'd be very grateful for any sharing you could do to help it on its way to the big wide world this summer. We've made some handy buttons below to make it easy for you.

Thanks again and best of wishes from us all here in Stockholm!

Helen & the Dev Team

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1152340/Book_of_Travels/






Sign up on our mailing list for news and an in-game treat in our upcoming game at https://m-n-d.games/BoT/Steam/update.

The T in TMO signals an alternative to the more common industry standard MMORPG (Massive Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game) putting 'tiny' in the place of 'massive'. That means fewer meetings, which we think means more magic... Read more here: What is a TMORPG?!

Later this year Book of Travels will be available for Early Access on Steam. In Chapter Zero parts of the Braided Shore will be open, and among the places to visit is the gem of the region – the city of Kasa. Read more here.

Join our super friendly Discord to exchange ideas on all things Book of Travels as well as art, games and books. Join here.

There are many layers to the making of Book of Travels, and while we’ve shared a lot about game mechanics, our processes and our team, few posts have touched on the world that will soon be yours to explore. Here we share a little outline of the region - just enough to help a newcomer get their bearings but not too much to dampen the curious spirit. We hope your interest is piqued and we’d love to hear your thoughts!




Braided Shore is the western peninsula of a large uncharted land mass to the east. This fertile region is largely divided in two by a stretch of sea called The Verve, and the entire land mass is characterised by its many waterways, islands and rugged shorelines. Flora and fauna proliferate across the region’s fertile and undulating landscape. Mineral deposits are plentiful, however none have proven of the quality to match Master Iron, the material that comprises the region’s inherited industrial infrastructure (see below). Small desert areas provide the only sand in Braided Shore, and as it is unsuited to glass making, the domestic life of its inhabitants is one without glass panes or vessels (although some imported items can be found). The regional climate is very temperate, with cold spells being incredibly rare and the notorious local winds being mainly warm. Braided Shore is separated from its eastern neighbour by cliffs, rapids and an ancient wall; the region beyond it is uncharted.


Visitors to Braided Shore have made observations that give clues to something of its past. The rudimentary industrial infrastructure points to a legacy left by inhabitants who lived in a culture marked by a moderate degree of manufacture and travel. These mechanical relics and the mechanised society that produced them are the subject of much research, but at present, remains little understood by today’s inhabitants. Machine parts, made of a foreign material known as Master Iron, have never been replicated or reworked.

Thought to come after the Machine Age is the Varhim period, the key artefacts of which are a scattering of busts made of an unknown composite. The busts and their shadow are considered bad portents and so remain untouched. Several large structures sharing similar sculptural characteristics are also attributed to the Varhim era. Most scholars agree that it was the Varhim era that saw the destruction of much of Braided Shore’s industrial infrastructure, although contradictory theories also abound.

The current people of Braided Shore are known as Asken. The Ancestors of the Asken folk are said to have arrived as boat dwellers, bringing with them a practice of complex knot crafting. The name Braided Shore was given to the land by these people whose search for a homeland brought with it a yearning for the order and harmony symbolised in braids.


The spoken language of the area is known by the locals as Elskeni, and since The Age of Halzhaan, the languages of the Malku Su and Selke have been widely spoken and can be studied in the region’s college in the north west.

Elsken syntax and orthography is formed by a symbolic language of knots thought to be the primary means of communication used by the first settlers who, both young and boat-bound, were without the means and methods to develop the writing skills of their forebears. Knot tying as a practice of both magic ritual and communication remains at the heart of culture in Braided Shore and a small iconography of common knot sentiments can be found across the land. Visitors to Braided Shore may glimpse a little of the lives of its folk in the fragments of knots that can be found dropped around the place, lost or kept for recycling.


Spirits and mystical beings abound in Braided Shore, all greatly varying in number and character. Sefra are the most powerful of all spirit beings and have, over time, entered into cordial relations with the Asken people, mediating their relationship through especially chosen individuals known as Voices. Sefra are large and elusive beings known for their erratic moods but who work with communities to assist in council and community decisions.

Other ethereal beasts include the shape-shifting Omin, chilling ‘Mares’, the Kettem wind spirit and a mischievous storm child spirit called Little Lilit. Phantom fires and energy draining spirits of wanderers, ghost dogs and rail walkers also inhabit the peninsula.

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Much of Braided Shore is yet to be known, and we are all very excited to learn the findings and theories of future Travellers!

In the meantime, we'd love to hear your stories of travels to unusual places and your views on Braided Shore right here in the comments...

