Love At First Flight - Illustrated Adventure "The Day I Became a Bird" Launches on 16th April
Check out an all new trailer about a tender tale exploring first love, quiet bravery, and a passion for birds.
London, March 31 2026 - Numskull Games and PASSION Games, in collaboration with Hyper Luminal Games, today announced that The Day I Became a Bird, a heartfelt narrative adventure inspired by children's literature and animated storytelling, will launch on PC via Steam, Nintendo Switch and PlayStation on the 16th April.
The Day I Became a Bird tells the story of Frank, a quiet child with big feelings as he develops his first crush on Sylvia - who only has eyes for birds. This cosy game is a gentle, painterly journey through classrooms, playgrounds, and imagined spaces, as Frank navigates love, shyness, and self-expression. Through exploration, collection, and light puzzle-solving, he sets out with one simple goal: to capture Sylvia's attention.
Based on a storybook by French author, Ingrid Chabbert and Spanish illustrator, Guridi, and accompanying animated short by Passion Animation, the game blends those visuals with light and delicate interaction and is designed to be warm, welcoming, and emotionally resonant, offering a reflective alternative to the fast-paced, high-pressure play that tends to dominate. The game invites players of all ages to experience a world shaped by curiosity, vulnerability, transformation - and to fly like a bird!
The Day I Became a Bird draws on PASSION's roots in animation and storytelling, alongside Hyper Luminal Games' talent for building heartfelt narrative adventure games, bringing a hand-crafted, illustrative aesthetic to an interactive format. The title focuses on mood, movement, and emotional clarity rather than traditional mechanics, positioning itself as a narrative experience as much as a game.
"The heart of this project was always about capturing what love feels like before you really have the words for it," said Andrew Ruhemann, founder and CEO at PASSION Animation. "We wanted to create something that feels like a picture book you can step inside, where small moments and quiet feelings matter just as much as big story beats."
"When I first imagined Frank's story, it was always about that very small, very brave feeling of wanting to be seen by someone you really care about," said Chabbert. "Seeing it take flight as a game has been incredibly moving. It allows players not just to read about those emotions, but to step inside them - to feel the tenderness, the awkwardness, and the quiet courage of first love in a completely new way."
The Day I Became a Bird will launch on Steam, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation on the 16th April and will be available in two editions at launch:
-
The standard edition, which includes the base game, will be priced at £12.99/€14.99/$19.99.
-
The Feathered Adventurer Edition will also be offered, bundling the base game and film with a digital artbook and original soundtrack on Steam, Nintendo Switch and PlayStation, priced at £17.99/€19.99/$24.49.
-
Players who purchase either addition via Steam or PlayStation will also receive the original short film.
The Day I Became a Bird has been selected for the London Games Festival's 2026 Official Selection, and is playable at the Festival's New Game Plus event on April 16 and 17.
YouTube Links to Trailers
Switch - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jLAeykMvoo
PlayStation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbrm1jGidGk
All platforms - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewWkNtcoii4
No platforms - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5GAHPoaLCM
About PASSION Games
PASSION Games is led by MD Lucie Friar with Creative Directors Christian Mills and Jon Saunders. PASSION Games believe every project is unique and requires its own distinctive approach.
Starting with a game's characters, theme and tone as the foundation, the team builds an aesthetic and narrative that compliments these core concepts using their strong, diverse roster of creative talent.
About Hyper Luminal Games
Hyper Luminal is an indie games studio based in Dundee, Scotland. Everything we make is inspired by our ambition to build high-quality games that create lasting memories and fill our team with pride.
We make games where every team member proudly states: "I built that!". We put smiles on people's faces with beautiful, fun experiences that people play and love.
About Numskull Games
Since 2019, Numskull Games has established a worldwide physical & digital game publishing label. Launching & curating games from both new & veteran development studios as well as international games publisher partners, Numskull Games publishes titles across all major gaming platforms. Additionally, by utilising the infrastructure & resources of its sister companies Rubber Road / Numskull Designs, Numskull Games creates unique and compelling Collectors' Editions for its elite releases.
