#narrative driven

[s3znl-gr3znl]

thinking about what a metroid game made by fromsoft would be like and trying not to explode

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[I.D.: A gifset containing four gifs of the game Common’hood.

Gif 1 shows a first person perspective of the player walking through an area with gardens and picking crops while another NPC digs.

Gif 2 shows a changing 3D model of a building structure against a blank minimalist background . The player adds several plants around the structure’s frame.

Gif 3 shows a crafting menu interface. The menu closes to reveal an automated arm operating.

Gif 4 shows several gameplay scenes. The player is collecting resources, digging, and rearranging furniture layouts.

end I.D.]

Common’hood is a simulation management game about building a community! Set in the background of an economic crash, take care of the needs and aspirations of your settlers in a post-capitalist society. Scavenge for materials, build a home, grow food, develop automated technology, craft tools, and build a new family! 

Set to release March 2022 for Windows. Free demo is out now.

Developed by Plethora Project, a design studio exploring the notion of Discrete Architecture. It’s directed by Jose Sanchez, an Architect, Game Designer, and Theorist based in Detroit, Michigan. Game Devs of Color Expo has also interviewed him about the game on their YouTube channel.

[tumblingapart-blog]

He’s always been here with you.

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Later Daters is a dating sim that takes place in a retirement home! Customize your appearance, name, gender, and romance history as you seek love amongst the silver foxes of Ye OLDE. Explore LGBTQ inclusive romances, polyamorous relationships, and more!

For Nintendo Switch, Mac, and Windows.

Developed by Bloom Digital Media, a studio based in Toronto, Canada. They aim to represent livelihoods that are often overlooked, and partially based their game on real life seniors that they interviewed. 

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[I.D.: A gifset containing four gifs of the free game DOT’S HOME.

Gif 1 shows the player character, Dot, who is a young black woman wearing a red shirt and red lipstick with her hair pulled into an afro puff, pulling out a glowing key. A second shot focuses on her hand inserting the key into a locked door.

Gif 2 shows Dot talking to younger versions of her grandparents, both of whome are black, in an empty house. A white business stands besides them. Dot tells her grandparents, “I’m certain you two could make a great home here...” before the game presents two narrative options for Dot to say: “Rent” or “Buy.”

Gif 3 shows Dot walking through time. Mirrors with her distorted reflections float around her as she enters a glowing door that fills the screen with light.

Gif 4 shows the same white business man talking to Dot on the sidewalk. He tells her, “If I was you, I wouldn’t go any further. The neighborhood beyond this point is not for your kind.”

end I.D.]

DOT’S HOME is a game about the effects of housing inequality amongst people of color. Play as Dot, a young Black woman in Detroit living in her grandmother’s old home. As she travels back in time, witness the harmful systems that dictate our relationships to our race and environments in the midst of redlining, urban renewal, and gentrification.

For free on Android, Mac, and Windows.

Developed by Weathered Sweater (past work includes Pupperazzi), Aerial_Knight (of Aerial_Knight’s Never Yield) and Titan ARX Interactive.

They collaborated with The Rise-Home Stories Project, a multimedia collection of storytellers, housing, land, and racial justice advocates. They aim to reimagine the futures of communities by transforming the stories we tell about them. DOT’S HOME is one of their five projects about exposing the impossibility of the American Dream for families of color. 

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[I.D.: A gifset containing five gifs of the pixel art game Coffee Talk.

Gif 1 shows a shot of civilians in the town the game takes place in. There is an orc wearing a hat, a woman with pink skin and long pointed ears, another woman with purple skin and horns, a human with blonde hair and white skin, and a another man with brown skin and red hair. They are all dressed in modern, 2020 attire with text beneath the image shot spelling, “It is a city that holds the many dreams and stories of its people.”

Gif 2 shows two shots of patrons sitting behind the cafe counter. The first shot is of two people, a woman with pale skin and a man named Gala who is saying, “Yeah, things changed a lot in just twenty years.” The other shot is of three people: a police officer with black skin, a woman with cat ears, and a pale-skinned person with short green hair. The officer, named Jorji, is saying, “I fought a lot with my kids.”

Gif 3 shows a montage of the player’s hand setting out different drink orders. They set out drinks called Sugar and Spice, Shin Genmatcha, and Bitter Heart. Besides each drink order are the options “Trash It” and “Serve It.”

Gif 4 shows a top-down view of a coffee cup. The player turns the cup as they pour milk to make latte art resembling a flower.

Gif 5 shows a close up shot of a table. A folded newspaper, an ashtray with cigarette butts in it, a pack of cigarettes, a cup of coffee, and a cigarette are on its surface. Text beneath the image spells out, “But some few find solace in the embrace of bricks and wood and closed doors.”

end I.D.]

Coffee Talk is a narrative game about serving coffee to elves, aliens, orcs, mermaids, and other fantasy races! Play as a barista who has heart-to-heart conversations with patrons while serving up warm drinks from the ingredients you have in stock. How you serve your customers will affect the game’s branching storyline in this alternate version of Seattle!

For Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One, Windows, and Mac. 

Developed by Toge Productions, a studio based in Karawaci, Indonesia. They  believe that great accomplishments can start from simple beginnings, and have published other titles such as What Comes After. Recently they have written a tribute to Mohammad Fahmi, creator of Coffee Talk and What Comes After, who tragically passed away this year. 

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[I.D.: A gifset containing four gifs of the abstract game The Wanderer: Frankenstein’s Creature.

Gif 1 shows Frankenstein’s creature walking to different areas around a tree. As he passes over each area, a row of colorful flowers extend from the tree in a star pattern.

Gif 2 shows the creature approaching a deer and a snake. The two options “Intervene” and “Do Nothing” appear overhead. 

Gif 3 shows the creature kneeling by a river in a large forest. Colorful sunlight shines on the grass and causes abstract plants to appear. The creature’s thoughts read, “I had discovered harmony.”

Gif 4 shows the creature standing in the open gate of a village. His internal thoughts read, “I was surrounded by what I thought to be small creatures” as he sees children kick a ball around. 

end I.D.]

The Wanderer: Frankenstein’s Creature is a game about Mary Shelley’s gothic story from the perspective of the monster! Through the innocent eyes of Frankenstein’s creature, explore a world to experience joy and sorrow. Change people’s perspectives through evolving landscapes and make choices to decide a new ending to the creature’s story!

For Windows, Nintendo Switch, PS4, Android, iOS, and Xbox One.

Developed by La Belle Games, a company founded by three people wanting to push the gaming medium forward. This includes Cédric Bache, a Black developer who’s a veteran of the French and European indie scene. He and his team also help young devs finalize their games. 

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Kabaret is is a visual novel about Southeast Asian folklore! Set in the dark fantasy realm of Alam, play as Jebat, a young man cursed to be a monster. Help him carry out tasseomancy services, speak to monsters, brew tea, and meet characters inspired by real life myths/folklore as your own humanity is questioned!

Set to release Summer of 2021. Demo is out now. 

Developed by Persona Theory Games, a studio based in Malaysia. They focus on experimental narrative games and also make films/documentaries on the side.