Can your faith move mountains?
THE GAME
Indika is a narrative and puzzle game developed by Odd Meter and distributed by 11 bit studios. Set in an alternative Russia, we take on the role of Indika, a young nun, who also gives the game its name. Living in a monastery full of other nuns, Indika is disliked by the other devotees. Sent on a mission, Indika leaves the confinement of living within the monastery walls and sets out on an adventure that will challenge both her physical strength and her faith. This faith is already very much questioned by our protagonist, given that she has a peculiar companion: the devil himself. With many questions and moral questions, we follow Indika on her journey of self-discovery that, in one way or another, will make the player question themselves too.
MY IMPRESSIONS
With an interesting narrative and full of moral questions, Indika is an extremely intriguing game. I confess that I initially thought it would be a horror game, even due to the aesthetics presented: dark and with a religious theme. Although there are some scares here or there, the game does not have this as its main attraction. While walking through an alternative 19th century Russia, our protagonist comes across a devastated and almost deserted landscape. Therefore, there are some puzzles to advance the story. Nothing too complicated, they are there to give the player a challenge, otherwise it would just be a walking game.
In addition to the normal gameplay, the game has two mechanics that are completely different from Indika's main idea. The first are points, which are collected in different ways during the journey and are used to improve Indika's skill tree. Even though the game itself explicitly says that points are useless, there is that player's impulse to want to get points, hoping that maybe it will be useful for something in the future. And does it work? Well, I'll leave it up to you to find out. The second mechanic is the minigames, which always tell something about Indika's past during the story. It's a creative way of telling something from the past, completely changing the game's aesthetics to pixel art.
The story and dilemmas proposed by the game are very interesting, making you think at all times, without giving you any answers to your questions and leaving everything open for discussion. The game is in Portuguese-Brazil, which is great for better understanding both the story and the questions presented. The voice actors do a great job of conveying emotions to the characters, especially the protagonist Indika.
Despite being short, Indika is a well-paced game. Some will say that it could be a little longer, but I believe that the game's proposal is complete and, if it is to increase the duration and this does not add anything to the final balance, it is better to stay as it is. I think I can say that this is a more artistic game, with the developers' vision clearly exposed of how they wanted the game to be, very different from what we see a lot in the industry.
ACHIEVEMENTS
In addition to the achievements linked to the progress of the stories, we have some others in which specific actions must be carried out, such as, for example, praying in certain locations, finding hidden items or even failing several times in a specific challenge. I recommend playing everything without thinking about the achievements, as the game has the option to select stages, that is, you can return to specific points in the story, then you can return and complete the missing achievements.
CONCLUSION
Indika will surprise you. It could be due to the story, the genre, the questions presented, in short, something will catch your attention during the game. A lot of people won't like it, either because of the short duration or because of the developers' vision, but they will be in the minority. It's a pleasant experience and one that will make you question many things. I liked the different way things happen, in a way you don't expect. The way the developers created to put you in Indika's shoes, feeling what she is feeling is, in fact, very interesting. There are many other factors that make the experience unique, but I avoided commenting as I would be spoiling the surprises that the game brings. It's a great game to break out of the sameness of the industry and see something different, but it doesn't alienate any type of player.
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