- A two-month hobby project turned into full-time development, unveiling the upgraded demo version for the first time
- A healing puzzle featuring black-and-white hand-drawn aesthetics and physics-based point-and-click elements, where you search for a lonely cat’s true wish.
- After being exhibited at BIC, Sony PlayStation’s Shuhei Yoshida mentioned it as the ‘most impressive Korean indie game of 2025’.
There is a red ball. No, there must be one. The cat becomes happy only when it gets its hands on the red ball. However, the red ball does not reveal itself easily. It hides in a box, disguises itself as an apple, or appears dirty or broken. Sometimes, the player even has to create the red ball themselves.
STUDIO PEPPERMILL, a two-person indie game development team from Korea, has released an upgraded demo version of the healing puzzle game ‘Where’s My Red Ball?’.
Combining black-and-white hand-drawn graphics with physics-based point-and-click puzzles, this game offers a unique kind of fun where you must find the red ball in a completely different way on every stage, despite the simple rules. And quietly hidden between the puzzles is another story involving a cat and a red ball.
Emotions breathing alive on black-and-white hand-drawn illustrations… Graphics, sound, and atmosphere
When you first encounter the game, the first thing that catches your eye is the black-and-white hand-drawn art style. Hand-drawn lines and charming animations fill the screen, and the ‘red ball,’ the only thing with red in a world with minimal color, naturally captures your attention.
Instead of flashy graphics, the art style that feels handcrafted and the calm atmosphere complete the game’s identity. There are no time limits or pressure elements. What drives the player is not the burden of having to guess the correct answer, but the pure curiosity of “Where is the red ball hiding this time?”
The moment you finally find the red ball and hand it to the cat, the sight of the happy cat and the cheerful sound effects provide a small sense of accomplishment. As this experience is repeated, the game creates a rhythm that naturally makes you want to play the next stage.
Puzzles that change with every stage, no two answers are the same
The core of the game is a physics-based point-and-click system. Players must click, shake, open, and combine various objects on the screen to find the ‘real red ball’ that the cat wants.
Just because something is red doesn’t mean it’s the right answer. There are objects that mimic a red ball, like an apple, as well as balls with distorted shapes or ones that must be crafted from scratch. The element of varying approaches in each stage, despite presenting the same goal, offers a sense of freshness.
The difficulty level is designed to be relatively low. Instead of reducing the burden of solving puzzles, the game is characterized by presenting new ideas each time to maintain anticipation about “how the red ball will be hidden next.”
In addition, ‘someone’s diary’ found between stages tells another story. Why is this cat only happy when it has a red ball? As the game progresses, the reason is gradually revealed, offering a different kind of fun compared to simple puzzles.
From Hobby Project to Full-time Development… The Direction BIC and Shuhei Yoshida Changed
Where Is the Red Ball? was not planned as a commercial game from the start. The developer spent about two months creating a prototype with the goal of participating in BIC (Busan Indie Connect Festival), but received a better-than-expected response at the event.
Later, it garnered even more attention when Shuhei Yoshida, former executive at Sony PlayStation, personally mentioned “Where Is the Red Ball?” as one of the most impressive Korean indie games of 2025. The experience of a small idea and sensibility reaching a leading figure in the industry served as a catalyst for the developer to pursue the project full-time.
The project, which had been suspended for some time, resumed this spring, and this upgrade demo is the first version released since development restarted. It is also the first result demonstrating the commitment to see development through to the end.
“Simple yet heartwarming”… Expectations rising again
Since its entry at BIC, the strengths commonly cited by players were “immediate sense of accomplishment” and “warm sentiment.” The fact that objectives can be intuitively understood without complex explanations and that the rewards for solving puzzles are clear received positive feedback from various age groups.
In the indie game community, there has been continued praise for the black-and-white hand-drawn graphics and emotional story, along with reactions such as, “It’s a cat game, but it’s unexpectedly touching,” and “The puzzles aren’t difficult, so you can enjoy it comfortably.” With the release of the upgraded demo, voices of anticipation are also growing, with some saying, “It seems like full-scale development has finally begun.”
“Where Is the Red Ball?” unfolds the simple goal of finding a single red ball through various puzzles and a heartwarming story, perfectly capturing the charm of K-indie games that rely on ideas and emotion rather than flashy visuals.
With this upgraded demo serving as a stepping stone to further enhance its quality, expectations are growing among users awaiting this healing puzzle game regarding how it will unfold the heartwarming story of the cat and the red ball.
Information related to ‘Where is the red ball?’
| item | detail |
|---|---|
| developer | Unreleased (Domestic solo development) |
| Genre | Cozy Healing Puzzle / Point and Click |
| Release platform | PC (Steam, 예정) |
| Current status | Upgrade demo currently being released |
| graphic style | Black and white hand-drawn art + cute animation |
| core system | Physics-based point-and-click / Different puzzle concept for every stage |
| Sub content | Someone’s Diary (Hidden Story) |
| Major Awards and Mentions | BIC Exhibition / Shuhei Yoshida Mentions ‘Impressive Korean Indie Game of 2025’ |
| Main Keywords | Cozy, Healing, Puzzle, Cat, Black and White, Hand-drawn, Korean Indie, Point and Click |
| Steam Page | Shortcut |
