Keru and the Guardians of the Universe: This underappreciated protagonist has stolen my heart

As a gamer, some things will always get me invested in a game without me having to really think about it. One of those things is an underappreciated and underutilized protagonist who has tho prove themselves, because I know exactly what that feels like, and that’s exactly what you’re getting with Keru and the Guardians of the Universe. 

Currently under development by TeamGarden Studio,Keru and the Guardians of the Universe is a top-down puzzle shooter that’s filled with adorable cartoon art and a simple yet effective message. I’ve been closely watching development for a while and yearning for a demo to get my hands on, so I’m happy to say that one has finally been released for everyone to try. 

I love this little alien octopus

All of the promo material describes Keru as an octopus, but the demo reveals that he also travels by rocket, so I’m leaning towards him being at least partially extraterrestrial. Whatever he is, Keru is absolutely adorable and lovable, despite his clumsy nature, and that nature is no excuse for how his so-called ‘friends’ treat him during the demo. 

As I said before, nothing endears me to a protagonist more than making them ripe for personal growth, and Keru definitely has a ton of potential for that in Guardians of the Universe. During the demo, there are multiple times where he is told by his ‘friends’ that he’s pretty much useless, and they would have been better off without him coming to ‘help’, but this little octo-alien keeps going regardless, and I love him for it.

Keru is an amnesiac Guardian of Love. Essentially, he’s the tentacled version of Cupid or Eros. He’s also the youngest of the Guardians, which is the excuse used for their treatment of him, although it definitely doesn’t endear me as a player to the characters aside from Keru. What it does do, however, is get me excited to see Keru grow beyond the demo and see how long it takes before he puts those other Guardians in their place. 

Find better friends than Keru

If you want to give Keru a friend who doesn’t constantly belittle his efforts and make him feel unsure of himself, you can always dive into Guardians of the Universe together with a friend. Local co-op is the only option for this at the time of the release of the demo, and there’s no telling whether it will become an online feature at any point.

Guardians of the Universe is, according to TeamGarden, designed for the whole family to enjoy at all ages and skill levels, so it’s immediately going on my list of games that can be played with my daughter for as long as she can maintain her attention on it. Thankfully, with many checkpoints littered throughout the demo, it’s easy to pick up and put down Guardians of the Universe based on the whims of a five-year-old. 

From game to cartoon, like flicking a switch

Rather than following a single art style for the whole game, TeamGarden has used two entirely separate styles that feature at different points. During gameplay, the scenery and characters look like they belong in an old-school platformer, with vivid colors and simple designs. However, as a fan of ’90s cartoons, it’s the dialogue moments that really make Guardians of the Universe stand out. 

As soon as you talk to a character, both Keru and that character pop up on screen like two characters that wouldn’t look out of place in any cartoon from the late ‘90s to early ‘00s. It’s easy to imagine them with their own TV show, and it’s almost nostalgic. Sadly, there is no voice acting to go along with that, but I can imagine the voices of the other characters, and suddenly it doesn’t seem like such a bad thing.

The demo of Keru and the Guardians of the Universe is just a taster of what’s to come when the full game gets released at some point soon, although there is no precise release date just yet. If you want to dive in, you can head to Steam to get the demo right now.