Our Gamescom trip
Welcome to this Gamescom-focused update documenting our recent expedition to Cologne!
After a fourteen hours drive we arrived on the day before the official opening. First thing we did is get our official passes and then we started building our booth right away.
Everything went smoothly and we were ready for the opening!
Attendance came in waves, with moments of quiet before the (small) swarms. It was both exciting and scary for us to suddenly reveal to the world what we had up to this point only played on our monitors at home.
During the first couple of days we were able to spot issues that needed to be addressed, so we took a machine back to the Airbnb apartment and spent some time in the evening to fix and patch the problems. After which we decided the resulting build was ready to withstand the new players thrown at it for the rest of Gamescom!
That being said, we knew some animations were missing (as I didn’t have time to finish them before we hit the road for Cologne), the IK feet for the characters were not in yet and some assets were definitely going to be changed/improved in the final game. Still, we received LOTS of compliments regarding the way the game looks and plays, leading us to believe we might have done something right.
Namely it seems we managed to avoid the typical “Unreal look” (whatever THAT means) because we have a fairly stylized artistic direction and we don’t use Megascan models (except for some tree assets which will be swapped anyway).
The game was running at a solid 60fps in native 4K (no upscaling at all) on a RTX 4070 TI (so not even the latest generation of graphics cards).
Here’s a quick glimpse of the game running at our booth (just some phone-shot footage):
Any visitor who finished the demo was awarded a special wooden button, making them honorary members of Gusto and Fatale’s Guild of Thieves! Only a hundred of these were made, so if you have one, congratulations, you’re part of a select club!
Oh, and we had a small glass display cabinet on the side which proved quite successful in attracting the attention of passers-by. It showcased some of the existing merch related to the first game like the collector’s editions on PS4 and Switch, as well as some one-off “just-for-kicks” t-shirts. 😉
It also displayed a couple of figurines featuring the new game’s characters (Gusto on the left, Fatale on the right holding the undershine, a special thief’s tool):
We wanted to reveal them as they might appear in a future crowdfunding campaign (wink-wink, nudge-nudge)…
The attentive reader will no doubt notice the kind-of “mission statement” in the upper left of the case picture. I’m glad to say it connected rather well with the public and journalists. 🙂
What was particularly nice is we met long-time fans of the game, actually looking for our booth! Some had driven for hours just to see us. It was so humbling for us to speak face to face with people of all ages telling us how much the first game meant to them. A unique moment of human connection we rarely get to experience, seeing as most exchanges usually happen in an impersonal manner through internet.
We also got to meet new potential players who were discovering the game by chance, while walking through the aisles of Gamescom. They were clearly reacting to the poster visual (painted by Jerome Jacinto as always) and then they really liked what they saw on the TVs.
So to wrap it up, Gamescom 2026 was a great experience for us. Thanks to everyone who took the time to visit the booth and play the demo, we learned so much. It comforted us in the choices we made years ago and confirmed that despite the engine change and having to restart everything from scratch, the heart of the first game is still very much beating in the new one!
One final thing: You can now wishlist Ghost of a Tale 2 on Steam right HERE!
Sophie Davies
September 16, 2026 at 2:05 pmSo glad Gamescom went well for you! Flew to Cologne from Birmingham in England after hearing you were going to be there. I loved the first game so much and just from what I’ve seen of the second game, I am so incredibly excited! It has so much of the charm of the first game that I loved so much as well as new features that I’m looking forward to seeing more of. I’m so honoured to have one of the buttons and grateful to have had the opportunity to play. Thank you so much for the wonderful experience and I wish the whole team the best going forward in production! 🙂
Seith
September 16, 2026 at 6:58 pmThank you very much for your visit, Sophie! I’m glad you got the button to remember the occasion. 🙂
Zephyr Panthur
September 17, 2026 at 2:50 pmI’m so incredibly excited for Ghost of a Tale 2! The first game genuinely stuck with me in a way very few games do. It made me laugh, care about the characters, and freaking cry. ❤️ It was such an amazing experience.
I’m still astounded by what Lionel accomplished with the original, especially learning so much of the game-development side along the way. It’s honestly inspiring.
