Goodbye Volcano High

Goodbye Volcano High is a narrative adventure game by KO_OP. It was announced on June 11, 2020, and was released on August 29, 2023 for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Windows.

Goodbye Volcano High
Developer(s)	KO_OP
Publisher(s)	KO_OP
Director(s)	Kyle McKernan Saleem Dabbous
Designer(s)	Kyle McKernan Samuel Boucher
Programmer(s)	Hope Erin Phillips Jacob Blommestein
Artist(s)	Ellen Alsop Lucie Viatge
Writer(s)	Jenna Yow Kyle McKernan
Composer(s)	Omar Dabbous
Engine	Unity[1]
Platform(s)	PlayStation 4 PlayStation 5 Windows
Release	August 29, 2023
Genre(s)	Narrative adventure
Mode(s)	Single-player

Gameplay

The player selects dialogue choices, and controls rhythm minigames during performances by band Worm Drama.^[2]

Plot

Set in a world of anthropomorphic dinosaurs, the game centers on the members of the band Worm Drama; the non-binary lead vocalist Fang the pterodactyl (Lachlan Watson),^[3] guitarist Trish the triceratops (Ozioma Akagha)^[4] and drummer Reed the velociraptor (Mark Whitten),^[4] alongside the school's student council president Naomi the parasaurolophus (Allegra Clark)^[4] and Fang's brother Naser (Abe Bueno-Jallad),^[4] - as they venture through the highs and lows of their final year as Volcano High seniors with graduation looming over the horizon while coming to terms with their own impending extinction from an asteroid.

Development and release

The game was initially announced during PlayStation's "Future of Gaming" online presentation on 11 June 2020, with a release window of 2021.^[5][6][7] In August 2021, KO_OP announced a delay of Goodbye Volcano High's release until sometime in 2022. The developers wanted to avoid crunch related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and had already brought in a new writing team from Sweet Baby Inc. in June 2020 to reboot the game's entire narrative direction.^[8][9][10] The new narrative direction was largely inspired by the experiences of high school seniors graduating during the pandemic.^[11] In November 2022, the game was delayed to 2023.^[12] A new gameplay trailer premiered during a PlayStation "State of Play" presentation on 23 February 2023, announcing a release date of 15 June^[13] but was delayed to 29 August.^[14] Prior to release, demos of the game were showcased at the 2023 Game Developers Conference as part of the "Day of the Devs" selection,^[15] PAX East 2023, and at the 2023 Tribeca Festival as part of the "Games & Immersive Experience" selection.^[16]

Reception

Aggregate score

Aggregator	Score
Metacritic	(PC) 82/100[17] (PS5) 81/100[18]

Review scores

Publication	Score
Eurogamer	5/5[19]
GamesRadar+	4/5[20]
Hardcore Gamer	4/5[21]

Reception

Following the revamped game's showing at PAX East 2023, it was positively received by critics. Kyle LeClair of Hardcore Gamer praised the game, saying its rhythm game elements had the "perfect level of challenge", and that its music was "ear-pleasing". He called the character designs "striking", praising Fang as a "terrific and likeable protagonist" with "great voice acting", and predicting it would be a "deep and unique tale".^[11] Rachel Watts of Rock Paper Shotgun wrote that she "had a great time with the demo", comparing it to the adventure game Life Is Strange.^[22]

In June 2021, anonymous 4chan users under the name Cavemanon created Snoot Game, an "anti-fangame" intended as a rival version of the game, which was described by a KO_OP developer as "not made in good faith".^[23]

Awards

Year	Ceremony	Category	Result	Ref.
2023	Tribeca Festival	Tribeca Games Award	Won	[24]
	IndieCade	Grand Jury Award	Won	[25]
		Performance Spotlight Award	Won
		Narrative Spotlight Award	Nominated
	The Game Awards 2023	Games for Impact	Nominated	[26]
2024	GLAAD Media Awards	Outstanding Video Game	Nominated	[27]
	Independent Games Festival	Seumas McNally Grand Prize	Honorable mention	[28]
		Excellence in Narrative	Honorable mention
		Excellence in Visual Arts	Honorable mention
	British Academy Games Awards	Game Beyond Entertainment	Nominated	[29]
	World Soundtrack Awards	Game Music Award	Nominated	[30]