# Our game is just this texture ![[images/1DfKVL7TX1E_thumbnail.jpg]] - **Video:** [youtu.be/1DfKVL7TX1E](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DfKVL7TX1E) (YouTube Short, portrait, **1:21**) - **Channel:** Walaber Entertainment · **Published:** 2026-10-12 · about 584,000 views when checked - **Description (verbatim):** "Reason and Rhyme releases October 15! Check it out on Steam (link in my bio linktree)" - **Transcript source:** youtube-transcript-api English captions (yt-dlp's caption request was rate-limited with HTTP 429). The screenshots come from the video at the times in their file names. ## One-paragraph gist The whole look of *Reason and Rhyme* rests on a tiny lookup texture. Instead of painting textures per object, every surface just stores three choices: one of nine colors, one of seven dither patterns, and a brightness. The shader does the rest, including the stippled shading, simple lighting and shiny highlights. ## Timestamped outline ### [0:00] The claim ![[images/1DfKVL7TX1E_00m03s.jpg]] - "Believe it or not, our new game *Reason and Rhyme* is almost entirely built from one texture." On-screen caption: "Our game uses (almost) just 1 texture!" over game footage with hand-drawn outlines and halftone shading. ### [0:10] What is in the texture ![[images/1DfKVL7TX1E_00m12s.jpg]] - Only **nine colors** and **seven dither patterns** arranged from dark to light. - Every object only indicates **which color, which dither pattern, and a brightness level**. ### [0:20] A simple sphere ![[images/1DfKVL7TX1E_00m22s.jpg]] - In an editor a pink sphere stands in for any object. The color can be assigned, and **brightness** can be raised or lowered, which "mixes the main color with white or black based on the selected dither pattern". ### [0:31] Lighting and shine ![[images/1DfKVL7TX1E_00m31s.jpg]] - Simple lighting darkens based on **two thresholds** for shadowy areas. - A **specular circle** marks whether something is shiny. ### [0:40] A real object from the game ![[images/1DfKVL7TX1E_00m40s.jpg]] - A hedge-like object from the game with "Hue Bright Main" and "Hue Bright Accent" parameters on screen. Changing the parameters changes the object's color and shading. ### [0:50] Blender preview and UVs ![[images/1DfKVL7TX1E_00m50s.jpg]] - The team made a small **preview system in Blender** for building more complex objects. A basic preview shows how the object will look. - **UV coordinates** select the color, dither pattern and brightness. ### [0:58] The texture shown in Blender ![[images/1DfKVL7TX1E_00m58s.jpg]] - The grid of colors and patterns seen in Blender "actually isn't used in the game". It is only a guide for placing the UVs. ### [1:06] The exceptions ![[images/1DfKVL7TX1E_01m06s.jpg]] - Some other textures exist: the **eyes of the characters** and **repeating patterns** that suggest different surfaces. "Really, almost the entire game is driven by just this one texture." ### [1:14] Release ![[images/1DfKVL7TX1E_01m14s.jpg]] - *Reason and Rhyme* is an **online co-op two-player puzzle adventure** and "releases October 15th. Check it out on Steam." Footage shows colorful birds against a striped, dithered sky. ## Things mentioned - **Reason and Rhyme** (the game), Steam, Blender - Texture-driven shading ideas: a color palette, dither patterns (ordered stippling), brightness mapped through the dither pattern, two-threshold lighting, a specular circle, UV-driven material lookup ## Claims check | Claim | Verdict | Source or note | | --- | --- | --- | | *Reason and Rhyme* is an online co-op two-player puzzle adventure | **Confirmed** | [Steam page](https://store.steampowered.com/app/4461870/Reason_and_Rhyme/): "An online co-op puzzle adventure for 2 friends"; [Toyful Games press kit](https://www.toyfulgames.com/rr-presskit) | | It releases October 15th | **Confirmed** | Steam lists **Oct 15, 2026**; the press kit and [HappyGamer](https://happygamer.com/reason-and-rhyme-friends-pass-steam-launch-168351/) say it launched that day | | Nine colors, seven dither patterns, one main texture | **Not checkable** | These are the creator's own technical statements; only the video shows them | | "Almost entirely" one texture | **As stated by the developer** | The video itself names exceptions (character eyes, repeating surface patterns) | ## Added context *Added context, not from the video:* - The Steam page and press kit list **Toyful Games** as developer and publisher. The press kit says the art style is "inspired by Flipnote Studio", which fits the hand-drawn, wobbly-outline look in the footage. [Kill Screen](https://www.killscreen.com/walabers-reason-and-rhyme-is-co-op-for-exactly-two/) reports that Toyful is half Tim FitzRandolph, who releases solo work as **Walaber**. - Steam price per the press kit: **$7.99**; platforms Windows, macOS and Linux. ## People - **Walaber (Tim FitzRandolph).** Indie developer behind the Walaber Entertainment channel. Per Kill Screen he made *JellyCar*, was lead designer on *Where's My Water?* and also made *Replicube*, and now works under **Toyful Games** on *Reason and Rhyme*. The video narrator is not named in the video; that he is the speaker is an inference from the channel name. ## Tag note - Used: video-summary, product-design (closest approved tag). - Proposed (not in the approved list): **game-development**, **computer-graphics**.