Metamorphosis turns the Kafka novella into a buggy puzzler

Thanks to Breaking Bad, I can't even think about surrealist and literary behemoth Franz Kafka without giggling, but I will endeavour to control myself so I can tell you about Metamorphosis, a puzzle game inspired by the novella of the same name.

The CG reveal trailer, above, is a bit of a weird one, with a sinister bug interrogating one of his insectoid compatriots, who seems about as confused as me.

The press release and Steam page offer a bit more clarity, explaining that you've woken up to discover that you're becoming a bug, while your friend has been arrested for some unknown reason. You'll need to save him while figuring out why you're now a tiny critter scurrying across the floor, navigating a surreal obstacle course by using your new bug abilities to climb up surfaces and do a spot of parkour.

Your destination is the mysterious tower referenced in the trailer, which might be an allusion to Kafka's The Castle. It's an unfinished work that sees its protagonist attempting to enter a castle to speak to the bureaucrats inside it, whom the villagers below are beholden to, even though they don't know what anyone in the castle actually does. One of it interpretations is that it's a lesson in futility, so fingers crossed that you'll have better luck getting into the game's tower.

Hopefully you'll also fare better than your literary counterpart in Metamorphosis, who (spoilers!) ends up ostracised by his cruel family and starves to death, alone, unloved and a monster. The novella does not make for cheery bed-time reading.

Metamorphosis is due out this summer.

Fraser is the UK online editor and has actually met The Internet in person. With over a decade of experience, he's been around the block a few times, serving as a freelancer, news editor and prolific reviewer. Strategy games have been a 30-year-long obsession, from tiny RTSs to sprawling political sims, and he never turns down the chance to rave about Total War or Crusader Kings. He's also been known to set up shop in the latest MMO and likes to wind down with an endlessly deep, systemic RPG. These days, when he's not editing, he can usually be found writing features that are 1,000 words too long or talking about his dog.