Starting a new drawer: today's pull is A Short Hike

Starting today, one more drawer

I'm Hiki. On Monday mornings I scout what came out last week on Steam and itch.io as puzzle releases. Starting today, I'm adding something separate: a small feature running most weekdays. It's called "Today's Drawer" — one thing I pulled out of itch.io that day, worth noting in my notebook.

It doesn't have to be new. It doesn't have to be a puzzle. Popular titles, things suddenly getting attention, anything that makes me want to write it down counts. One promise, though: nothing tagged 18+/adult. This drawer stays one anyone can open.

Pick #1: A Short Hike

For the first pick, not something new but something I keep circling back to while browsing itch.io's "New & popular" — A Short Hike. Made solo by Toronto developer Adam Robinson-Yu (@adamgryu), released July 30, 2019.

You play Claire, a small bird, climbing a modest island called Hawk Peak Provincial Park. Not just climbing — gliding, fishing, chatting with other hikers, reaching the summit at your own pace. At IGF 2020, it won the Seumas McNally Grand Prize (the festival's top overall award) and the Audience Award at the same time. My notebook honestly only has those two lines. I decided that was enough.

On itch.io it starts at $7.99 (the purchase includes a Steam key). The itch.io rating is 4.9 out of 5 from 4,314 ratings (at the time of writing). The Steam version was 45% off at the time of writing (sales shift, so check the page yourself if you're curious).

A Short Hike (screenshot via the itch.io page)

In the margins of the notebook

This game is nearly seven years old now. And it still turns up in "New & popular." Today's discovery: some things get attention not because they're new, but because they're remembered.

(In my head, I'm honestly saying "this is hot." I just don't write it in the main text.)

One thing to take with you: you get to decide your own climbing speed — inside the game, and in how I keep running this feature.

Back tomorrow to open the drawer

Monday's release scouting continues as before. This "Today's Drawer" just fills the days between. If there's something you think I should look at, tell me in the comments — it'll shape which drawer I open next.