The Nintendo Indie World livestream on May 11 showcased around a dozen new indie titles coming to the Nintendo Switch in 2022 and 2023. Among these, one surprising entry was Another Crab's Treasure, described by developer Aggro Crab as a "crab-themed Soulslike." The game features a homeless hermit crab who must face a series of enemies in a polluted, corrupted ocean setting, and is planned to launch sometime in 2023.
Unlike the battle royale Crab Game, which found popularity in 2021 on the heels of Netflix's Squid Game, Another Crab's Treasure stars an actual crab. Players control a hermit crab forced to search for treasure under the sea in order to buy back his repossessed shell. Players can equip over fifty different shells made from various pieces of trash including cans, bottle caps, and more. Different shells will feature different stats and abilities that can help the crab in battle as he is forced to face down enormous crustacean enemies.
Another Crab's Treasure is a "Soulslike" game, a type of action-adventure game known for its high difficulty, environmental storytelling, focus on combat, and large number of boss battles. The term originated as a way to describe games similar to and inspired by the popular Souls series released by FromSoftware. "Soulslike" remains an enduringly popular genre of game, with FromSoftware's latest title Elden Ring selling well and quickly amassing multiple perfect or near-perfect reviews.
Developer Aggro Crab Games is an indie studio based in Seattle, Washington. Another Crab's Treasure is its second project. It previously released Going Under, a third-person "rogue-lite" game starring the intern at a dystopian startup company who is forced to defeat the monsters plaguing the company's headquarters - all without pay, of course. Going Under debuted in 2020 to positive reviews, and was described as an indie "hidden gem" of the year.
Other games announced during the Indie World showcase included Gunbrella, a "noir-punk" title from Devolver Digital, a Switch port of combination creature raising and farm simulation title Ooblets, minimalist puzzle platformer Elec-Head, and more. Some announced games, such as the music battler Soundfall, were available to purchase and download immediately following the conclusion of the stream.
The Indie World event focused almost entirely on brand-new titles, disappointing some fans who had hoped to hear updates about previously announced or ongoing projects such as Bear and Breakfast and, in particular, Hollow Knight Silksong. This sequel to the 2017 "Metroidvania" action game Hollow Knight was announced in 2019, but has been delayed due to issues including the COVID-19 pandemic. Fans have not received any new information about Silksong in several months.
Another Crab's Treasure will release in 2023 for the Nintendo Switch.
