Oh, to be a little gecko crawling up some walls in this exploration platformer

I'm really feeling this cute little one-person developed platformer about being a Gecko. Maybe I'm just in a mood for a movement-driven game about exploring and doing puzzles (thanks, Zelda) but The Gecko Gods is adorable.

Early footage of The Gecko Gods shows its tiny protagonist stickily scaling walls, complete with pattering of tiny feet on stone. That's really not all, I'll note, because the Gecko also leaps forward and chomps down on bugs whole, crushing them into its maw whole like a true Gecko does.

The Gecko Gods is a exploration platformer, light on action, about exploring a chain of islands to solve ancient puzzles in mysterious stone ruins. The Gecko protagonist can stick to things. Not just normal things, like... everything. Which is what you'd expect from a lizard with sticky feet but still—there's a lot of potential for puzzling when all of 3D space is open to you.

Designer Louis Waloschek emphasizes openness and freedom in the world of The Gecko Gods. "Relaxed exploration? Head-scratching puzzle-platformer? Collectibles completionist? Uncover the lore of the island and all it has to offer, explore for the fun of it for hours, or simply play through the campaign story," says the store page.

In addition to the open world there are also puzzle-based tomb spaces—places you go in for a deeper, more direct puzzle experience.

After the immediate charm wears off, I'm also quite intrigued by the look of the contraptions and equipment your Gecko can fool around with. The trailer includes a boat complete with engine and sail that the little guy can grab handles (with his mouth) to start, stop, and steer. Other sequences show the Gecko grabbing handles to rotate mirrors to solve light-beam puzzles or activate railway-like platforms to ride on.

You can find The Gecko Gods on Steam, where it's due to release this year. It's developed by Louis Waloschek and published by Super Rare Originals.