This stunning 2D "plotformer" is the ultimate cottagecore fantasy with an extra dose of mystery, sapphic witches, and a giant lady who fights you

I've just joined a lampshade god cult in Quantum Witch. It was an accident, you see – this is one of those beautiful 2D pixel platformers that's more about exploration than all-out brawling, which means it's very easy to stumble upon something quite strange.

From a fourth-wall breaking skeleton to the Great Lampshaded One, the short time I've spent with Quantum Witch (newly out on Steam) so far has revealed a treasure trove of mysteries. In it, I play as Ren, a happily married lesbian witch in the female-only enclave of Hus. Of course, there's more to this quaint magical town than cottagecore vibes and Nintendo easter eggs – but those are two very good places to start.

Faer's fair

First thing's first: this game is gorgeous in its simplicity. An impressive solodev project from NikkiJay, Quantum Witch strikes a deft balance between nostalgic and innovative, its side-scrolling 2D pixel world evocative of the best SNES games while offering an storyline that likely wouldn't have made the cut back when the console was most popular.

That's because this charming little "plotformer" is very queer. Ren's journey is one of love, sisterhood, and potentially malevolent gods, all set in an idyllic all-woman town of witches. Each woman is Bonded with another – married, essentially – and can become pregnant by the will of the gods when bathing in the magical Pool. Ren and her wife Tyra own a farm near the Hus Crossroads, populated with animals referred to as Faer. Ren's first mission? To rush around Hus, find her lost Faer, and stop them causing trouble in the village.

This little sojourn is a brilliant way to get acquainted with my environs, as well as uncover a few hidden interactions known in-game as waveforms. On the way to the first creature, I find a pretty yellow flower. I return to my stead to seek out Tyra, who is very much the Judy variety of lesbian as per Cyberpunk 2077 – edgy, effortlessly cool, and a secret softy.

I offer the little posy to her, suggesting perhaps she place it behind her ear. She's reluctant at first, but after a little pleading – "do it for me?" "anything for you" – she obliges. It's one of the cutest minor moments I've experienced in the game so far, subtle in its sincerity, and reflects the core values of Quantum Witch as a beautiful queer-centered tale.

It's not all meadows and daisies, though. I make a wrong turn outside Ren and Tyra's homestead and come face to face with a curious woman clad in purple standing in front of a large wooden chapel. Ren recognizes her as one of the Shadies, a collective – "we're totally NOT A CULT" – of believers in a deity known as the Great Lampshaded One.

She tells me all about her beloved god enthusiastically, so much so that curiosity gets the better of me. I enter the Shadies' domain to find a swarm of identically-dressed purple followers, who greet me with delight and watch my every move, their sprites turning to face my direction at any given time. Suddenly, a purple dress appears on Ren, too. Have I just joined a cult without knowing much about its mysterious leader? Oops.

Breaking the spell

There are even weirder things happening in Quantum Witch than lampshade witches, it seems. My Faer fetch quest leads me to the village marketplace, where I not only meet a giant lady who teaches me to fight (or destroy breakable objects, really, as combat does not seem a focal point here) but a trio of very familiar vendors.

Princess Nectarine is selling "incredibly useful shells" and has far-flung tales of battles and breakneck races to regale me with, while totally-not-Pac-Man flogs an array of pills and potions next door. Nearby, Laura T's Jungle Relics offers stolen artefacts from across the world, and after a quick chat with Laura herself, I decide that she's one traumatized tomb raider.

Affectionate nods to some classic platformers aside, the real mystery comes just beyond the stalls. Here, I find something called Helgrind Path – and a lilac-haired woman with her hands and wrists bound, sitting right in the middle of it.

A roaring fire is the only light in this unnatural gloom, the music suddenly far more ominous than the once-jolly adventure melodies I'd been enjoying up to this point. She pleads with me to leave her be, warning that nothing good can come of my poking around before urging me to learn more about Hus. This town is not what it seems, she says, and to accept that, I must face some unpleasant truths

The notion that this picturesque sapphic utopia is not all it seems is jarring, both to me and to Ren. But it also sends a thrill through me – I've found the first flicker of uncertainty in an otherwise perfect place, and I can tell it's the start of something special.

Pride Month might be over now we are firmly in July, but Quantum Witch is still just as relevant. It celebrates queer community with a hefty dose of mystery and darkness, imagining a too-good-to-be-true world where magic can be found in every one of us. If you loved The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood's brand of choice-led storytelling and mystical sapphic vibes, I have no doubt Quantum Witch will put a spell on you, too.

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