Tailgate – the doggo adventure (demo) – Review

Tailgate – the doggo adventure. It’s a simple title that might not immediately ignite your imagination, but what if I told you this short demo pulled at my heartstrings in a way I wasn’t expecting.

I cover a lot of indies and play a lot more that I don’t ever spend time writing about. I also have a rule: if a dev reaches out, I will make time to take a look at what they are making. This was the case with Tailgate – the doggo adventure. A simple DM on Twitter/X started a conversation with the solo dev of this game, who filled me in on their vision and the story they wanted to share with the world. Now, I finally had a chance to play the demo, and it was about 40 minutes that introduced me to the main character, an aging Labrador retriever named Hyde who wakes up and starts looking for his owner, Derek.

You spend a lot of this demo just sniffing and searching for memories. There are 4 photographs and stories scattered about the neighbourhood. With my nose to the ground, I followed the scents, snacked on treats and lapped up water while testing my skills climbing and balancing through obstacles.

Sniffing, barking, etc. all require the use of stamina, so those snacks and drinks help replenish the stamina bar. It’s worth noting that the stamina bar is in the shape of a dog’s tail. A delightful little detail.

You will encounter a few NPCs, each with dialogue options, and a few will give you quests.

This is a very short and simple narrative-driven demo, but it was enough to hit me in the feels. If you have a pet, or have ever had a pet, there is something in this game for you. Please check out the demo available on August 17^th.