A Hat in Time

A Hat in Time is a platform game set in an open world environment and played from a third-person perspective. The gameplay style has been described by several editors to be similar to Nintendo 64 platformers such as Super Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie. The player travels between four open levels (along with a fifth linear level and two extra levels via downloadable content), which can be freely explored without time limits. The player can collect various items, solve puzzles, and use an umbrella (or other cosmetic options via downloadable content) to combat enemies.

The primary objective is to collect Time Pieces, 56 of which can be found in the game, which unlock additional levels as more are collected. After being defeated, the enemies drop "Pons", currency that can be used to unlock additional challenges and purchase badges that increase Hat Kid's abilities. The player can collect Yarn Balls in each level, which can be stitched into new hats to wear. Each hat grants Hat Kid a different ability, such as a faster sprint or brewing explosive potions.

A Hat in Time follows Hat Kid, a little alien girl wearing a top hat trying to return to her home world via spaceship. While on her journey, she passes over a planet, and a member of the planet's Mafia comes to collect a toll for the Mafia Town government. When Hat Kid refuses to pay, the Mafia man busts the spaceship door open, causing Hat Kid and all of her "Time Pieces", magical hourglasses that power her ship, to fall to the planet below. Hat Kid lands in Mafia Town and meets Mustache Girl, a local troublemaker who hates "bad guys".

Mustache Girl agrees to look for the missing Time Pieces in exchange for Hat Kid's help fighting the Mafia, and the two defeat the Mafia Boss. When Mustache Girl realizes the Time Pieces can rewind time, she wants to use them to become a crime-fighting time traveler, but Hat Kid refuses, as she is aware that messing with time is dangerous. Angered by this refusal, Mustache Girl declares the two enemies and sets off to find the Time Pieces on her own.

The initial idea for A Hat in Time was started by director Jonas Kærlev, who graduated with a master's degree in computer science at Aalborg University in Denmark. He launched the project as an answer to his feeling of an ongoing shortage of 3D platformers, specifically developed by Nintendo. Some inspirations include Psychonauts, Spyro the Dragon and Banjo-Kazooie. In an interview with Polygon, Kærlev revealed that he and Gears for Breakfast initially did not expect the Kickstarter success A Hat in Time eventually received.

Kærlev thought that there would be little demand for the game due to Donkey Kong 64's effects on the genre, which he perceived as overwhelming the player with too much collecting. Development for the game started in August 2012 and was planned for a Q2 2013 release but was significantly delayed. At the start of development, Kærlev was the sole developer of the game but over time the development grew into Gears for Breakfast, a team spanning four countries and entirely volunteer-based. Through the Kickstarter campaign the game surpassed the initial goal of $30,000 with a final total of $296,360.

The PC, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch versions of A Hat in Time received "generally favorable" reviews from critics, aside from the Xbox One version receiving "mixed or average" reviews, according to review aggregator website Metacritic.

Chris Carter from Destructoid gave the game an 8.5 out of 10, calling it an "impressive effort with a few noticeable problems holding it back." PC Gamer's Dominic Tarason rated the game 86/100 saying, "Some scuff-marks aside, A Hat in Time is a creative, playful, and polished tribute to a genre that doesn't get nearly enough love on PC." In the Game Informer review, Kyle Hilliard stated the "dated PlayStation 2 era" graphics are the game's weakest element, but praised the gameplay, sound design and music, awarding the game 8 out of 10.