- The race of life unfolding as one of countless sperm… TGS Gold Award Winner
- Surpassing 145,000 Steam Wishlists, a short 2-3 hour third-person single-player adventure
A unique adventure game that translates the ‘race of life’—where only one out of hundreds of millions survives—into a game is attracting attention.
“Become,” a third-person adventure game currently under development by Czech indie developer ProtoSeed Games, is garnering attention even before its official release, having surpassed 145,000 items on its Steam wishlist following its win at the Tokyo Game Show.
The new adventure game ‘Become’ features a unique concept where the player becomes one of hundreds of millions of sperm to explore the vast microscopic world inside the human body. Players must survive by overcoming the body’s highly acidic environment and avoiding the ruthless attacks of immune cells.
It captures the journey of collecting various resources and growing characters as you advance toward the single, wondrous final goal of ‘the birth of life.’ In particular, ‘Become’ is an attractive title featuring visuals of a microscopic world meticulously rendered in dreamy fluorescent light, and a unique atmosphere that is somewhat quirky yet witty.
‘The smallest journey of life’ leaving behind countless competitors
‘Become’ is a game that transforms the human reproductive system into the stage for a grand adventure. Players become one of many competitors and navigate through dangerous environments to embark on a journey toward the birth of new life.
The total playtime is relatively short, at about 2 to 3 hours, and it adopts a linear progression. You can strengthen your cells by collecting resources such as sugars and proteins while moving against the current and avoiding attacks from acidic environments and immune cells.
Surviving alone is not everything. There are sections where you must rescue comrades and work together to overcome obstacles. Various situations are also presented that require utilizing the surrounding environment, such as breaking through barriers or moving using water currents.
It allows players to explore the space using unique movements such as wriggling, jumping, and pushing, and also offers elements to customize the appearance of the sperm. The developers explain that the game was designed not merely to be a whimsical concept, but to allow players to naturally learn how human reproductive organs function while playing.
Beating over 1,500 entries… Winner of the Tokyo Game Show Gold Award
Its unique subject matter and gameplay have been well-received at various game events. ‘Become’ was selected as one of the seven games to receive a Gold Award out of over 1,500 entries in the ‘Selected Indie 80’ at the Tokyo Game Show (TGS) held last September.
At the same event, it also won the ‘Pocky Award’ selected by the official ambassador and was named a finalist for ‘Sense of Wonder Night,’ which introduces games with original ideas.
Previously, at the ‘Game Access’ event held in Brno, Czech Republic, it won ‘Best Pitch’ and was also nominated in the Best Game category.
Steam Wishlist Surpasses 145,000 Items… Rising User Interest
Along with this award history, user interest is rapidly growing even before the release. According to ProtoSeed Games, the Steam wishlist for ‘Become’ recently surpassed 145,000 items. This is a notable figure considering it is a relatively short single-player adventure.
From the very beginning of its reveal, the subject matter itself garnered significant attention. As the premise of becoming a sperm to explore the human reproductive system became known, several international media outlets, including PC Gamer, Kotaku, and Dexerto, introduced the game.
Although it deals with mature subject matter, the presentation places emphasis on humor and adventure. The developers explain that rather than directly depicting sexual acts or nudity, they explored the themes of reproduction and pregnancy through the game’s worldview and gameplay.
In particular, educational elements have been added so that players can naturally encounter information about the reproductive process as they progress through the game. In essence, it conveys biological topics, which can feel somewhat serious or difficult, through a short and enjoyable adventure.
Leveraging ‘Mafia’ Series Development Experience… Czech Developer Protosid Games
Protosid Games, the developer of ‘Become’, is a Czech-based indie game studio.
The studio was founded by Valentin Wirth, who participated in the development of the ‘Mafia’ series for about 10 years. After leaving the large-scale game development scene, he began developing ‘Become’ while taking on his own project.
It started as a project with a small number of participants, but the team size expanded as development progressed.
Marek Nesvadba, who worked on the development of ‘Crime Boss: Rockay City’, has joined as the technical director. Level designer Emil Gašparec, who worked on ‘Arma Reforger’ and ‘Vigor’, and composer Martin Konvička are also participating in the development.
The greatest competition unfolded from the perspective of the smallest being
‘Become’ directly tackles the familiar yet difficult-to-think-of subject of the birth of life. It combines adventure, humor, and educational elements with a premise where the player becomes one of many competitors to explore the dangerous interior of the human body.
The relatively short playtime of 2 to 3 hours also clearly demonstrates the nature of the work. Rather than a grand-scale adventure, it is closer to a game focused on experiencing a single unique idea in a compressed form.
Awards won at various events including the Tokyo Game Show and a Steam wishlist of 145,000 are also raising expectations for ‘Become’ ahead of its official release.
‘Become’ is scheduled to be released on PC Steam, but the exact release date has not yet been announced.
Information regarding ‘Become’
| item | detail |
|---|---|
| Developer | ProtoSeed Games |
| Publisher | Unconfirmed |
| Genre | Third-person single-player adventure |
| platform | PC (Steam) |
| Release date | Undecided |
| Playtime | Approximately 2-3 hours (linear progression) |
| language | Verification needed (Steam page indicates support for English, German, French, and Czech) |
| premier | TGS Selected Indie 80 Gold Award, Pocky Award, Sense of Wonder Night Finalist, Game Access Best Pitch |
| Reactions/Evaluations | Over 145,000 people on Steam Wishlist |
| Steam Page | Shortcut kursiv |
