![]() ![]() In 2022 the Museum of Modern Art included the game in their exhibition Never Alone: Video Games and Other Interactive Design. However, other critics felt the gameplay was diverse and "satisfying". Some reviewers described the game as "frustrating", noting imprecise controls and inconsistent behavior by in-game characters. ![]() The platforming elements of Never Alone were more divisive. The included documentary videos were also remarked upon as " feeling educated as well as entertained" and " an excellent job of giving a cultural context" for the game. Ĭritics positively noted the game's art design, which blends a simple, cartoon style with scrimshaw influences. Never Alone received "mixed or average" reviews, according to video game review aggregator Metacritic. "Never Alone" also won an Interactive Narrative and Game + Play Peabody Award in 2021. In 2014, Never Alone was an Official Selection Finalist at Indiecade. In 2015, Never Alone was also nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction from D.I.C.E., Best Debut from Game Developers Choice Awards, Matthew Crump Cultural Innovation Award from SXSW Gaming Awards. Never Alone received many accolades including the British Academy Award for Best Debut game and Game of the Year and Most Significant Impact awards from the Games for Change organization. Never Alone was built in the Unity game engine. Vesce built and led a 12-member development team in Seattle, who worked in deep partnership with "40 Alaska Native elders, storytellers and community members" to craft the game. Vesce previously held leadership positions at Crystal Dynamics and Activision. He realized that "none of that had really been ever explored in a videogame". Vesce and his team made "a dozen trips to Alaska" to meet with community members and gather stories and imagery and was "blown away at the richness and beauty and depth of that storytelling tradition". ![]() Į-Line Creative Director Sean Vesce was excited by the opportunity to "go into a community, learn more about a culture and then try to infuse their values and mythologies into a game". Proceeds from the game will fund the Council's education mission. ![]() It is intended both to share the stories of native culture as entertainment, and to revitalize interest in Alaskan indigenous folklore. They built the game to explore "what it means to be human" and intergenerational stories. The Council's for-profit Upper One Games is the "first indigenous-owned video game developer and publisher in US history". The Council partnered with video game education company E-Line Media and generated the idea for Never Alone as part of a series that "shares, celebrates, and extends culture". Never Alone was developed by Upper One Games in conjunction with writer Ishmael Hope, a storyteller and poet of Iñupiaq and Tlingit heritage, and the Cook Inlet Tribal Council, a non-profit organization that works with indigenous groups living in Alaska's urban areas. It takes place in a harsh physical environment. Other stories include that of Blizzard Man, the Little People, Manslayer, the Rolling Heads, and the Sky People. The central plot revolves around discovering the source of the blizzard that has ravaged Nuna's village and restoring balance to nature. Told in the form of an oral tale, unlike traditional platformer games, which involve overcoming obstacles and defeating enemies, Never Alone rewards players with collectible "cultural insights" - video vignettes of Iñupiaq elders, storytellers, and community members sharing their stories. The story and its structure is based on the intergenerational transference of wisdom. While the fox is fast, Nuna can pick up things and open new areas using her bola. As an "atmospheric puzzle platformer", Never Alone 's puzzles entail swapping control between Nuna and the fox. The player-character plays as the Iñupiaq girl Nuna and her Arctic fox. It is one of a growing number of video games produced by Indigenous people. The game was the result of a partnership between the Cook Inlet Tribal Council and E-Line Media. Swapping between an Iñupiaq girl named Nuna and her Arctic fox companion, the player completes puzzles in a story that spans eight chapters. Never Alone, also known as Kisima Inŋitchuŋa ("I am not alone"), is a puzzle-platform adventure video game developed by Upper One Games and published by E-Line Media based on the traditional Iñupiaq tale, "Kunuuksaayuka", which was first recorded by master storyteller Robert Nasruk Cleveland in his collection Stories of the Black River People. ![]()
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