We had the opportunity to speak with Kyle, the developer behind Farewell North, a captivating game that has drawn attention for its unique storytelling and emotional depth. Kyle shared insights into the creative process, the inspirations behind the game’s design, and the compelling narrative that unfolds through the eyes of a border collie named Chesley.
Kyle also discusses the innovative color restoration mechanic, which serves as a metaphor for emotional healing, and reflects on the challenges and triumphs of developing the game over four years. Through his thoughtful responses, Kyle offers a deeper understanding of what players can expect from Farewell North — a journey filled with both joy and sorrow, underscored by a powerful soundtrack and a focus on meaningful relationships.
He has been practicing as a hobbyist game developer since 2013, participating in game jams and creating technical tutorials, and after moving to Edinburgh, Scotland from Toronto, Canada in 2019 (right as the COVID-19 pandemic put all travel ambitions on hold) decided that it was time to create his first proper commercial release, inspired by the beautiful landscapes and folklore of Scotland.
If this has sparked your interest, you can find the game on Steam and try it out for yourself. You can also get the game on Xbox and Nintendo Switch.
What inspired the decision to make the player take on the role of a border collie?
I really wanted to explore the unique perspective of playing a supporting role in someone else’s journey. In Farewell North we play as the dog, Chesley, but our human, Cailey, is really the protagonist. As her dog we don’t actually know what this adventure is, why we’re in the islands, we’re just ready to support her on her journey and pick up the clues along the way.
I thought that perspective would allow players to really connect with Cailey and feel for her as she goes on this journey, and by supporting her and bringing colour back to her world it gives the player a unique driving force.
Could you provide more insight into the relationship between the border collie and the human character? How does this dynamic evolve throughout the game?
Chesley and Cailey have a tight bond, as any pet owner can relate, but throughout the game we’ll learn that it’s not as straightforward as your standard pet relationship. Chesley isn’t actually a pet at all, he’s a working dog who worked farms with Cailey’s mum, a shepherd. Throughout the game we’ll get to put those herding skills to the test and learn about Cailey’s early days working the farms with Chesley after her mum became sick.
We’ll also learn pretty early on that Cailey is coming back to the islands after the passing of her mother, and that she inherited Chesley from her mum, moving him to the city and dealing with the struggle of adapting him to the city environment and more of a typical pet lifestyle.
Can you elaborate on how Scottish folklore has been integrated into the wildlife and creatures within the game?
The game is loosely set in the Orkney islands, off the north coast of Scotland, but our general rule has been that anything that exists within Scotland is fair to be included, even if it doesn’t necessarily exist in Orkney. Still, we tried to keep it authentic to Orkney where possible, so we’ll explore things such as the strange history deer on the islands dating back to neolithic times and right up to the viking age, the unique seaweed eating sheep of North Ronaldsay, and other uniquely Orcadian elements that I won’t spoil here.
There’s no magic or fantasy in Farewell North necessarily, but we do nod to creatures from folklore such as kelpies, and pay homage to Gaelic roots.
Can you explain how the color restoration mechanic works, and how it ties into the game’s narrative?
The colour restoration in Farewell North is more abstract than we’ve seen in some other games, as the world isn’t literally devoid of colour. Instead, the colour represents how we as the dog perceive our human’s mental and emotional wellbeing. Creatures, activities and objects that bring happiness or relief to Cailey will bring colour back to the world, and so we’re really digging into that idea of playing a supporting role and bringing colour, or joy, back to our human on her journey.
What type of emotional journey do you want players to experience as they explore the islands and restore color to the world?
Farewell North is about relationships, both with people and with places. Cailey is returning to the place that she grew up, as is Chesley, but they each have different relationships with the place and left for very different reasons – Cailey by choice, Chesley less so.
There game focuses on the idea of saying farewell, but I really believe that Farewell North is never sad just for the sake of it, and instead the goal has always been to create something more optimistic and hopeful, so I think that’s something players will be surprised to experience just how joyful and sorrowful Farewell North can be at the same time.
What kind of interactions can players expect when helping local farmers or reuniting animals with their families?
Playing as a dog we’ll of course get up to all sorts of canine adventures, such as a game of fetch or barking at wildlife, but we also really explore that working dog relationship in some pretty unique ways, beyond just the herding mechanic. Throughout the game you’ll help out on local farms, herding sheeps, coos and other animals, facing off against a territorial and stubborn ram, and we’ll also see a bit of the struggles Chesley had adapting to city life in a level that I won’t spoil.
But, has consistently been an unexpected favourite for many players and we’ve never really shown in any marketing materials. I think that level works really well as quite a surprise and a bit of a palette cleanser in the way it stands out quite distinctly from the rest of the game.
Of course in a game all about relationships, we also explore that in some interactions with wildlife, from reuniting a duck with its lost ducklings, to freeing a whale and reuniting it with its pod after becoming tangled in some fishing gear.
