Frequently asked questions

Is Kinoko a bunny?

No, Kinoko is not a bunny, nor is he related to bunnies.

Kinoko is a kuparkuke, an alien species native to the planet Fungaia, where they are found in many forms and live in tribes. Though all kuparkukes have large, prominent ears, Kinoko’s ears are larger and more prominent than most, due to a rare, genetic mutation which has affected him since birth. Whilst his ears may therefore make him look a little bit like a bunny, he has very little in common with them otherwise!

What’s the meaning of the name ‘Cult of Galaxy’?

‘Cult of Galaxy’ is the name of our franchise, and I like to think there are several layers to it!

Most blatantly, it refers to Galaxy, the deceased creator of our universe, and the various cults that are in some way connected to her. As well as that, however, it’s also a riff on the term ‘cult of personality’, which has several implications. Some of these will be obvious from the outset, but others will become apparent as our story unfolds. A ‘cult of personality’ is the psychological phenomenon that occurs when a leader or other public figure is revered in such a way as to attain a kind of social apotheosis. Such is the degree of fascination and dedication these figures attract, they are able to exert unquestioning influence over their loyal followers.

The universe of Kinoko and the Cult of Galaxy is full of these cults of personality, yet one of our key themes is that nobody – not even a goddess and the universe’s creator – is perfect. No matter how clean one’s image may be, there are always hidden depths, and we should all be wary of being taken in by false idols.

Who is working on this project?

Our permanent team consists of just two people: Chelsey and James.

We are a couple who have been living and working together since 2016, alongside our cats. Chelsey is our Creative Director, which means that she’s responsible for the way things look, sound and feel. She’s the creator and designer behind all of our characters. In addition to her creative role, Chelsey also runs the majority of our social media accounts, such as X, Bluesky, and TikTok. James, on the other hand, is our Technical Director, being the game’s lead programmer, as well as the developer for our website.

Although our permanent team is very small, we also work with talent from all over the world who help us out by doing the things we can’t, such as music, or by contributing ideas that we’d never have thought of in the form of concept art. When we have a specific vacancies to fill, we post them in our jobs section. However, we’re always happy to be approached directly by people with something to offer, so please do get in touch if you believe you do!

What’s the current state of the game?

We’re currently focusing on building what’s called a ‘vertical slice’ for our game. In games development, the idea of a vertical slice is to present a lot of a game’s intended functionality within a very small section of gameplay. In other words, we’re creating only a very small handful of levels, but prototyping all of the game’s core mechanics within them. Once the vertical slice is complete – hopefully in late 2024 – we’ll be able to share a brief demo and gather feedback before beginning to work on the prototype proper.

The prototype, which will be our focus throughout 2025, will be focused squarely on the game’s first chapter, set on Kinoko’s home planet Fungaia.

What are the influences behind the game?

Our influences come from a wide range of sources!

If we had to pin it down to one game, we’d probably attribute a lot of our inspiration to Kirby & the Amazing Mirror. That’s the game that Chelsey has been looking to emulate from the very start, even if we’ve sought to modernise that game’s mechanics, and tacked on loads of our other influences since then. You may also recognise little bits of games like Hollow Knight, Castle Crashers and Pizza Tower, as well as less obvious influences like Ratchet & Clank and Tomb Raider.

But in terms of being a ‘spiritual successor’ to any particular game, that isn’t something we’re going for. Rather than specifically emulating one game or another, we hope to create a game of our own design which feels authentic to the world we’ve created for Kinoko and the Cult of Galaxy, and of which we ourselves would be huge fans.