A Short Hike is a 2019 adventure video game by the Canadian indie game designer Adam Robinson-Yu, also known as adamgryu. It is an open world exploration game in which the player is tasked with reaching the summit of a mountain in the Hawk Peak Provincial Park to get cell phone reception. To reach the top, the player has to collect Golden Feathers which give the player the ability to run, climb, and double jump. While exploring, the player also encounters various non-player characters (NPCs), some of which offer minigames and tasks to complete.
After working on a role-playing video game, Robinson-Yu decided to embark on a new journey by creating a game about hiking, having been inspired to do that by his hiking trips. A Short Hike features a "crunchy" pixel art style and an open world inspired by The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The composer of the game was mainly inspired by Studio Ghibli and Joe Hisaishi. Its first part of the development lasted from December 2018 to April 2019, when the game was released as a Humble Monthly exclusive. The development continued after that and lasted until the game's official release in July 2019, when it was released on Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux on the Steam and Itch.io digital distribution services. The Nintendo Switch version was released in August 2020, while the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions were released in November 2021.
A Short Hike received positive reception from critics, who widely praised its gameplay, map design, characters, art style, writing, and soundtrack. Some reviewers have, however, criticized the short length of the game, with one reviewer stating that it is "a bit of a blessing and a curse".[1] It won the Seumas McNally Grand Prize at the 2020 Independent Games Festival, while it was also nominated at the 2019 Golden Joystick Awards and 23rd Annual D.I.C.E. Awards.
Gameplay
A screenshot showcasing the titular character Claire gliding on the map
A Short Hike is a platformer and adventure video game.[2] It has also been described as a cozy game.[3] The player controls the character Claire, an anthropomorphic bird, on an open world map, who has the ability to fly, run, climb, and double jump.[2][4] The goal of the game is to reach to the top of the map.[5] Throughout the map, there are signs that orient the player towards the summit.[6] Claire can also meet various non-player characters (NPCs) and collect Golden Feathers, which determine the player's endurance (stamina) when flying, running, or jumping.[2][4] The Golden Feathers can also be bought. The player's endurance bar can be exhausted when doing an activity, such as running. The bar, represented by Golden Feathers, can either be recharged by waiting or when in a snowy area, by bathing in a hot pool of water. The player can collect up to 20 Golden Feathers,[2] but in order to reach the top, the player has to obtain at least seven Golden Feathers.[6][7]:15:48 Additionally, to reach high points on the map, the player has to combine movement mechanisms, such as flying, running, and jumping. While exploring, the player can also find "bouncy flowers" that propel the player to higher points on the map.[2]
The map is comprised several islands that form a park; some of the biomes include a beach, forest, and snowy mountains.[2] The player can find various treasures,[4] including collectable items such as coins, sticks, and shells. A shovel can also be found, which in return can be used for digging treasures, and a fishing rod can be used for fishing. Items collected are stored in the player's inventory, which can be accessed at any time. The player can encounter NPCs such as a group of kids that run a marathon to the top of a hill, those that task the player with finding Golden Feathers, or the ones that help the player navigate the map. Some NPCs offer minigames that reward the player with achievements,[2] as well as requests for basic tasks. The player can also participate in races, play on the beach, or fish to earn cash.[6]
Plot
Claire can take part in many side activities while hiking, including beach volleyball, or in-game known as "beach-stick-ball"
Claire, a young bird, decides to spend her days off by travelling to Hawk Peak Provincial Park, where her Aunt May works as a ranger.
In an opening cutscene, Claire's mother drives her to a ferry that will take her to the park for the summer. When Claire arrives, her aunt informs her that there's no cell phone reception in the park except for at Hawk Peak, the tallest point in the park. Claire has never hiked the Hawk Peak Trail before, but is expecting an important call, so she decides to hike to the summit. It is then up to the player whether Claire helps the other animals on the island or heads straight for Hawk Peak. A sign at the mountain's base warns it is a strenuous hike and other characters remark that the trail is too difficult for them.
When Claire reaches the peak, she congratulates herself for making it and stands in view of an aurora. Soon, her cell phone rings, revealing that the caller is her mother. She acknowledges that she had a surgery after sending Claire away. Claire is upset she was not there for her, but Claire's mother says she is proud of Claire for climbing Hawk Peak. The call is interrupted when an updraft emerges from the mountain. It makes Claire nervous, but her mother urges her to ride it before it disappears. Claire rides the updraft, soaring over the park.
Claire can then return to her aunt, whereupon she explains to her all of the side activities she did on her hike. Afterwards, she finally goes to sleep.