Best Wishes,

Helen and the Dev Team xx

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1152340/Book_of_Travels/

If you’ve ever thought that a career in programming means dull days in front of a computer without travel and mobility, read through our new programmer’s career journey, and think again! We’re happy to introduce you to our new team member, Charlotte Auger - here she tells us how her experiences shape her work. Let Charlotte know if you have any questions in the comments section below!

Mostly in France where I studied Game Design and then Game Programming. I also spent a few months in Belgium for an internship and it made me very excited to go abroad again.

The Book of Travels Kickstarter sparked my interest for the company and since I really liked their values and projects, I just applied as an intern. I guess luck did the rest because they apparently needed someone with my profile right at that time for Shelter 3!

Working with amazing people and especially our dream team of programming women on Shelter! And I’m so happy to discover Sweden, I just love it here! Regarding the games, I’m very pleased to work on experiences focused on themes such as emotions, communication and care.

I usually enjoy socializing, parties and going out a lot, but with the current circumstances I try to draw, send letters to the people I care about, work on some lino printing and other cosy activities.

Recently I would say “I am Dead”. It’s playful, genuine, emotional and well-crafted.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1152340/Book_of_Travels/

In our blog today we’re taking you for a rummage in the studio attic. In its many draws, folders and cabinets are sketches showing Book of Travels in many stages of its life. The first sketches were made in 2016, at the very beginning of development and were created by the art team to explore the kinds of places and people that might exist in this new world.

Below are sketches from the pre-production phase - exploratory designs from a time before the style had solidified.





These are sketches from the ongoing production. Traditional pen-and-paper designs play a major part in the design of the in-game graphics - the current amount of sketches could easily drive a fresh recruit mad!










These strange looking sketches haven't found their way into the game yet but may be part of the future of Book of Travels.







We hope you enjoyed this little peek into the attic! We'll be back in a couple of weeks with a very exciting update... Till then stay safe and take care.

Best Wishes,

Helen and the team xx

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1152340/Book_of_Travels

Sign up on our mailing list for news and an in-game treat in our upcoming game at https://m-n-d.games/BoT/Steam/update.

The T in TMO signals an alternative to the more common industry standard MMORPG (Massive Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game) putting 'tiny' in the place of 'massive'. That means fewer meetings, which we think means more magic... Read more here: What is a TMORPG?!

Later this year Book of Travels will be available for Early Access on Steam. In Chapter Zero parts of the Braided Shore will be open, and among the places to visit is the gem of the region – the city of Kasa. Read more here.

Join our super friendly Discord to exchange ideas on all things Book of Travels as well as art, games and books. Join here.

With two of our most ambitious titles to date releasing soon, we thought that this was the perfect time to ensure that they'll be cross checked to perfection with the help of Quality Assurance Officer Fleur. We hope you like their Q&A and are brimming with questions yourself to ask them in the comments section!

At Blekinge Institute of Technology in Karlshamn studying digital game design, I loved the programming part of the course although the story elements hold a close second. Before that I lived on a small farm outside of Grythyttan where we keep sheep and chickens, of which my favorite is the big grey rooster Sebastian which I raised from a hatchling.

Through a student group posting job advertisements where I fell in love with Might and Delight’s art style and game concepts, it [quality assurance] was a completely new position at the company so it seemed intriguing.

The people! Everyone is super kind and welcoming, almost feels like an extended family.

I love cross stitching and reading fantasy novels! The Terry Pratchett series Discworld holds a special place in my heart for their witty style, intriguing plot and cleverly disguised social commentary. Cross stitching is a relatively new hobby which I started with to keep my hands occupied while watching [tv] series but found that it's really relaxing to do as long as the threads cooperate.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1152340/Book_of_Travels/

So far we’ve shared a lot about how serene the Book of Travels experience will be, but as we talked about in our inspirations blog, the beauty of the world lies partly in its shadows and the tension that lurks at the periphery. This week we’re looking at some of the dangers that can sneak up on you in Braided Shore. Here we share a few that you can expect to encounter when early access launches this summer. Be warned - the shadows in this world do not fall at the usual angles...



Also known as the spirit of the middle winds, the Kettem (Plural:Kettem) is a malicious spirit that rides the winds that bisect the cardinal coordinates. Having no physical form Kettem animate themselves with any objects that lie in their path, creating wild and chaotic melds of unknown intent. A Kettem is a harsh opponent in all cases, but harsher still when animated by harder objects, such as parts of trees or broken boats. Other common Kettem components include seaweed (being plentiful on a high tide) and hay (being skimmed from hay bales). Abandoned junk and personal objects are also sometimes caught in a Kettem’s path. Once its physical form has been destroyed, a Kettem becomes a harmless wind spirit once more and will quickly vanish.




