Keeper: Double Fine Has Been Holding Back a Secret – Exclusive First Hands-on

Double Fine seems to have a surprise in store for us. Every time we’ve seen Keeper since its reveal earlier this year, this psychedelic adventure has shown off its hero – a walking lighthouse – exploring surreal landscapes and solving puzzles alongside Twig, its bird companion. But having now played its opening hours, I’m left with the distinct impression that this is far from all the game has in store – Keeper seems to be hiding something unexpected.

But let’s begin at the beginning, because this is new to us, too. Keeper is a narrative adventure told without a key component – no one speaks (at least, no one speaks in a human language), and the only legible text you’ll find comes in the form of rare onscreen control prompts. From the very beginning, it thrives on atmosphere and player intuition.

As the game opens, we see Twig and a flock of other birds being chased by what its developers call The Wither, a bee-like swarm of threatening, purple… matter. Twig is taken off course, and lands with a thump on the Lighthouse, which activates its beacon, warding the darkness away. Many games open with tutorials, but I’ve seen very few that literally see your character learning to walk.

In a lovely introduction to how the game teaches the player without simply telling them what to do, you realise that your left thumbstick causes the lighthouse to lean. Naturally, you’ll test this out a little – until it abruptly snaps off at the base and, through a process we’re left to guess at, grows four spindly legs. From here, you get up, and – like a nature documentary about a baby giraffe – send your lighthouse tottering downhill, working out how exactly to operate its new limbs.

It’s a tutorial pitched like a comedy – as you struggle to gain control, the lighthouse skitters into abandoned cars and rundown houses, smashing them to pieces in its efforts. Eventually, it learns to walk, then run, and we begin a journey with no objective other than the subtle implication to find out: “what’s up that mountain?”