Indika Review- Short but intriguing
A weirdly engaging trek through Christian Orthodox believe systems, told via a 3rd person story
In my constant exploration of new and thrilling experiences, I stumbled upon an interesting game poster on the Steam Homepage (same poster I put as a feature image). There's something very disturbing and yet intriguing about this image... the halos on the hysterical laughter-infused nuns, the lack of halo for the sad and Mother-Mary-like protagonist; It set itself up to be a creative experience, so I bought it and did no further research.
First Impressions
The game's first chapter is quite surreal. there is a confusing mix of religion, philosophy and Hellblade-esque inner voices. The start is a slow one, with you being tasked with menial labor in the abbey premises, and a little bit of a backstory into Indika's life and circumstances is given. Quickly though, you learn why she is in a tricky situation in the covenant and you watch her being sent away on a rare mission outside simply to deliver a letter.
The premise is therefore a simple one. That's also where the simplicity ends. I'll go a little bit into some spoilery details, so skip this dropdown if you'd like to play the game (And I highly recommend that you do!)
Story details
Things quickly start turning weird upon Indika's depart on her quest. I am not entirely sure what part of this game is to be considered Indika's immagination and what part is true fact, but I dont entirely mind this confusion.
Every once in a while, the game throws some curveballs at you, such as being able to move an entire upside-down house or lifting a bridge via a crane.
I found Indika's exploration of her beliefs to be very believable despite the surrealistic depiction of her surroundings.
By the end, I felt a very similar emotion for this game as I did for Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice by its conclusion. The game does not make it clear how much of it is real, but the ending does not really leave anything up for interpretation. In this case, it is clear Indika saw the lack of substance (both literally for the Kudets and metaphorically for religion) present in her entire belief system, and decided to shed her fears.
The message
All throughout your roughly 4 hours of playtime, you'll be presented with interesting phylosophical questions about religion and it's symbols. This premise may sound unfulfilling to some of you, but trust me when I say it's not how it may seem.
Can the love of God truly be real and honest when your only choices are "Love me" or "Burn in Hell forever"? Do miracles exist and should we believe in divine signs? While the game does not answer these queries directly, it does provide its own interpretation of an answer and I found it to be rather satisfying.
Gameplay
Despite the complexity of its story topic, the gameplay is very simple. I know some people find that concept to be very offensive and throw around terms like "walking simulator" but I truly enjoy this kind of experiences. It perfectly combines the immersive nature of the medium of video games without making it hard for everyone to experience it. It can be a relaxing game to be played by anyone and at any time, without requiring pinpoint accuracy or lightning-quick reflexes. All your attention can be spent on the story.
Therefore, the game generally presents three types of gameplay: third person exploration, third person puzzles and a pixel-art set of minigames peppered throughout the game.
It is a very compelling combination too! One does not drag on for too long before being substituted for another, thus making its entire runtime feel fresh and in no way monotonous. Combining perspectives like this requires a lot of imagination and skill to pull off without seeming tasteless, but they have absolutely nailed it here. The pixel art world that is used mostly for flashbacks onto Indika's experiences prior to joining the covenant slightly bleeds into the real world at times in a playful but fitting way.
The world is absolutely stunningly realized and a joy to look at, without being extremely costly to render. (with the caveat of Shader Compilation stutter unfortunately)
Conclusion
In today's landscape of safe releases and unoriginal ideas, Odd Meter and 11Bit partnered to develop and publish a risky and original story. I highly enjoyed it, and wish more of this type of experiences to be created, therefore I advise anyone who thought this sounded interesting to give it a try, especially since it's not a 20h+ experience. It's the price of a movie ticket, for an extended-cut edition interactive story.
