Launching Sept. 15th in the U.S. on the App Store. Get the press release and high-quality images for your news coverage. Download the complete kit, or choose individual files below.
Download complete kit ZIP · 9.9 MBSeptember 11, 2026
Award-Winning South Carolina Indie Game “Bugs ’N Boo Hags” Comes to iPhone and iPad Sept. 15
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Bugs ’N Boo Hags combines tower defense and strategic resource management with authentic, retro-style arcade action. This level is inspired by Tidalholm, the historic house on Beaufort’s Old Point that is featured in The Prince of Tides, The Big Chill and The Great Santini. Image courtesy of Illustrategy LLC.
In Bugs ’N Boo Hags, you’ll use “haint paint” and other magical items to help prevent the Boo Hags from invading homes, buildings and other historic landmarks like this praise house located on St. Helena Island’s Eddings Point. Image courtesy of Illustrategy LLC.
The new iOS version of Bugs ’N Boo Hags includes a number of regionally inspired bonus stages, like this scene at the St. Helena Island “Chapel of Ease,” where you must assemble trees of protective blue bottles while avoiding the monstrous “plat-eyes” that, like the Boo Hag, are rooted in Gullah Geechee folk stories. Image courtesy of Illustrategy LLC.
Bugs ’N Boo Hags features handcrafted pixel-art levels inspired by real locations in and around the South Carolina Lowcountry, such as the Telfair Academy in nearby Savannah, Georgia. Image courtesy of Illustrategy LLC.
In the new iOS version of Bugs ’N Boo Hags, you can play as one of eight characters — all of whom are based on real people. For example, the main character Jack McCleary is based on Ed McTeer, the longtime and legendary “High Sheriff of the Lowcountry,” and the “Gullah Goddess” is based on Victoria Smalls, a land and cultural preservationist, community advocate and 2022 recipient of the U.S. President’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Image courtesy of Illustrategy LLC.
The new iOS version of Bugs ’N Boo Hags includes several unlockable Game Center achievements that reward players for making progress in the game. Image courtesy of Illustrategy LLC.
The new iOS version of Bugs ’N Boo Hags features thoughtfully designed, dynamic and flexible touchscreen controls. You can also connect a compatible physical controller for more tactile precision. Image courtesy of Illustrategy LLC.
The introductory cutscenes of Bugs ’N Boo Hags establish the story of the game and its roots in Gullah Geechee folklore. Image courtesy of Illustrategy LLC.
The horizontal Bugs ’N Boo Hags logo with transparent background. Image courtesy of Illustrategy LLC.
Key art for Bugs ’N Boo Hags, featuring the game’s protagonist and several enemies against a Lowcountry-inspired backdrop, along with the game’s “Live. Die. Repaint!” tagline. Image courtesy of Illustrategy LLC.
Brian Canada, PhD, creator of Bugs ’N Boo Hags, founder of Illustrategy LLC, professor of computational science and chair of the Department of Computer Science and Mathematics at the University of South Carolina Beaufort. Photo courtesy of Illustrategy LLC.