I really wish I could have made it to Cologne to play the demo, but I’ll absolutely be following along and supporting the game however I can. I can’t wait to return to this wonderful little world! 🐭❤️
Roman Hoff
September 17, 2026 at 5:42 amHallo liebes Team,
ich bedanke mich für die tollen Gespräche (trotz meines miserablen Englisch), das Spielen der wundervollen Demo, das Signieren meiner Collector´s Edition und den tollen Knopf. Ich freue mich so sehr auf den zweiten Teil und hoffe dass ich irgendwann eine physische Version für die Konsole in der Hand halten kann.
Ich muss sagen, ich fand Eure T-Shirts super geil, ich hätte wirklich gerne eins 🙂
Hello team,
I’d like to thank you for the great conversations (despite my terrible English), the chance to play the wonderful demo, the signing of my Collector’s Edition, and the awesome button. I’m really looking forward to the sequel and hope that, at some point, I’ll be able to hold a physical console version in my hands.
I have to say, I thought your T-shirts were really cool—I’d love to have one 🙂
I wish you all the best and hope we’ll all be able to play this amazing game soon.
Thanks for your work.
Best regards, Roman
Ich wünsche Euch gutes Gelingen und hoffe dass wir alle bald das tolle Spiel spielen können.
Danke für Eure Arbeit.
Beste Grüße Roman
Seith
September 17, 2026 at 6:42 amIt was great meeting you, Roman! And your English was absolutely fine. Hold on to that pristine Collector’s Edition, it’s one of a kind, now! 🙂
Roman Hoff
September 17, 2026 at 2:01 pmThank you, I’m going to make an acrylic case for it, and the box will have a special place in the collection. 🙂
Paige Richardson
September 17, 2026 at 9:01 amI wish I could have been apart of the adventure, but sadly the cards were off the table for me. I would of loved the chance to have played Ghost of a Tale 2! Even if I wasn’t apart of the adventure, Ghost of a Tale will always have a special place in my heart. :}
Seith
September 18, 2026 at 7:22 pmCheers Paige! Who knows, maybe there’s a way you get to experience the demo at some point in the future! 😉
Zephyr Panthur
September 17, 2026 at 2:58 pm–This should have been its own post. met bad. lol–
I’m so incredibly excited for Ghost of a Tale 2! The first game genuinely stuck with me in a way very few games do. It made me laugh, care about the characters, and freaking cry. ❤️ It was such an amazing experience.
I’m still astounded by what Lionel accomplished with the original, especially learning so much of the game-development side along the way. It’s honestly inspiring.
I really wish I could have made it to Cologne to play the demo, but I’ll absolutely be following along and supporting the game however I can. I can’t wait to return to this wonderful little world! 🐭❤️
Zephyr Panthur
September 17, 2026 at 3:10 pmOne thing I think would be REALLY cool as a promotional experience: a VR/360° recreation of the encounter with Ravik.
Imagine experiencing that scene from beside Tilo as he works up the courage to approach this enormous magpie, feeling how intimidating she is and how small and vulnerable Tilo is by comparison. All while his desperation to find Merra gives him the courage to push through that fear and speak with her.
It could even lead into Tilo performing The Orphan Prince for Ravik. Experiencing that song and the emotion behind it while actually standing there in that world could make the whole thing incredibly memorable.
I’m not sure how difficult something like this would be to create, but I think the scale, atmosphere, music, and emotion could translate beautifully to VR/360° video—and potentially be a really fun way to introduce new people to the world of Ghost of a Tale.
Just a fan idea, but I would absolutely love to experience something like this!
Seith
September 18, 2026 at 7:17 pmThank you for your kind words, Zephyr!
Now regarding a VR experience, I would say we are very much interested by the technology. So this isn’t a promise by any stretch of the imagination but I’d say “yep, that would be cool!” 🙂
Anastasia
September 17, 2026 at 7:47 pmI was so excited for your booth! 😻 And I am glad that you enjoyed Gamescom. It was nice talking to all of you. 🙂
I hope that we will be able to play as Fatale soon (no pressure though!) 🐭🩶
Seith
September 18, 2026 at 7:19 pmThank you for coming to see us during your break, Anastasia! It was very nice meeting you there indeed. 🙂
Brandon
September 19, 2026 at 5:03 amLooks great! Day 1 purchase for me as soon as it’s on console.
