Saviorless

Indie games are sometimes the most pleasurable to play, because they aren’t pinned down by the cookie cutter formula of big gaming houses. Saviorless is a dark fantasy 2D game with an unusual background. It’s the first video game to be developed in Cuba. The game has had a long road to production, with mentions as far back as 2016 of the game, fundraisers, and various progress reports.

Beautiful Artwork

The game sets itself apart from others almost immediately, with a beautiful 2D artwork style reminiscent of games like Hell Yeah! Another sidescrolling game. The clear, clean artwork is also well animated, especially considering all of the animation is done by hand.

An Original Storyline

Developer Empty Head Games set out to tell a uniquely Cuban story. It involves a creepy background called the Smiling Islands, with the main protagonist’s goal to escape from them. You will have to fight brutal enemies to do so, as well as explore the island and unlock all of its mysteries.

The game also helps develop the story by having the player switch between two characters. The first is the Antar Child, a reckless and fragile child who helps you explore the island. The second is the Savior, a violent avatar born to protect children.

These two characters help you balance out the game and understand the world from these two very different perspectives.

Vertical Gameplay

In the demos available on the game, Saviorless shows some really promising platformer ideas. One moment you may find yourself climbing chains and swinging to safety, at other times you may find yourself running around trying to operate a complicated machine. The variety of gameplay, and the variety of movement options, really goes a long way to making the game interesting to play.

A Huge Step for Cuba

Saviorless is the first game developed inside of Cuba, and the developers faced many challenges other gaming studios might find relatively normal. Everything from getting a bank account to learning the development process was abnormal and difficult for the developers to overcome.

Fortunately, they managed to overcome each step as it happened. This unique situation caused an unexpected twist to the game. When you have to learn how to do everything alone, without the support of the global community, your take is more original than if you had others to lean on.

The result is Saviorless, a truly inspiring game and a story that reflects the struggles of the developers as they tried to bring this game to life.

Pros:

• Fresh and original
• Beautiful artwork

Cons:

• Unknown