Feltopia: The Hand-Crafted, Stop-Motion Videogame You Didn’t Know You Needed
If you're tired of pixel art, cell-shading, or photorealism, prepare to be enchanted by a game unlike anything you've seen before: Feltopia. A magical, handcrafted world made entirely out of felt, this upcoming side-scroller brings an irresistible charm that blends the tactile beauty of stop-motion animation with a heartwarming eco-fable. We sat down with Andrea Love, creative director of Feltopia, at PAX West, where she gave us an inside look at what it takes to craft a video game out of wool.
A dyed in the wool crafter and animator
"Everything in Feltopia is felt," Andrea explains, and she isn’t kidding. Every character, tree, and cloud is made by hand, one painstaking frame at a time. Andrea, a veteran felt animator, has spent over a decade perfecting her craft. “I live and breathe wool,” she laughs. As she describes it, creating Feltopia is much like making a stop-motion film—each puppet and set piece is carefully animated frame by frame. “There's no CGI. Every detail, every fiber is captured,” she adds. The result is a game that feels as warm and cozy as your favorite sweater.
In Feltopia, players take on the role of Sky Rider, a magical sheepherder tasked with rescuing the Rainbow Flock from an ominous, creeping smog that’s choking the land. What makes Feltopia stand out—beyond its unique visual aesthetic—is how Andrea and her team have decided to seamlessly integrate a positive, environmentally conscious story into the gameplay.
"I wanted something wholesome and nonviolent," Andrea says. In the game, instead of defeating enemies with brute force, players use Sky’s powers to purify and transform the smog, turning pollution into something beautiful and life-giving. “We started with this robot apocalypse idea,” she recalls, “but it just didn’t fit my personality. I wanted something more uplifting.”
The Art of Felting for Video Games
Creating a video game with felt is no small feat. Andrea's studio in Port Townsend, Washington, is where all the felting magic happens. “Making a game out of felt is a completely different process from making films,” she explains. Normally, in stop-motion, she would build entire sets and film them directly. But for Feltopia, she creates each puppet and set element against a clean background, which is later composited into the game’s engine. “Technology has advanced so much that keying out the hairy edges of the felt has become easier, and we can preserve that organic feel,” she notes.
This process is part of what makes Feltopia such a visually distinct experience. While the idea of a felt-animated game may sound whimsical, the meticulous attention to detail is evident in every frame. From the subtle movement of Sky’s rainbow-colored sheep to the flowing, ethereal smog that players must purify, the game’s animation captures the look and texture of felt in a way that’s entirely new to video games.
Like a boss
Andrea was quick to point out one of the game's standout features: a felted boss fight. "We knew we had to nail the boss fight," she says with a proud smile. In the PAX West demo, players can experience the culmination of the Rainbow Realm’s first set of levels, which ends in a beautifully animated, handcrafted boss encounter. “As a felter, I wanted to animate lots of puppets. What better way to show off the work than with a boss fight?” This is where Feltopia’s unique art style really shines, showcasing puppetry in action as players work to outsmart a massive smog bird with Sky’s rainbow powers.
The Road Ahead
Currently, Feltopia is still in development, with a projected release in 2026. Andrea and her team have been working on the game for over a year, with a six-minute playable demo making its debut at PAX West. They’re actively seeking a publisher to bring this labor of love to a wider audience, with plans to launch the game first on Steam before expanding to consoles.
When asked what’s next for Feltopia, Andrea was eager to share: “We’re hoping for around two hours of gameplay on the ‘Golden Path,’ but with more replayability through different scaling levels.” The team is also sharing behind-the-scenes content on social media, giving fans a chance to follow the development process and see the painstaking felting work that goes into each scene.
Wishlist and Follow Along
For those interested in diving deeper into this unique wooly world, you can already wishlist Feltopia on Steam and follow the team’s journey on social media. “We’re on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube at Feltopia_game,” Andrea shared. The game’s stunning visuals and heartfelt story have already generated a buzz, and following the behind-the-scenes process is a treat for both gamers and crafters alike.
And of course, you can check out the full video interview with Andrea on our YouTube channel at GeeksvsGeeks (youtube.com/geeksvsgeeks) to learn more about Feltopia and what makes this game so special. If you're a fan of stop-motion, hand-crafted art, or simply looking for something refreshingly different, Feltopia is definitely a game to keep on your radar.
Developers: Wooly Games
About the writer: DadGeek (Rob) is the co-founder of GeeksVsGeeks. He is a product of the eighties and never let go of his geek interest and hobbies no matter how often someone told him to stop. His love for gaming and all things geeks has been part of his parenting style and permeates throughout the whole family. A family of Geeks vs Geeks