The Maisu (Plural: Maisu) is not known as the ‘spirit-of-foul-words’ for nothing - this spirit is the embodiment of every expletive spat in vitriol and is said to be summoned by feelings of hate. Where spite is usually something unleashed in rare and hot flashes, for Maisu it is an eternally roaring fire. They love nothing better than to hurt folk and cause them distress, but their attacks can often be more baffling than life threatening. But Maisu can also be cowardly and not particularly strong-willed - farm families will sometimes come together to vanquish a Maisu that has been troubling the surroundings. Because of Maisu, Braided Shore folk choose their words wisely, scolding “Curse-for-the-Maisu!” at folk who use foul words. Maisu are bound to a knot symbol of unknown meaning that also resembles their facial features. This “rune” can be seen floating in the air before the demon itself becomes visible.




Called simply 'Mares' these dream horrors take the shape of slender yet beast-like creatures that fly in a swimming fashion. Mares are a fairly recent phenomenon in Braided Shore and are believed to be a manifestation of the ills that have more recently troubled the region. There is no doubt that an encounter with a Mare is a very serious moment indeed: their uncanny aspect transfixes all who lay eyes on it, but a Mare must be quickly dealt with for their attack is mighty. Over time, Asken folk have come to know these ghouls as the nightmares of Sefra, wrangled loose from their dream world and drifting in torment across the land. Some say they have witnessed a Mare dissolve as its Sefra wakes, and others have been successful in destroying Mares while its Sefra sleeps on, more peacefully with its Mare now returned to its world of dreams.




These are just a few of the dangers you can expect to face in Braided Shore, but there’s plenty to watch out for on the roads and in the wilds too… All kinds of earthly good-for-nothings will knock you off your path. Poachers, kidnappers, smugglers and bandits may choose to rob or attack you, and though they may not be the most daunting of foes, an encounter with one may leave you as confused and depleted as any sprite or gast!

As always, we are so glad to have your company! We’d love to hear your thoughts about these and other beings so please do drop them right here in the comments section below…

Best Wishes and Stay Safe,

Helen and the Dev Team x

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1152340/Book_of_Travels/
Sign up on our mailing list for news and an in-game treat in our upcoming game at https://m-n-d.games/BoT/Steam/update.

The T in TMO signals an alternative to the more common industry standard MMORPG (Massive Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game) putting 'tiny' in the place of 'massive'. That means fewer meetings, which we think means more magic... Read more here: What is a TMORPG?!

Later this year Book of Travels will be available for Early Access on Steam. In Chapter Zero parts of the Braided Shore will be open, and among the places to visit is the gem of the region – the city of Kasa. Read more here.

Join our super friendly Discord to exchange ideas on all things Book of Travels as well as art, games and books. Join here.

How does it feel to travel the road? What is it like to take a turning from the beaten path? Well-worn tracks bear the shape of familiar behaviours, but making new tracks brings us to the present moment, releasing new energy for fresh adventures... Such choices in these times are, for many of us, flights of fantasy, and today we hope to keep those flights aloft with the help of some music from Book of Travels. Whether you’re home-bound, locked down, or on the road, we hope you get some time to listen to them and let us know what you think...






The title 'Book of Travels' stuck because it so clearly places journeying as the heart of the game, and so it’s vital that these journeys are rich in mood and ambience, and here music plays a huge part, creating not just mood but depth and variety. Lead Sound Designer Josef Tuule explains: “These two pieces are meant to be companions for different kinds of areas in the game. ‘The Elden Road’ offers the comfy vibe of walking a path that others have walked many times before. By contrast, ‘The Weaving Wilds’ describes the kind of terrain we think of as an off-shoot - where culture and tonality may differ from your normal path. The player should feel they have progressed into a new area, hence the expression is more vivid.”




Music in Book of Travels has many different roles to play in the game, as well as being present as a traditional game score, it will be performed by the inhabitants of Braided Shore themselves. All scored pieces are composed and produced by Josef Tuulse and Retro Family, who comprise Ulf Wahlgren, Jokke Pettersson and Alfred Andersson. The band has a long relationship with the studio and is responsible for the unique sound of the Shelter Games series. Ulf Wahlgren attributes much of that style to the band’s method of recording live performance: “We play all of the music and instruments live, nothing is programmed or fixed, and that makes the music come alive within the game.”

Retro Family play instruments from around the world, and for this soundtrack combine the oud, flute, darbuka, saz and bass with hand percussion.