I don’t even know when/how I heard of the original game (American gaming websites failed me, failed all of us really, by not giving it proper coverage), and frankly I don’t even remember buying it digitally on my PS5, but at some point I did, and earlier this year I finally played it (better late than never, right?). As someone who grew up watching Disney’s Robin Hood, The Dark Crystal, and The Secret of NIMH and playing every Zelda game, Ghost of a Tale was right up my alley. The exploration was excellent, the world was big but not too big to be overwhelming, and everything you searched for or found seemed worth it and meaningful and satisfying. One of my favorite games I’ve played in a while, so I was happy to see a sequel was already well underway, and looks like I won’t have to wait too long! Thanks for making such a cool, unique, beautiful game, I feel bad for any gamers out there that missed out on experiencing it!
Seith
September 19, 2026 at 9:30 amThanks Brandon! We’re very lucky in that people who do play the game usually keep fond memories of it. Who knows, maybe Ghost of a Tale 2 breaks the surface and becomes a sleeper hit!!
Chris
September 20, 2026 at 9:47 pmGreetings,
I played the first Ghost of a Tale with my girlfriend watching. We both enjoyed it immensely, and as soon as we finished it, my gf asked if there was a sequel we could get.
This was about two years ago, and I have since then kept checking for news about a sequel.
The first game I hadn’t heard anything about – I got it at a giveaway from Good Old Games. So when we played it, we had no idea as to what to expect.
I have no idea how gaming sites algorithms work, but unfortunately I hadn’t heard anything about the sequel either. I found out about you attending Gamescom when I (again) googled “Ghost of a Tale 2”.
I hope that word will spread and that more people will hear about your upcoming game. I for sure will buy it.
Thank you for your work.
/Chris
Seith
September 22, 2026 at 10:00 amHi Chris. Yes, we’ve also noticed most game sites have no idea about Ghost of a Tale 2. Which is fairly normal since we’re so small and not having a publisher we don’t have any special access to journalists. But that’s okay, we managed to get in touch with a couple of printed magazines at Gamescom, so hopefully that will improve our visibility in the future… 🙂
Ghost
October 4, 2026 at 10:48 amGlad to see that！I love this game，I can’t wait to play it when it’s released.
I’m a fan from China，my English isn’t good enough yet, but I hope this comment conveys just how much I like it.
Thank you for your work.You are so talented.
PS:
I have 4 pet rats, I initially played this game simply because it was a ‘rat game’, but I soon found myself thoroughly captivated by it– and not just because of the mice..Still, mice are adorable.
Seith
October 9, 2026 at 8:03 amThank you Ghost for taking the time to write to us all the way from China! Indeed the game talks about both mice AND rats, so I’m glad you liked it… 🙂
Serp
October 8, 2026 at 1:15 amHey! I absolutely adore the first ghost of a tale and I’ve been so excited to get more glimpses at the sequel, and this post absolutely delivers 🙂
Shot in the dark but I’ve seen you post about NIMH, it’s my fav childhood movie and I’m fascinated by the underground area created by the rats and I was wondering if that was the kind of environment you’d be interested in creating eventually?
Ghost of a tale is definitely the game that came the closest to scratching that itch for me
Also, apologize in advance this is going to sound super nitpicky but I’ve noticed in the video you shared that the player second foot doesn’t touch the floor, maybe there’s a specific reason you cannot have that happen with how you built the game but I feel like it’s the kind of small detail that would heighten immersion much more!
I know very little about UE5 so this is just a random thought I had it would def not be worth the trouble if whatever tool for this is too troublesome, so yeaah I absolutely don’t mean to make this sound like a big deal the video and screenshots look fantastic 🙂
Sincerely, some guy that loved running around all the roofs and ramparts in the first game
Seith
October 9, 2026 at 8:12 amHi Serp, I’m glad you liked the first game! Regarding the feet contact you’re absolutely right. The goal of this dev blog is to show unfinished/WIP (and occasionally broken) work and I did mention in the post that the IK feet weren’t fully working in the demo. But I realize now it might not have been clear enough: IK stands for Inverse Kinematic and it is the technique used to basically put the character’s feet on the ground. In the Gamescom demo it wasn’t quite working (and entire animations were outright missing as well). But no worries, it will of course work in the final game! 🙂