My name is Patrick, and I am the Art Director for Zockrates Laboratories, the indie studio currently developing Ruffy and the Riverside. Together with our publisher, Phiphen Games, we are proud to announce that Ruffy and the Riverside will be released on PlayStation 5 on June 26, 2025. We are happy to contribute to Playstation`s tradition of representing innovative and unique gameplay.
A platformer adventure with unique gameplay
Ruffy and the Riverside is a platformer adventure with truly unique gameplay. When Ruffy isn‘t jumping, running, skating, or gliding, he is using his unique Swap ability. With the Swap, you can copy and paste textures to change the game world, solve puzzles, beat enemies, and eventually save the world. Just grab a texture and throw it somewhere else, and the world will change!
It is as easy as it sounds and has huge impacts: Transform water into ice to cross an ocean. Throw a climbing vine onto a waterfall, and you can climb up. With the Swap, you can exchange materials, symbols, the sun for the moon, and all colors. If you color birds the same color, they might end up as a couple. Apples are more yummy when they are red, and some bushes will drop coins if they have a golden look.
Of course, the Swap can help in combat, too. Why not freeze an enemy or catch him in flight by turning him into stone? The elements are on your side if you swap them wisely. Use your imagination and make it happen. It really feels magic to swap things.
An adventure full of quests and challenges
Ruffy and the Riverside is a living cartoon with many side quests, individual characters, and a ton of collectibles. So wherever you go, you can talk to townspeople and animals, pick up side quests, and look for treasures.
On his quest to bring back the six golden letters, Ruffy will travel to faraway regions, each with its own challenges. Ruffy has to unravel age-old mysteries, compete in skating contests, and summon sunken islands to the sea’s surface. Wherever you go, you will find new grounds to explore. You can even jump into walls and solve puzzles in 2D levels. And no worries, you won’t get lost, because you will never walk alone. Pip, the sassy bee, is always on your side and can carry you through the air. Sir Eddler, the adventurous mole, knows all the tricks, and Sily, the wise turtle, gives advice whenever you need it.
A hand-drawn world
Ruffy and the Riverside has a unique art style. In fact, everything was drawn by hand: all characters, all textures, even the UI and the map. Ruffy alone has over 600 individual drawings. Why so many? Well, he was drawn from eight sides for everything he does. No wonder it took seven years to create this world. The result is a vibrant, colorful world, and we hope you`ll have fun exploring it.
How the Swap was born
Swapping textures and changing the world feels magic. We have often been asked how we got the idea of the Swap, and it is a funny story we want to share here.
When we started to work on Ruffy and the Riverside, we did a lot of drawings for the level design. One day, I went through those drawings, and I found this black-and-white drawing of a waterfall. Something about this drawing made it hard to tell if it was a waterfall or a stream of lava. As I wondered what it was, I realized how amazing it would be if it just could be both. What if you could really Swap the textures of the game and transform the environment? The Swap was born.
PlayStation memories and PlayStation dreams
We have put much passion into Ruffy and the Riverside, and bringing it to PlayStation feels like a dream to us. We all grew up with classics like Crash Bandicoot and Ratchet & Clank, and you can certainly feel those vibes in Ruffy and the Riverside. Seeing Ruffy run on PlayStation 5 now really gives us the same joy as it used to when we were kids. I hope it gives you all the same feeling when the game releases on June 26.
