Doggy Don’t Care has been a game I’ve been keeping a close eye on for over a year now, and today at PAX Australia, I finally got to go hands-on with a slice of the game. The game is developed by solo developer Rotub and follows the adventure of an adorable and mischievous Pug called Charlie, who is left home alone, only with his feathered friend Rocko to guide him towards a life of chaos.
The build at PAX Aus showcased level one of the game, taking place in Charlie’s house and backyard. Rocko the Cockatoo gives Charlie the chance to earn Mischievous Badges, which can be earned by completing various tasks and puzzles in the location.
Tasks can be as straightforward as a timed ring challenge, but the most thrilling tasks to complete are the ones you discover just by interacting with objects you find in the environment. Find a basketball and throw it in the basketball hoop? You get a badge. Turn on the lawnmower and send it rampaging over your owner’s veggie patch? You get a badge. The game encourages players to interact with everything, and I felt rewarded by each discovery. I spent 15 minutes causing mayhem in Charlie’s house, and I still feel like I barely scratched the surface of what I could accomplish – and that’s a great problem to have!
Charlie is not only adorable, but his charisma shines effortlessly from the first time you meet him. Rotub could not have created a protagonist more fitting for the chaotic nature of Doggy Don’t Care. New outfits for Charlie were also hidden around the house; my personal favourite: the unicorn onesie.
We spoke with Rohan from Rotub last October, where he cited his inspirations behind Doggy Don’t Care:
“I’m pulling on inspiration from Untitled Goose Game for its mischief-focused tasks, Banjo Kazooie for its humorous characters and dialogue, and Journey for its minimal approach and intuitive gameplay.”
Doggy Don’t Care is a game catered for everyone – some light-hearted fun for all ages, piled with some tongue-in-cheek humour for adults. The game feels like it shares DNA with Untitled Goose Game, but it ultimately has its own identity and runs with it (with a squeaky toy in its mouth).
If you’d like to learn more about the development of Doggy Don’t Care or anything we can expect outside of the demo I played, check out Doggy Don’t Care Developer Interview — Crafting Chaos In A Pug’s Life by Jayden Cusack.
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You can also join the Doggy Don’t Care mailing list to keep up-to-date.
Doggy Don’t Care is coming soon to Steam.
