EarthNight Coming to PS4, Vita: The Dragon Apocalypse Approaches

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EarthNight Coming to PS4, Vita: The Dragon Apocalypse Approaches

Two and a half years ago we set out to make the deepest, most beautiful runner game of all time. I’m so happy and proud to announce today that EarthNight will launch first on PS4, and shortly after on PS Vita in 2015. We will be showing off our first PS4 demo next week at E3 in Sony’s booth, and we can’t wait for people to get their hands on it.

EarthNight is a hand-painted roguelike runner about the dragon apocalypse. Dragons have taken over the Earth and exiled the decimated human population to outer space. Our outraged heroes Stanley and Sydney decide to skydive to the planet’s surface, taking out as many dragons as they can on their way. In terms of gameplay, Stanley is a good pick for beginners given his simpler control scheme. Sydney is for experts, with a less intuitive — but ultimately more rewarding — control scheme.

EarthNight on PS4 and PS Vita

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The game alternates between running on the backs of dragons and skydiving through a sea of the vile beasts. The running sections are frantic, fast-paced and filled with danger, while the skydiving sections serve as a living level select, and a break from the action.

From the very beginning, we wanted every moment of the game to look and feel like a living work of art. Every visual element is painted by the unbelievably talented Paul Davey (Mattahan). Paul’s unique, fantastical style and original characters inspired the entire EarthNight universe.

EarthNight also features a beautiful, epic original soundtrack by chiptune musician Chipocrite. Today, Chipocrite is releasing an EP titled 3P with two songs from the game and “Truce,” the song featured in our trailer. Check it out here.

EarthNight on PS4 and PS Vita

EarthNight on PS4 and PS VitaEarthNight on PS4 and PS Vita

Since most of the gameplay involves two buttons, EarthNight is accessible to anyone. But serious gamers shouldn’t be fooled; the controls have surprising depth, and the path to EarthNight is always different and riddled with danger. If you get flustered or start button mashing, you’ll be dead quick. A player can beat the game in 30 minutes, but it will take hundreds of runs to gain the skills to reach the final world. We expect many deaths, and few dragon kills at E3.

Stephen Orlando at IndieCade East called our game “Unbelievably beautiful and unbelievably hard”. It’s a game of finesse. You have to react quickly and understand the game’s systems to succeed. We make no apologies for the difficulty of our game; those who beat it will earn the respect they deserve.

My greatest hope is that people can play EarthNight for years and continue to discover new strategies and hidden layers. We’re really excited about PS4’s Twitch integration, as it will enable players to easily show off their best runs and learn from other gamers.

We are working tirelessly to finish the game as soon as we can so all you humans can exact revenge on those bastard dragons who stole our planet. For more information on EarthNight and the Cleaversoft team visit our website, and be sure to stop by at E3 if you’d like to run on some dragons.

A big thanks to Sony for making us feel incredibly welcome to PlayStation. If you have any questions I’d be happy to answer them. Thanks for checking out EarthNight!

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23 Comments

4 Author Replies

  • I see rick ross in the background in gold but this looks good. I guess either games come out hella late 2015 >_> or just skipping the whole month of July..

  • I like the artwork, and the music really grew on me. I’ll be keeping an eye open for this title.
    While I appreciate hard games, I’m hoping it isn’t too hard.

  • It looks really cool! I second @2, not a fan of super hard games, but the art and music look amazing.

    The part where the little guy was stabbing the dragon and the dragon was just looking at him like “WHY YOU TRY KILL ME” was really sad :( It’s like watching a bull fight where the torero can’t kill the bull right away.

  • Art looks great. I just wish it wasn’t a runner.

  • Oh man, this looks beautiful! Can’t wait to see it on the Vita’s OLED!

    I know you said it’s a two-button control scheme; one thing I hope you’re considering is the optional use of the rear touchpad for jumping. Rear-touch jumping is what makes the Vita version of Jetpack Joyride the superior one because it’s like touch controls, but without your hand covering half the screen!

    • I’ll look into that rear touchpad on the Vita. There won’t be any on screen controls on the Vita. Only buttons. Wouldn’t want that art covered up if we don’t have to.

  • A roguelike runner? Interesting. Looks really pretty, like a children’s book come to life. I want to check this out.

  • This looks really nice!! Some of the best art I’ve seen in an indie so far.

  • Looks great! Count me in on the Vita when it comes out.

  • @Rich.. I agree that just button controls would be ideal.

  • Thanks for the reply. I’m not saying to make touch controls required, but having the option to use the rear touch for jumping instead of a physical button would be nice if it’s not too much trouble to code. More options is always a good thing :)

    • We’ll let you customize the controls how you’d like them. I promise you that. I’ll make sure those back buttons are an option.

  • Wowzers, this art design! Excited (=

  • Very creative! Like seeing more games with hand drawn art. In all honesty I would give it a try if there is a demo or it is a plus game. Otherwise I hope it does well for you either way. I would agree with the poster about back touch controls, even if it is not the standard control but an option. Jetpack on Vita is superior to smartphone for the exact reason he listed, not putting your hands in front / on the screen. That is not always the case though, but if you are pushing buttons fast and alternating it can be superior to buttons.

  • I like what I’m seeing. The gameplay reminds me of RUA 2, but with more to it.

    Question: Why are there Flappy Birds in this game? lol

  • Looks great! I love that there’s a non-white female character.

    Will there be lighting effects added before you ship? Like the flame from the dragon and the ship’s jets — they don’t appear to illuminate the characters or surrounding objects.

    The falling section would be AWESOME in 3D! Any plans for 1080p 3D support on PS4?

    Will there be co-op play? local or remote?

    • There will be all kinds of effects before we ship, we are still a long ways away from done. As of now we don’t have plans for co-op play but it may make its way into a future version. I’m not sure about 3D support but I’ll look into it.

  • Awesome. Thank you, Rich!

    I don’t own a PS4, but count me in for the Vita version!

  • So this is like a action platformer then which is great the indie games are quite sensational indeed another game that I will purchase for sure. I like the music a lot too which I look forward to learning more about this at E3!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • More indie crap to junk up ps store and to get in the igc lineup

  • I hope there’s a physical release.

    No disc – no sale.

  • Looks trippy!

    And super difficult. :p

  • Describing a game as a “roguelike runner” is like describing a vehicle as a steamboat bicycle. A roguelike is inherently not a runner and a runner is inherently not a roguelike.

    • The final game will have elements that are procedural, a tile system that is randomized and generates platforms, and EarthNight features permideath. It is also in a fantasy setting and very challenging. The one aspect of rougelike we don’t adhere to is turn based combat but I think today with games like Spelunky being considered rougelike we’d fall into that category.

  • It looks quite nice, but at the same time in the video it often times looked a little barren – perhaps adding some particles and fast travelling out-of-focus foreground objects would be a good way to get a better sense of speed and fill that space up a little.

    Still, intriguing, gotta keep an eye on it.

  • To follow up on previous comment – actually watched it again and it feels like what is missing is some indication of interaction – like some kinda pow effect when you jump onto enemies, little dust cloud when you run and land on a dragon. Basically particles and fx, I suppose. Guess it’s just early, but hopefully that’ll be added, adds a lot to a game.

  • Rich, I’m not sure I agree that Spelunky should be considered a Roguelike. Roguelikes shouldn’t have time limits and Spelunky has a pretty severe one. They also should be RPGs. You can have Roguelike elements in any game (including your own), but to be classified as a true Roguelike, it should be an RPG. However, if you want to classify your own game as one, you are absolutely allowed to do that. ;)

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