“The soundtrack takes influences from artists in Egypt, Turkey, Greece,” says Ulf, “A new instrument to us is the oud, an Arabic string instrument, which reminds me of a lute. It has no frets on the neck, so it slides beautifully between notes, and we use a fretless bass to blend with that.”

Just as the game design takes inspiration from many sources, so does the sound design. Ulf and the band look to “classic adventure and RPG games, classical Ottoman music and a wide variety of traditional music from Armenia, Greece, Turkey and Iran to name a few.” As with all things Book of Travels, the aim is to take these most excellent ingredients to make something fresh and exciting. As Ulf says, “We want the player to feel that a new world is awaiting them, a world, mayhaps, that they have not experienced before.”




To hear more of Retro Family’s soundtracks and watch them play live, check their Youtube channel. You can also follow their Instagram where they post pics and the occasional musical video clips.

This week we are also celebrating Retro Family’s score for Shelter Games as we head towards the release of Shelter 3. Check the post here and get a free soundtrack DLC of Shelter 2 by joining our Shelter newsletter here.

We’re super glad to be sharing this music with you and we can’t wait to share more lovely things as the game gets closer to completion this year. In the meantime, please let us know your thoughts right here in the comments… What music do you like to travel to?? What other games have you enjoyed journeying in? If travel’s your thing, there’s a whole channel dedicated to just that in our Discord. We'd love to see you there.

Best Wishes – and stay safe,

Helen and the Book of Travels dev team x

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1152340/Book_of_Travels/

Sign up on our mailing list for news and an in-game treat in our upcoming game at https://m-n-d.games/BoT/Steam/update.

The T in TMO signals an alternative to the more common industry standard MMORPG (Massive Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game) putting 'tiny' in the place of 'massive'. That means fewer meetings, which we think means more magic... Read more here: What is a TMORPG?!

Later this year Book of Travels will be available for Early Access on Steam. In Chapter Zero parts of the Braided Shore will be open, and among the places to visit is the gem of the region – the city of Kasa. Read more here.

Join our super friendly Discord to exchange ideas on all things Book of Travels as well as art, games and books. Join here.

The last year was one where we slowly opened the door to Book of Travels and all it involves. We’ve been deeply gratified to read your response, in particular those replies that have lead us to books, art and other media that you feel share similarities with the square-peg project that is our TMORPG. With that in mind, and to make for a reviving start to the epic year that will be 2021, we’re dedicating this post to a deeper investigation of key inspirations behind Book of Travels, and we hope you feel inspired to share your own inspirations with us too!


The Library of Babel by Érik Desmazières


Argentinian Jorge Luis Borges is famous for fiction that undermines all notions of reality. One of his best known works is The Library of Babel, whose (almost) infinite stacks of randomised texts prompted the production team to begin designing a game world that has players get lost on an (almost) infinite quest of their own design. In Borges’ story characters respond to the uninterpretable texts in many ways - as cultists, cabalists, or simply on a searching for meaning and truth. The exploratory decentred experience that is Book of Travels owes a lot to Borges’ library and Ficciones. Other stories such as 1001 Nights and Judith Schalansky’s Pocket Atlas of Remote Islands have also inspired the dreamy reality and magical everyday of Braided Shore.


Tove Jansson’s Hattifatteners haunt Moominmamma


All Moomin fans are familiar with how the light-hearted domesticity of Moomin life is made brighter by lurking darkness. A Groke, hattifatteners and the Lady of the Cold all loom in from the periphery to quietly nudge you out of your existential comfort zone. No matter the infinite beauty of the new day’s sun there’s always something unnerving in the offing. If Book of Travels gets anywhere close to conjuring this kind of uncanny we would be thrilled indeed.


Standing in the rain with Totoro


Hayao Miyazaki’s work is much loved in the studio, and the stillness and silence in films like Spirited Away, Ponyo, and Totoro is something we love a lot. These daring minutes of peace aren’t validated by any narrative task, they’re simply part of a meandering journey, allowing us to get lost in something or nothing in particular. We’ve often written about getting lost in Book of Travels and about how tranquil it is, the effect of Ghibli’s ‘ma’ is something we dream of achieving in game form.


David Lupton’s Ged from Ursula le Guin's A Wizard of Earthsea


Everything mundane and ethereal in Book of Travels emerges from a grey zone somewhere between good and evil, and the game’s design and scattered narratives quite consciously evade that classical binary. So while we’re clearly very inspired by fantasy RPGs, the spirit of the game’s design owes a lot to fantasy classic A Wizard of Earthsea, in which Ged learns about the balance of the cosmos and fights inner turmoil rather than outer forces of darkness.


