the birds are watching you back in the psychological horror game Bird Watching by @studioortica.bsky.social

Birdwatching is cool now. Trust us. In fact, 2026 is already seeing a flutter of games with birdwatching as their hook. What makes the quaint activity so satisfying? We ask devs @secretplangames.bsky.social, @studioortica.bsky.social, and wildlife researcher @jabaddams.bsky.social to find out.

Birdwatching is having a moment in games! Birds Watching is featured in this great piece by @jamiehore.bsky.social in @thisweekinvideogames.com! thisweekinvideogames.com/feature/the-...

How does this relate to art, and @studioortica.bsky.social's Loan Shark? Find out in May (including the dev's interview)! #loanshark store.steampowered.com/app/3751730/...

This month's newsletter also contains a little scavenger hunt puzzle to guarantee your copy of this month's partner game Loan Shark, from our chums at @studioortica.bsky.social Find all five herrings (who've done a runner from the loan sharks, obvs) and you'll bag your key for the game.

Muy contento con Birds Watching de @studioortica.bsky.social. Pone sobre la mesa varios temas interesantes en lo narrativo (Hasta con un giro sólido), no ignora su lado de terror y encima rejugable. El juego italiano sobre pájaros me parece más interesante que el juego italiano sobre caballos.

Can we ask two of you for a favor?

Be sure to check this out c:

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, this month's partnership with @studioortica.bsky.social is now alive! We have 3000 Keys for the brilliantly odd Loan Shark; a game about fishing & paying off debts Newsletter: www.pantaloon.io We got 5 keys for bsky, too! Follow & share and we'll pick 5 random winners on Mar 26th.

@pcgamer.com writeup for Birds Watching! www.pcgamer.com/games/horror...

➡️ Birds Watching is out on Steam! Step into a world of madness, mayhem, and misery armed with just a pair of binoculars. The mountain is in danger. Be careful... the birds are watching. #birdswatching #studioortica #horrorgame #indiegame #indiedev #godot

going live with @studioortica.bsky.social 's #BirdsWatching game: store.steampowered.com/app/3979870/... -come here: twitch.tv/rookrules

Thank you for the coverage!

Steam Next Fest is GO, meaning our partnership with @firesquid.games shifts up a gear Play the Demos for Vultures and Ex Sanguis. Link your Pantaloon email in the main menu. Complete the demo - and if we have keys left - you’ll bag a copy of the full game at launch. Splendid.

🦉 Here we go again! We're proud to bring the demo for our next game, Birds Watching, to the Steam Next Fest. Birds Watching is the first birding psychological horror game set in the Italian Alps. Horror through a lens, picky birds, existential fire. #steamnextfest #godot #indiedev #horror

Townscaper but it's all made of clay! Or, #SDF, for the nerds out there.

It’s time for the first Saturday Demo! The weekly thread where I talk about demos for upcoming indie games that I think deserve more eyes on <3 Now as a birb myself, what better way to start this whole thing by introducing “Birds Watching” by the lovely @studioortica.bsky.social

Two dollars! Loan Shark is 50% off for a limited time with today's Daily Deal on Steam. We don't know when it'll go this low again, so be sure to grab it while you can! #IndieGame #HorrorGame #GameDev #Horror #Godot

Finished Loan Shark today. Hits above its weight. Indie games are second to none. @studioortica.bsky.social is one to watch. 🦈 store.steampowered.com/app/3751730/...

ANNOUNCEMENT: Are you looking for a spooky narrative driven game where you watch birds and birds watch you? Try Birds Watching on Steam! We just released the demo! #HorrorGame #Birdwatching #GameDev #Horror #Godot #IndieGame

Loan Shark is sitting just next to Pathologic 3 in this month's Indie Selects from @xbox.com. Yeah.

This game was so good! Nice Hidden Gem :D We play indie horror game Loan Shark by @studioortica.bsky.social #IndieGame #HorrorGame #Thalassophobia #GameDev #indiehorror #gaming

It is the first Thursday of a new month; about time we announced our next partnership really. Check back this afternoon 🦑 www.pantaloon.io (new subscribers will also be in time for Titanium Court demo keys, which we’re dropping (all 25k of them) on Monday)

Today we worked on our next game's cover c: #HorrorGame #Birdwatching #GameDev #Horror #Godot #IndieGame

Watch out for day #393 of #Godot games using #GodotSteam! Today is Birds Watching by @studioortica.bsky.social! A beautifully handcrafted, open-world, horror game where you watch and document all the birds of the preserve. Not out yet so give it wishlist love! store.steampowered.com/app/3979870/...

