Cat Le Zoo gets first teaser trailer to reveal Mother Games' bizarre new release

• Le Zoo, the hush-hush new release from Mother Games, finally has a teaser trailer
• Mixing in animation and live-action, it gives us more about this upcoming release
• We've also got more behind-the-scenes info

Of the hush-hush games currently in development, I think that one that has intrigued me most has been Le Zoo. This surreal mix of puzzles, PvP experiences and co-op has been kept mostly under wraps by developer Mother Games. But a new teaser trailer provides our first solid look at this ambitious release, set to arrive this year.

Billed as an emergent RPG, the teaser shows off a mixture of animation and live-action. Like the rest of the folks behind Mother Games' flagship release, the trailer also comes with animation led by Disney alumni Giacomo Mora, while being directed by Dina Amer and Kelsey Falter.

Perhaps the most interesting, but controversial aspect of Lee Zoo will be the inclusion of AI-generated NPCs. It'll integrate both custom NPCs that are created using AI, as well as five LLMs (large language models) based on "Buddhist wisdom" and Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. If nothing else, Le Zoo promises to be a bizarrely intriguing experience.

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I'm not exactly sure how to feel about Le Zoo. On the one hand, the inclusion of AI does put me off just a bit, as does the notion of something self-describing itself as "trippy". But on the other, Mother Games does appear to have grabbed some genuinely great talent for the overall work on Le Zoo; that includes sound and production designer Brian Alcazar (formerly of Rockstar) and award-winning artist Christof Stanits.

In that way, you can hardly call them short on inspiration and artistry. This makes the decision to create something trying so hard to be personal to each player so odd to me. Still, I suppose we'll just have to see how Le Zoo turns out when it does release before judging; but I'm definitely as cautious as I am intrigued by the concept.