Development
A Short Hike's logo, created by David Czarnowski
A Short Hike was created by Adam Robinson-Yu,[4] a Toronto-based developer,[7]:2:08 also known as adamgryu.[9] He was the game's programmer, art designer, level designer, sound designer, and writer; he also received help from his family and friends. The game was created in the Unity video game engine. Dawn Blair helped him with designing models as well as with writing, while Andrew Wong contributed to some 3D models. The game's logo was created by David Czarnowski.[10]
Robinson-Yu has been passionate about creating video games since his youth, but only became more interested in the process while learning video game development during his time in university. Before working on A Short Hike, Robinson-Yu released a few video games on the Itch.io digital distribution service.[10] After quitting his job as a software engineer, he became an independent video game developer in 2017. A year later, Robinson-Yu started working on a role-playing video game,[7]:2:04 inspired by the Paper Mario series.[9] However, he struggled with it during its development, slowly becoming stressed and anxious about it, knowing that it could take years before finishing the development of the game. In December 2018, he parked the project and started working on A Short Hike. After tweeting the project online in the same month, he obtained funding for the game, but was still unsure on which project he should mainly focus on. After playing The Haunted Island (2018) and Minit (2018), he ultimately decided to work on A Short Hike full-time.[7]:2:04
Robinson-Yu was inspired on creating a hiking video game after some hiking trips in national parks. He wanted to incorporate the feeling of reaching the top of the mountain in the game, while also trying to reconstruct "the peaceful meditative feeling" while surveying the world.[11] However, unlike the end result, he first thought about creating a simulation game in which the player would manage their own national park, similar to the Rollercoaster Tycoon series.[9] When at Stugan, an accelerator program for indie video game developers, he pitched a hiking game[9] while participating in a game jam with two co-workers, ultimately creating the game The Secret of Dank Mountain. After completing it, he found navigation and route planning to be interesting design mechanics, stating that he could create a game that would incorporate such elements.[10] The endurance bar featured in the game is also similar to those of A Short Hike.[9]
He initially thought that the gameplay of A Short Hike would be boring and not attract players, saying that similar games already existed, especially those with a strong narrative.[9] After obtaining money for the game from Humble Bundle, he committed to releasing the game in the next three months. He divided the game's development cycle into three parts: alpha, beta, and release candidate. He created two sets of goals during the development, the former being core gameplay aspects, such as movement mechanisms, dialogue, save system, and cutscenes, and the latter being stretch goals, such as volleyball, parkour, fishing, and wildlife. He argued that "the game would still be fun even though the stretch goals were not made". Some of the stretch goals would later not be featured in the initial version of the game. He tracked his progress using a simplified version of a scrum framework.[7]:9:06
Robinson-Yu found the writing to be the hardest.[11] The Yarn Spinner tool was used for creating dialogue;[10] he previously used the tool in his role-playing game. He also used the plug-in InControl, which allowed him to introduce controller support, and Cinemachine, which allowed him to setup a dynamic camera system. He re-used scripts and assets for various in-game tools from his previous projects.[7]:11:00 He even ended up creating several of his own tools during the development.[7]:12:55 In conversations, he opted to use short and informal messaging, such as the texting language.[7]:26:20 When creating game's NPCs, he wanted them to showcase different types of anxiety and self-doubt.[10] Robinson-Yu chose not to add voice acting in the game, instead preferring to add sounds that simulate speech.[2]
The game features a pixelated art style,[4] with voxel and isometric graphics.[2] The game does not utilize anti-aliasing.[11] One of the first things Robinson-Yu did when starting the development of A Short Hike was working on its art style. Considering that he had more experience in visual effects, he decided to experiment with a "crunchy" pixel art style. This style helped him create models much faster and expand the scope of the game in spite of his limited art skills.[7]:4:38 Robinson-Yu wanted to create a world with as few pixels as possible, while still trying to make it look beautiful.[11] In order to create a such effect in Unity, the world is rendered with a point filter mode. The colour palette was sampled directly from photographs of the Canadian Shield during the autumn. He also created a custom shader that allowed him to control shadows on all objects, while also trying to make them look flat and consistent. The flat style also allowed him to create UV's much faster. Robinson-Yu used post-processing effects in the game. He noted that, without any effects, the map in the distance would contain a lot of noise. He added a fog effect, to keep the player concentrated, edge detection, and colour correction.[7]:4:38