LOAN SHARKS usually don’t go hand in hand with RATS, but this is an exception. Get the RATSHAKER + LOAN SHARK bundle on Steam for a discounted price and a great psychological horror time! #horror #indiegame #ratshaker #loanshark #steam #discount

birds love worms. #HorrorGame #Birdwatching #GameDev #Horror #Godot #IndieGame

Loan Shark is now available on @playstation.com's store! So cool! #playstation #horror #indie-horror #indiegame #gamedev #godot

Not all birds in our game will be friendly #IndieGame #HorrorGame #Birdwatching #GameDev #Horror #Godot

Our next game is an horror about Bird Watching, and it's coming along nice. 🐦 We're almost ready for an official announcement!

ooooo SHIT I'm streaming some small horror games RIGHT NOW!! Gonna be playing some #LoanShark and #Kiosk until I get bored orrrrrr I finish them Come on through!! twitch.tv/toeknucklestv @studioortica.bsky.social #streamer #vtuber #gamedev #indiedev #gamedevelopment #godot

Loan Shark is out NOW on Xbox Series X/S!

Loan Shark releases on XBOX TOMORROW! If you're scared of fish, play this game.

#loanshark #xbox @studioortica.bsky.social @darkproduct.bsky.social Loan Shark arrive sur consoles en 2026 avec une expérience d’horreur courte et marquante 👇 reboot-game.com/loan-shark-a...

Read this if you want to know how we choose which game to work on next: open.substack.com/pub/studioor...

Working on birbs for our next horror game eheh #IndieGame #HorrorGame #Birdwatching #GameDev #Horror #Godot

Horror birds watching game set in the Italian alps 🐦 Starting to get to a good polish state, we'll be able to share more soon #IndieGame #HorrorGame #Birdwatching #GameDev #Horror #Godot

WOW. Thank so much you @arkarti.bsky.social for THIS. Beautiful!

Teaser trailer for my next project, SIDE HUSTLE! Hope you like it! #indiehorror #horrorgame #indiedev #solodev #unrealengine #trailer #teasertrailer #wip #showcase #sidehustle

Prototyped a new companion for our Bird Watching Horror Game #IndieGame #HorrorGame #Birdwatching #GameDev #Horror #Godot

Studio Carota becomes Studio Ortica. We rebranded ourselves! Ortica in Italian means nettle. It stings a little, like the kind of games we want to make: thought-provoking, stimulating, and a little shocking! #indiedev #indiestudio #gamedevs #gameindustry #loanshark #studioortica #gamedev

We just released a FREE UPDATE with small fixes and NEW ENDINGS with a NEW CHARACTER! Play it and cast your feedback rod at us. store.steampowered.com/news/app/375... #IndieGame #HorrorGame #Thalassophobia #GameDev #Horror #Godot

My last-minute #SteamAutumnSale shopping list. Shout out to @headwaregames.bsky.social @studiocarota.bsky.social @ianmaclarty.com and @brainwashgang.bsky.social

Markiplier playing our game was NOT on our bingo card this year www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQVk... #IndieGame #HorrorGame #Thalassophobia #GameDev #Horror #Godot

Vote for Loan Shark at DevGAMM and Cagliuso will fix the game industry for you. But remember: every pact has a price. 🎣✨ devgamm.fillout.com/community-vo... 1 vote/email - Ends Oct 5. Thanks @devgamm.bsky.social! #IndieGame #HorrorGame #Thalassophobia #GameDev #Horror #Godot #DevGAMM

We've started working on the first content update for Loan Shark! Below, sketches for the new alternative endings, by far the most requested addition. Can you decipher them? #loanshark #studiocarota #IndieGame #HorrorGame #GameDev #Horror #Godot

SHIATH is out! To celebrate, we made a SHIATH x Loan Shark bundle with @jameskrik.bsky.social! You can now get both games for a special price :p #IndieGame #HorrorGame #Birdwatching #GameDev #Horror #Godot

Go check out @jameskrik.bsky.social's game on Steam! It's weird and scary and full of pigs.

It's been a while uh? Well, I was making sure this bad way was ready for you! In just 3 days SHIATH is coming to Steam! How exciting is that!? #horror #horrorgame #indiehorror #indiegame #solodev #unrealengine #creepy #release #annoucement #indiedev #indie

Missed this month's Bold & Bizarre Game Bulletin? (sub to the newsletter next month, u fool) DW! Here's the web version, ft. @studiocarota.bsky.social, @crashablestudios.bsky.social, @dreadxp.bsky.social, @adinolfi.bsky.social, @kennymakesgames.bsky.social & more www.pantaloon.io/news/bold-an...