Chicory: A Colorful Tale
An adventure RPG about painting color into a world of self-doubt.
Chicory: A Colorful Tale is an adventure role-playing game created by independent developer Greg Lobanov and released by Finji. Players control an anthropomorphic dog, whose name defaults to "Pizza" unless they choose a favorite food. The world is initially black and white, but the player wields a magical paintbrush called The Brush to restore color and solve environmental puzzles. As the game progresses, new abilities are unlocked, including jumping and swimming through paint, eventually allowing movement up walls and waterfalls. Combat is limited to boss fights, where players dodge projectiles and use the brush to damage enemies in arenas with dark, negative-color filters; these fights can be skipped entirely.
The story is set in the Picnic Province, a land drained of color. The Brush, cut from a magical brush tree ages ago, has been passed from teacher to apprentice for generations. Pizza works as a janitor for the current wielder, Chicory. When all color suddenly vanishes, Pizza finds the Brush discarded outside Chicory's bedroom and takes it. In Supper Woods, they meet Blackberry, a former wielder and Chicory's teacher, who leads them to a corrupted tree. A mysterious entity attacks, and Pizza fights it off. Returning to the Wielder Tower, they find Chicory depressed; she refuses to take back the Brush and gives it to Pizza. After fighting another corruption, Pizza finds Chicory in better spirits, who directs them to Gulp Swamp. There, an apparition of Chicory insults Pizza's abilities. Blackberry suspects Chicory is linked to the corruptions. Chicory later reveals she is their source—manifestations of her worst fears—and kicks Pizza out. In the underground city of Feast, Pizza fights an apparition of themselves, proving Chicory is not the sole source. Back at the Tower, Chicory deduces the Brush itself is the true source, as it is the only common element. She agrees to formally take Pizza as her apprentice and guide them through four wielder trials. During a trial, Chicory explains that Blackberry's perfectionism strained their relationship; sensing trouble, Blackberry refused to pass the Brush, but Chicory fled with it anyway, after which the corrupted trees appeared. After completing the trials, Pizza returns to fight the final corruption. Chicory suggests destroying the Brush.
Quick Facts
- Title
- Chicory: A Colorful Tale
- Developer
- Wishes Unlimited
- Publisher
- Finji
- Engine
- GameMaker Studio 2
- Designer
- Greg Lobanov
- Artist
- Alexis Dean-Jones · Madeline Berger
- Composer
- Lena Raine
- Genre
- Adventure
- Modes
- Single-player, multiplayer
- Platforms
- macOS · Microsoft Windows · PlayStation 4 · PlayStation 5 · Nintendo Switch · Xbox One · Xbox Series X/S
- Released
- macOS, Windows, PS4, PS5 · June 10, 2021 · Switch · December 15, 2021 · Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S · May 30, 2023
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Chicory: A Colorful Tale is set in the Picnic Province, a land devoid of color that relies on the wielder of the magic Brush to bring color to the world. The Brush was cut from a magical brush tree ages ago and passed down from teacher to apprentice. The player controls an anthropomorphic dog named after their favorite food (default name Pizza), who works as a janitor for the current wielder, Chicory. When all color drains from the world, Pizza finds the Brush discarded by Chicory's bedroom door and takes it. The story follows Pizza as they encounter former wielder Blackberry, fight corruptions manifested from thoughts and fears, and eventually learn that the Brush itself is the source of the corruptions. The game features boss fights with dodge-and-paint mechanics and an option to skip them entirely.
Reader's Guide
Chicory: A Colorful Tale was originally titled Drawdog and unveiled via Kickstarter on August 15, 2019, with a planned 202X release date. The project was funded within a day. Developer Greg Lobanov, who previously worked on Wandersong, started development wanting to make an art game about how art interacts with the world. Composer Lena Raine created a soundtrack contrasting natural world music with darkness, using synths and acoustic instruments run through guitar pedals and amps. The character of Chicory drew from lead artist Alexis Dean-Jones's experiences with obsessive-compulsive disorder; early playtesters sometimes viewed Chicory as a villain. The game was released on June 10, 2021, for multiple platforms, with later ports to Nintendo Switch and Xbox consoles. In 2023, the Wishes Unlimited production logo was added to the game's opening. Destructoid named Chicory the best PC game of 2021 and the best overall game of 2021. Giant Bomb also awarded Chicory. Critics praised the relatable story about self-doubt, the cast of characters, and the fusion of puzzles and story.
Did You Know?
- The player character is named after the player's favorite food, defaulting to 'Pizza' if none is chosen.
- The game's composer Lena Raine used distortion effects on acoustic instruments to create a chaotic version of reality.
- The character Chicory was inspired by lead artist Alexis Dean-Jones's real-life experiences with obsessive-compulsive disorder.
- The game includes an option to skip boss fights entirely.
More in Role-Playing Games of the 2020s, Part 1 1-24
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced