A whopping six years on from its successful Kickstarter campaign, developer Atooi has announced a release date for Hatch Tales: it's finally coming on 28th March 2024.
The cute platformer — an enhanced HD port of 3DS title Chicken Wiggle and formerly known Chicken Wiggle Workshop — was successfully crowdfunded back in early 2018, surpassing its $30,000 goal with a total of $35,634 from 1,553 backers.
With an initial estimated delivery of December 2018 and sporadic updates via the campaign page, discontent amongst Kickstarter backers has led to significant criticism over communication from the Austin, TX-based studio throughout development.
Despite its prolonged incubation time — described as an "adventurous development journey" in Atooi's press release — it seems Hatch Tales is finally preparing to emerge on the sixth anniversary of the initial Kickstarter campaign.
A post to backers of the project informed them of the news earlier today. Here's some text from the press release:
Hatch Tales – formerly known as Chicken Wiggle Workshop – has had an adventurous development journey since its successful Kickstarter campaign in March, 2018. On the sixth anniversary of the campaign, the wait will finally be over.
Hatch Tales is a stylish 2D platformer with climbing mechanics featuring Hatch, a flightless hawk mountaineer, who uses his trusty grappling hook to climb up mountains, stun enemies, and zip across chasms!
We are planning a special Atooi media event that will be announced in the future, where viewers will be taken on a deep dive into the egg-citing features of Hatch Tales. Follow us to stay up to date with announcements.
For backers, this one has been a very long time coming and some may be understandably sceptical at this date announcement until the game is sitting on their Switch and they can see how it compares to the initial vision outlined in the campaign.
We're in the process of speaking to Atooi founder Jools Watsham about this game's long gestation (among other things) for an upcoming interview, so keep an eye out for that in the coming days.
Are you a Hatch Tales backer? Did you think this one had been scrambled? Let us know your thoughts below.
Comments 50
I used to love Jools and backed this game because the original Chicken Wiggle along with Moon, Mutant Mudds and his various other games were great. I have since lost all faith in him. Setting a release date half a year away after already delaying this game over FOUR AND A HALF YEARS should be embarrassing to both Jools and his team.
Like the article states, I sincerely doubt this game will ever release...can't wait for the next delay announcement! Oh yea, that's right, they probably won't even announce a delay, they'll just ghost us for another year or more.
I wish this game was featured on Slopes' Kick Scammers series but that's just because I'm an upset backer. This insignificant game is way too uninteresting to be featured in one of those videos.
Why would an HD port take so long to come out? It's a shame, Chicken Wiggle was a pretty enjoyable game.
I've been waiting for this article to drop (backers were emailed a Kickstarter update about the release date an hour early) just so I can come say:
Jools is a joke and shouldn't be supported.
Half a year from now seems weird even after noting the anniversary of the KS, but maybe the game has gone gold and Atooi wants to have all the extra backer goodies ready in time for launch. Think about that possibility before you guys continue to criticize without all the info (I'm just a backer, btw).
@Markatron84 Haha! I was waiting too. And 100% agree.
Little too late. Jools has burnt his bridges. People shouldn't support him.
@roy130390 It's being marketed as much more than just an HD port. The original KS campaign finished as basically that, but Atooi decided to add several hidden stretch goals, including one confirmed new character (Hatch) and another presumably still confirmed character (Holly, hasn't been mentioned in a while) and Max from Mutant Mudds (again, presumably still confirmed).
@Kilroy You defended this project on the KS page as well. I'm wondering how you can have any faith in Jools or his team at this point after literal years of disappointment? I get your point about the possible "extra goodies" but if (and that's a huge if) this game releases in March 2024 it will be 5 years and 3 months after the promised release date. I mean come on, no extras could take that long.
Well it's obvious why it took 6 years. This is going to put TotK to shame with its epic scope, groundbreaking graphics, and revolutionary physics engine.
Don't worry guys, Treasurenauts will also be releasing any day now!
On one hand, I understand how making a decision to re-brand and re-think the project could cause delays.
Especially how they:
On the other hand, I don't get how this resulted in THIS long of a delay. I can appreciate that the initial funding wasn't amazing, but they were able to get a bit extra funding through some smaller releases like Pictooi, and some physical prints for stuff like Mutant Mudds or Xeodrifter.
lol I bought the original on 3DS during my eShop cleanup because I didn't really expect this to ever come out and I originally held off on purchasing it because of this version
I am a backer.
@RupeeClock Did they replace the worm with a grapple hook? I liked the charm of the duo working together.
@DwaynesGames
They explained that they decided to go beyond a simple hi-res port of the original 3DS game (which was quite kiddy).
This new version is going to be re-contextualised as a flightless hawk called Hatch climbing a mountain with his grappling hook. Hatch might not be the only playable character, but they haven't made this all that clear yet (and continued ambiguity and silence is NOT a good call here).
@RupeeClock Thanks! I should read the post more closely. 😂😊
I enjoyed the cute visuals of the original. The only thing that people didn’t like was that it was called Chicken Wiggle.
I too am one of the few backers of this game. The criticism and skepticism is quite deserved but personally I just find the whole situation pretty humorous. Since I already payed for the game way back when and thus don't have to grapple with the moral dilemma of whether to support them or not (lol), and have yet to play the 3DS original, I will be looking forward to playing Hatch Tales when it finally releases.
@Polley001
A little fun fact about the 3DS version.
If you have the physical Atooi Collection on 3DS, Chicken Wiggle as one of the five included games cannot be completed.
The software crashes whenever you try playing one of the final levels, preventing you from playing the final level or reaching the final boss.
To my knowledge, no update was ever issued to fix this?
@DwaynesGames The backer-only retrospective says he has a new campaign (while being ambiguous about the original campaign other than just saying that everything initially promised will still be present) so while technically he may have replaced them as the main focus it does still seem that they will still be present.
@RupeeClock Apparently they published a patch to Nintendo, but I'm unsure if it actually got pushed out.
Also @dartmonkey can we add the word "allegedly" to the headline of this article? And the byline. And several times throughout the article itself?
It seems apt, given Jools' track record.
@Polley001
It's a shame, as it is an enjoyable game.
@RupeeClock i get wanting to rebrand ,but people including myself backed this game as Chicken Wiggle as the Chicken/Worm duo. What they wanted to do to the game should of been communicated to backers ,but likely wasn't due to people likely demanding refunds which would of resulted in them losing funds.
I guess Jools learned nothing with this time working on Vexx back in the day that a game design doesn't have to be "edgy" and "cool" to go along with the hardcore nature of the gameplay.
The redesign looks cheap and generic. It's a lost all the charm and soul of what the original was and why i even backed it up.
@JHDK When I was young, I assumed a lot about people and made a lot of mistakes about others based on missing information that I filled in with my own assumptions. One day, I finally realized that and started waiting to hear the whole story about something and learned the truth about [insert whatever] isn't at all what I had initially thought. So for many years now, I've been giving people the benefit of a doubt until proven otherwise, which has been pretty beneficial for me.
I'm on a good number of developer's Discords and understand, at least from the outside, that not every dev has infinite money or resources. Things take a while and funds need to be gained somehow. If that means throwing a big project that will take years to the backburner to make something that will take six months but keep the lights on long enough for the big project to be made, then so be it. Atooi's problem for me was always communication in that, which they've addressed numerous times, but everyone is so focused on negativity that no one thinks about something not going to plan.
Aside from that, I don't like filling my emotions with hate and negativity unless I know for a fact it's somehow beneficial to me. Always look on the bright side of life; it's less stressful here for everyone.
@maximo_jd
I agree, it's something he should've polled with the backers and got their involvement on.
It's clear he sees us backers mostly as an investment source and not much else.
For real?
I backed this because I wanted a simple port of Chicken Wiggle Workshop on Switch. Aspect ratios aside it should have been easy.
I liked the character duo and the pixel art and the gameplay and editor. Now it’s all been overthought, the editor has taken a backseat, they spent ages adding a new art style, changed the name to be far less fun and the main character looks like a spherical Farfetch’d and the worm is a grappling hook?
And the idea that it looks any less kiddy is laughable.
Disappointed. Not what I was sold.
Very curious to see how this turns out. Chicken Wiggle was a boring 3DS platformer and while it still seems to be the core of Hatch Tales, I’m am interested to see how much of Mutant Mudds’ DNA is also in this.
No. Just no. I just want TREASURENAUTS.... so frustrating.
@Ogbert EXACTLY HOW I FEEL DOOD
@RupeeClock I'm honestly surprised Jools hasn't blocked me on Twitter/X as i've been extremely vocal on there as JD Wolf blasting him about how he's handled this game for years.
@DwaynesGames I'm a backer as well ,and part of the appeal of the game was charm of Banjo Kazooie like title and character dynamic. They scrap it for an unasked for generic character
Anyone else notice that the chicken was moving between spikes that look like they would hurt him if he strayed off course, but his Balloon was as just moving right through them?
@maximo_jd I assume you know about windswept already
This was my lesson on not using Kickstarter for video games. Board games are fine, but game development can also just be like this. That said, I backed a cute little Banjoo Kazooie-esque duo platforming editor during a time when I was excited about Mario Maker. All of the delay was then to focus on changing those elements. Plus, man, that new character design. A baby chick using a worm? That's funny but also has some sort of inherent logic. A flightless hawk with a chain? That makes no sense.
Still cannot complete Chicken Wiggle 3DS. The cartridge version broken & cannot be completed. They tweeted the patch was done last year "coming soon"
I didn’t create levels in Chicken Wiggle, but I enjoyed playing the top rated levels that others had made. 😊
@stuntz0rZ @Polley001 I didn’t know that about the physical cart. I have the digital version and remember completing the game without any issue.
I wonder what the eShop price will be. I supported the Kickstarter at the $15 level.
@Kilroy Ah, I See. Thanks for the information! Jools seems like a decent guy from what I've seen
and his games have been quite enjoyable so I prefer to give him the benefit of doubt. Still, I also understand that such a big delay is difficult to digest for the backers so I understand the skepticism. Hopefully, the final product delivers because this situation is probably even worse for the people involved in this project.
Never heard of it before, but it looks fun. I'll definitely pick this one up.
@stuntz0rZ Per the devs on Discord (paraphrasing): "patch was submitted to Nintendo back in May*, it is out of Atooi's hands completely, everyone is playing the waiting game."
Chicken Wiggle was a much better name. Hatch Tales brings to mind a poorly translated, buggy shovelware asset flip with misleading screenshots that will be $1.99 on the eshop 3 days after release. Looks fun though.
Clutch Tales, Atooi
Garbage. Can't wait to give my dumb code away.
@DwaynesGames
I too liked the Bird & Worm Combo. Along with the Original Hatch Tales logo.
Had a mix of Banjo-Kazooie with the Sonic 2 logo.
has the feel of a flash game, but looks like it could be fun. I liked mutant mudds, seems like they reused some sprites here with the "gems"? but shouldn't take 6 years to make this? haha
I suppose I can relate. I backed the Kickstarter game "Heart Forth, Alicia" in April 2014. For Wii U. It is still in development, with occasional updates from the developer. Every update is blasted with comments from backers unhappy with the nine years of development hell. Every original platform announced for this game has been discontinued: Wii U, 3DS, PS4, and Vita. I will be shocked if it ever releases at all
@roy130390 yeah also the new direction he took by making him some kind of chicken hawk and he removed the worm and made some kind of grappling hook? He took a lot of the charm out of the game, I backed it years and years ago and I am still pissed off.
Delayed again today, who coulda guessed?
And the day before release, it gets delayed for another 3 months.
I really shouldn't be surprised at this point, but somehow I am.
@Krambo42 I'm wayyyy late but I'll take it🤪
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