Robinson-Yu used the Unity's terrain editor to create the map.[10] He tried recreating an open world, trying to motivate players to explore the world in a way as they want to. This direction inspired him to create mini-games that can be played after taking a break from hiking.[11] He used a triplanar shader to texture the terrain; according to Robinson-Yu, "the shader effect uses the normal of the mesh to decide which texture to show".[7]:12:16 When working on A Short Hike, his main inspiration was The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017), primarily due to its open world design.[10] He was also inspired by the Animal Crossing series.[9] Robinson-Yu intentionally wanted players to get lost while exploring the map, even adding various landmarks to "pique people's curiosity" and collectable items,[10] such as coins, as well as paths and signs.[7]:18:58 He tried making places on the map as distinctive as possible. For example, the game's fire tower was inspired by his hiking trip at Mount Pilchuck, while the park itself was inspired by Algonquin Provincial Park.[10]
In the starting area, there is a single dirt path that leads the player towards the town.[7]:15:08 During playtesting, Robinson-Yu noticed that some players ended up going in the ocean to nearby islands or to the back side of the mountain. To solve the problem, he created a cave at the back side of the mountain, which would ultimately lead the player back to the starting town.[7]:16:52 He also utilized natural obstacles, such as high walls, to forbid the player from travelling up the mountain before they gain certain number of Golden Feathers.[7]:19:45 In the early playtesting, Golden Feathers were harder to find; this changed later during the development.[7]:25:10
One of the first items Robinson-Yu added to the game was the shovel, saying that "it was a simple way to add secrets to the game".[10] In the beginning, the player would stumble upon a toy shovel, which the player can trade in for a larger shovel. Robinson-Yu initially added a single toy shovel at a crossroad. However, he ended up noticing that players would avoid the shovel. To fix the problem, he placed five toy shovels around the starting area; once the player collects one, the other four would disappear. He said that "the players would feel like they discovered it on their own, even though it is guaranteed at this point".[7]:20:45 He also later added a bucket, which allows the player to water plants.[10]
Music
Mark Sparling was inspired by Joe Hisaishi (pictured) while composing the game
The music was composed by Mark Sparling.[4] The game has an adaptive soundtrack that changes based on world events and player actions.[2] Sparling used a guitar, mandolin, and banjo to record live music, as well as a piano and drums. He was heavily inspired by The Binding of Isaac (2011), composed by Danny Baranowsky, when starting out his career.[12] However, when composing A Short Hike, he was mainly inspired by Studio Ghibli and Joe Hisaishi; Sparling tried imitating his style.[13]:1:05 The "Somewhere in the Wood" soundtrack from A Short Hike is a combination of soundtracks inspired by the musician Sufjan Stevens,[12] particularly his album Carrie & Lowell,[13]:1:55 and Animal Crossing: New Leaf (2012). In an interview with Polygon, Sparling said that "the cute, minimal percussion" was influenced by New Leaf while the guitar parts were influenced by Stevens. The main soundtrack, "Beach Buds", was inspired by the music of Studio Ghibli movies; the soundtrack contains strings as well as elements of Afro-Cuban jazz. New Leaf was also used as an inspiration for other soundtracks that use bass and percussions.[12]Firewatch (2016) also inspired him while creating "more ambient, moody sound".[13]:2:13 While flying, the music resembles tracks those of Steve Reich.[13]:4:05
The adaptive soundtrack has several layers. The first layer, the percussion, is present in the starting area (bay), town, and camps, while the second layer, featured in the bay, has a "more memorable and active melody". The third layer, composed of chords, is also featured in the bay, as well as in the camps, which also featuring a "slightly less active melody" (layer four). The town and camps also have alternative cords (layer five). The mountain works differently (the layers are stacked on each another); Sparling said that the music "hopefully gets more exciting as you climb".[13]:3:26
Release
A Short Hike was a Humble Monthly exclusive in April 2019.[14][1] After its release on Humble, Robinson-Yu worked on adding several more features that he did not have time for, such as fishing, parkour races,[10] and volleyball. He used Twitter as a promotion service.[7]:28:00A Short Hike was released on Windows, Linux, and macOS[15] on July 30, 2019, for the Itch.io and Steam digital distribution services.[16] With this release also came the "Extra Mile Update" which introduced new characters, fishing, and map changes.[17] The Nintendo Switch version was released on August 18, 2020.[16] An update introducing a motorboat was included.[18] The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions were released on November 16, 2021.[19] In March 2020, the game was temporarily made free for a week on the Epic Games Store.[20] In July 2023, the game was promoted in a Whimsy and Wonder bundle at Humble Bundle.[21]