What did players like the most about the game?
The two elements of Farewell North that have been most consistently praised are the story and how much it’s moved many of our players, as well as the soundtrack that accompanies the game.
I knew going into the release that John Konsolakis’ work on the soundtrack was going to be a huge hit, it’s just such a brilliantly composed score and I really encourage anyone to check it out on streaming even if you aren’t interested in the game. I wasn’t quite as confident in the story, it’s small and personal without world-saving consequences, but it seems that intimacy really landed with players and has resulted in many beautiful messages from our players who left the game really moved by the journey they went on.
How long did it take you to finish the game, where you felt satisfied with how it turned out? Any ups and downs you’d like to share?
It took me just over four years, working on the game every single day without fail, which was very unexpected! I think I initially announced Farewell North was going to release in 2021 and I couldn’t have been more mistaken… But I’m very proud of the game, I really am. Of course, there are always things you wish you had more time to improve, but I think when it comes to games in particular they can never really be perfect, there’s always an infinite list of things you wish you could improve. At some point you just need to recognise that it’s time to let go and get it out there so players can actually experience the game.
If you’re fine with sharing, how many wishlists did the game have before the launch?
We just passed 63,000 wishlists a day or two before release, so somewhere around there.
How much did the Wholesome Game Steam Event help your game reach more players?
It’s tough to say, exactly, but I’m grateful that we were included in the event.
Can you tell us about your collaboration with John Konsolakis and Siobhan Miller for the music?
John was the first person to join the project, even before my publisher or any of the voice actors, and he was really instrumental (pun intended) in bringing the project to life. For me, the soundtrack is one of the best parts of the game, I don’t think it would work without it, but he also played a huge role in the story and crafting of the overall game which is why he’s also credited as a writer. It was really helpful to have someone who knew the whole story and that I could bounce ideas off. Oftentimes he’d steer me back on track when I went too far with an idea that ultimately… maybe wasn’t a great fit. So collaborating with John was a real blessing for the game, no doubt.
We were also very lucky to work with Siobhan Miller for the theme song of Farewell North, a rendition of Robert Burns’ “My Heart’s in the Highlands”, which is actually the song which Farewell North takes its name from. John and I are both huge fans of Siobhan and we figured it was a long shot, but we reached out to see if she’d be interested in singing on the song and incredibly she called me back right away! She was really into the idea right away, and worked around her busy schedule to find a day that would work, and we’re so grateful that it did because the songs turned out fantastic.
What lessons did you take from games like Journey, Firewatch, and Lost Ember when developing Farewell North?
Journey was a huge influence on John and I. For both of us I think that was a pretty core game in our gaming experiences, and one that we talked about quite a bit throughout development. But there are two other games that were perhaps just as big influences for me, which I imagine are much less expected.
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is perhaps one of my favourite games, and it was a real primary inspiration to me in the way we handled the puzzles and level design in Farewell North. One of the animators on that game followed me on Twitter and sent a message saying they were excited for Farewell North, and I was just floored by that, it was a really cool moment.
The other was God of War (the 2018 and Ragnarok) and the way the relationship between Kratos and Atreus was developed and portrayed in the game. It’s really difficult to develop NPC characters you can actually connect to and empathise with, and I think that team really nailed it in God of War. I loved those games, really enjoyed them, and they were a big inspiration for how we handled Cailey’s behaviours to try and avoid some of the jank you typically find in NPC characters and help players to connect with her, which was really important for making sure the story of Farewell North landed.
Can you tell us more about yourself, your journey and how did you end up developing Farewell North?
I worked as a software engineer for the last 12 years, just sort of dabbling in games in my spare time and finally taking the leap to make it a career about a year ago as I realised I would need the extra time if I were ever to finish Farewell North.
Pretty much the first day I learned how to write a single line of code in college I ran home and started making little text-based terminal games, like Tic Tac Toe and stuff like that, and I was immediately hooked. Over those 12 years working for tech startups I would continue to work on games in the mornings, evenings and weekends around work, but never fully finished and released anything, mostly because I was too scared to put myself out there. One of those games was a 2D platformer for early iPhone/Androids where you would collect these colour orbs and restore colour to the world.
Again, I never released it, but that idea always stuck with me. At the end of 2019 my wife and I moved to Scotland from Canada, but by the time we settled down with our flat we were basically in the first lockdown, and halfway across the world from everyone we knew. We had all these plans to travel Scotland and a bunch of free time, so I started toying with an idea for a new game that wound up being Farewell North as I funneled all those travel plans into the game.
Once it got started and it was clear that it was about a dog supporting his human on her journey, I remembered that old colour mechanic I had never released and it just clicked into place as a perfect metaphor for the story I was trying to tell.
Hrvatski 
English (UK)