Layers of mystery from Baldur's Gate


If there is one game we never tire of paying tribute to it’s Baldur’s Gate. This was the original it-doesn’t-hold-your-hand RPG and many of the team have spent uncountable hours playing it, both since production began but also way before the Book of Travels seed was even planted. The sense of just wandering the lands freely, just enjoying nature and the adventure is still an unparalleled experience in the RPG genre. Interestingly BG1 was created by medical doctors and not seasoned game devs - they wanted to make a game with a much more open style of play. In terms of game design, this is the team’s number one inspiration and we’ll be over the moon if we can even slightly live up to its achievements! Other games that we looked at are Journey, ICO and RPGS like Knights of the Old Republic.


A still from Jiri Trkna’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream


Czech animation has something of a cult following, but it’s Jiri Trnka in particular whose illustrations and puppets are an all time favourite of Art Director Jakob Tuchten. Trkna’s almond-eyed, graceful-limbed creatures are dressed in the deeply-hued cloaks of medieval style fairytales, an aesthetic that blends easily with feudal Japanese and Middle Eastern dress. Trkna’s animation also inspired Book of Travel’s diorama feel. This mix of 2D and 3D was a big technical challenge but, we hope, now evokes a Trknaesque atmosphere, suggesting fictions consciously staged in a world that’s deeply immersive.


The Blue Heron by AJ Casson


Arnold Böcklin's Isle of Death


While ambiguity is a source of dramatic tension in Braided Shore, visually, dark and light are very polarised. For the painting style, inspiration finally came from AJ Casson whose picture above became the cornerstone of the game’s visual style. Casson’s lines are fluid, vivid and detailed, and echo expressionists (such as Munch and Van Gough) in invoking the motion of wind. Wind is a very important phenomena in Braided Shore, so this aesthetic also works to hint at its continuing presence and magical influence. Away from the woods, dense looking rocks and flat reflecting water are borrowed from Arnold Böcklin’s Isle of Death series to create a bleak feel. The art team also looked to the Orientalists whose figurative art documented everyday life in Middle Eastern cities. From them comes the hustle and bustle of our https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1152340/view/2944753052358276407.


The Reception of Ambassadors in Damascus, by an unknown Venetian artist


Waterhouse's Love for Circe


Of course there are tonnes of other influences that go into the Book of Travels cooking pot to stew, some of which are those unplanned, organic and human things. There’s a phenomena in the theory of visual art whereby artists cannot resist the temptation to fill all available space with detail. It’s known as Horror Vacui, and unsurprisingly that’s exactly how the game ended up looking how it now does. For that we have Lead Artist Marcus to thank! A studio copy of Madelaine Miller’s Circe now creaking with use like it has a spirit in its spine has also bled into our approach to spells and magic.

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We hope that this very brief dive into our various influences has inspired you to discover something new and fun. For sure, our journey of discovery is never over, and we'd love to hear all your suggestions for cultural rabbit holes that we can lose ourselves in, so please drop us a line below and let us know what Book of Travels makes you think of...

Thank you so much for spending your time with us! From the whole team, best wishes and stay safe!

Helen and the Dev Team xx
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1152340/Book_of_Travels/

Sign up on our mailing list for news and an in-game treat in our upcoming game at https://m-n-d.games/BoT/Steam/update.

The T in TMO signals an alternative to the more common industry standard MMORPG (Massive Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game) putting 'tiny' in the place of 'massive'. That means fewer meetings, which we think means more magic... Read more here: What is a TMORPG?!

Later this year Book of Travels will be available for Early Access on Steam. In Chapter Zero parts of the Braided Shore will be open, and among the places to visit is the gem of the region – the city of Kasa. Read more here.

Join our super friendly Discord to exchange ideas on all things Book of Travels as well as art, games and books. Join here.

We would love to be able to wish you a ‘kul jul’ with a traditional looking shot of our snowy Scandanavian island, but alas, it has not snowed here yet. So we share instead this photograph of our gate, taken by Studio Manager Joel in January 2019. That time was a very white winter in Stockholm and covered our little island in snow and froze Lake Malaren for weeks on end.



The second photo is the Might and Delight house just last week… We are never many here these days and are sitting through this bleakest of winters working to those all-engrossing deadlines and wishing for a better 2021… We are sure you are too, and today we want to send you our seasonal wishes with an extra serving of spirit to help with all you may be going through... and with extra special thanks for supporting us over this last year.



We can’t wait till the days get lighter and we get ever closer to that early access date! We’ll have a whole new set of Book of Travels sneak peeks to share with you between then and now - until then, take care and stay well.

Best wishes and a happy new year to you,

From us all at Might and Delight <3

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1152340/Book_of_Travels/