In April 2022, Robinson-Yu created a modification of the game that allows up to 99 players to play on a single island.[22] Although developed for the April Fools' Day as a battle royale mode,[23] Robinson-Yu announced that it would not become an official game mode.[24]
The endurance (or stamina) bar (pictured) has been compared to those of the Zelda series
A Short Hike received "generally favorable" reviews from critics, according to review aggregator website Metacritic.[25] Four Famitsu critics gave it a 32 out of 40 score.[27]
Critics favourably assessed the gameplay. Willem Hilhorst of Nintendo World Report and Matthew Reynolds of Eurogamer described it as a "collect-a-thon",[8][30] with Reynolds comparing it to the gameplay of Banjo Kazooie.[30] Hilhorst summarized the game as that "A Short Hike delivers not just what the title promises", but that it also exceeds the player's expectations.[8] Cathlyn Vania of Adventure Gamers praised the fishing and climbing mechanics, as well as the option to find treasure,[2] while Kevin Mersereau of Destructoid positively commented on the flying mechanics.[1] Stuart Gipp of Nintendo Life described the various in-game activities as "refreshingly organic", noting that the game "[makes] you feel like you're pushing at its limits". He also praised the game's design.[28] Khee Hoo Chan of GameSpot particularly praised the in-game activity in which you give a frog a toy shovel, which she uses to successfully create a sand castle.[18] Graham Banas of Push Square and D. M. Moore of The Verge have noted that the game incorporates elements of the Animal Crossing series,[29][31] with Moore also added that it has elements of Breath of the Wild.[31] Others have particularly noted that the endurance bar featured in the game is Zelda or Breath of the Wild-like.[6][32][28]
Additionally, critics praised the design of the map and its characters. Christian Donlan of Eurogamer enjoyed exploring various locations on the island,[26] while Donovan Erskine of Shacknews praised the open world approach.[4] Chan said that the park is reminiscent of the nature in real life, especially hiking experiences.[18] Erskine said that its characters are memorable, describing them as funny and the dialogue as authentic, while also adding that the characters and stories "feel so distinct from one another".[4] Chan said that the interactions with Claire made him happy.[18] Moore described the characters as "quirky and clever".[31]
The game's art style,[2][28][29][31] writing and dialogue,[28][1][29][26] and soundtrack have also been commended by reviewers.[2][28][29][31] Chan praised the looks of the environment,[18] while Vania did the looks of the water, environment, wind, and its animations. She described the park as having "vibrant colors and nature-inspired details".[2] The game's presentation remined Hilhorst of Nintendo DS games and the Animal Crossing series.[8] Erskine praised the game's colours and lighting, saying that the world looks lively, while also adding that the soundtrack is Animal Crossing-like.[4] Donlan commended the looks of the main island.[26] On the other hand, Christopher Byrd of The Washington Post was not satisfied with the pixel art style, describing it as having watercolor looks.[6] Gipp also commended the game's controls, having said that they are "smoother than butter".[28]
Reviewers mostly complained about the short length of the game,[2][8][28][29] with Mersereau saying that it is "a bit of a blessing and a curse".[1] On the other hand, Erskine only complained about the NPC quests and their locations, saying that the player could easily forget or mix quest orders up.[4]
Awards
Eurogamer named A Short Hike in 2024 as one of the best video games "to play right now".[33]Eurogamer and Rock Paper Shotgun also named A Short Hike as one of the best games of 2019,[30][34] while Digital Spy, PC World, and GameSpot named it as one of the best indie games of 2019.[35][36][37]The Verge listed it as one of "the best short games of 2019",[5] while PC Gamer listed it as one of the "hidden gems" of 2019.[38] Robert Purchese of Eurogamer wrote "Will there be a better game this year? [...] Unlikely."[39] In 2024, Rock Paper Shotgun listed it as one of the best open world video games for the PC.[40]
Chris Tapsell of Eurogamer described A Short Hike as Zen, saying that it goes "beyond just being about nature to being about what it is to experience nature".[44] For Nicole Carpenter of Polygon, the game denounces how most people are overly reliant on new technologies, as demonstrated in particular by the opening of the plot: while Claire is focused on using her cell phone, the gameplay and the island's design offer her numerous activities that distract her from her primary objective of climbing the mountain as quickly as possible. She also notes that "[A Short Hike] is a subversion of technology and of nothing, a nuanced critique of what it means to do nothing and everything".[45] Katharine Castle of Rock Paper Shotgun compared the game to Animal Crossing: New Horizons (2020), as both are based on escapism and were released during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, when many players were experiencing lockdown measures.[46]
↑Morton, Lauren (January 8, 2026) [April 24, 2023]. "Best Cozy Games". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on April 24, 2023. Retrieved January 12, 2026.
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