Torn Away is one of the games that has been on our watch list for some time. In fact, we were just getting ready to host him in our“Indie’s”column, where we had the opportunity to interview the developer team Perelesoq. When we had such a good opportunity, we went head-to-head with Eser, we wanted to ask him anything we could think of. When the production team answered our questions sincerely, such an interview emerged. Let’s see if torn away will be added to your watchlist:
You note that your game is inspired by children’s war diaries. Is there a specific character inspired by our hero Asia in the game? Asia, is it possible to tell us a little bit about asia?
No, Asia is more like a summary of all the war children than a particular character. We didn’t intentionally base it on a real person because it limited the story. Asia – a kind and happy girl living in a time of uncertainty. His father went to the front; Her mother works from sunrise to dawn to feed the family. This encourages our hero to keep a diary, as many children did at the time. In this diary, he reveals all his thoughts and tells all the events that have happened to him.
Asian name is one of the most frequently used women’s names in our country. Was this name specifically chosen to represent a specific typology? Or did you see fit to use that name because you thought it had a broader equivalent?
There’s no implicit reason why we chose the Asian name. We were looking for a name that wasn’t very common in simple and popular culture. I’m also a fan of short names like Yana, Zoe, Taya (names that only three letters in Russian), which may have had some effect on us making such a choice.
There were some games (such as This War of Mine) that addressed the plight of civilians, especially children, in battles. That’s the kind of choice you made. What was your main motivation when you made this choice?
We don’t think this aspect of the war is adequately reflected. Although many games have become more complicated recently, these are still productions with clear distinctions in the form of black and white, regarding “we” and “them”. We have a different perspective on this. We are trying to show how terrible and meaningless war can be, especially for people who can’t or don’t want to fight. That’s why our main protagonist is a very vulnerable, fragile and harmless character.
When it comes to a war game, being a soldier and engaging in combat is a much more popular choice for gamers; We can count many high-budget productions of this type. Do you think you’re taking a risk going in the opposite direction? Or do you see the spiritual satisfaction that this brings as a gain you have already achieved?
Yes, we are aware that making a dramatic game without severe mechanics is definitely a risk as it narrows down the pool of potential players. But I can tell you that the reason our team came out and was present was to tell exactly these kinds of stories.
That doesn’t mean we’re not thinking about commercial success, of course. But if you only think about the breadth of the audience, at the end of the day you may find yourself making mobile games that can be played for free. Of course it is impossible to do all this without passion, so we are trying to find our niche and at the same time looking for other options to excite the players.
Can you tell us a little bit about the gameplay part? Will your play proceed more in the style of a visual novel? As with old-fashioned adventure games, will we have to collect material from left and right and use it somewhere? What about the secrecy and survival? What kind of gameplay awaits us?
When we started developing the game, we didn’t have a certain kind in mind. After a few experimental months, we found an intriguing combination of different game mechanics. It’s a ‘side-scroller’ style game that from time to time turns into a classic-style adventure game, where you discover the surroundings and find hidden objects and solve mini-puzzles, and sometimes you have to hide from soldiers. We’ve also added cinematics that can be seen from a first-person camera so you can put yourself in Asia’s shoes.
We see competent people in the visual design and music of the game. How did the team’s past experience reflect on this game?
We see visual style as one of the main interests of our target audience on social networks. We have worked hard to improve our original visual language. That wouldn’t be possible without our outstanding artistic director. As for sound and music, their importance to the emotional tone of the story is undeniable. We can say that our sound director performed his task in the best possible way. However, I can say that having such experienced team members has some challenges as well as the advantages it provides for this project. Perfectionism and the desire to do everything better instead of doing it faster can extend production time. Of course, we try to discuss this issue between us and make concessions as much as we can; but our priority is to keep the quality at a certain level.
We know how important victory over the Nazis was in Russian history. It was an important turning point not only for Russia, but for the whole world. As someone who has attended May 9 events in different places, I think I can comprehend the meaning of this special day. Is this victory still a driving force for you? Do you see your game as a means to understand the difficult period that humanity is going through?
Of course, May 9th is a very important day for Russia. Since we were children, we have all been celebrating Victory Day and it has an important place in our culture. Lately, however, all the narratives to remind people of these great events have become more of an army show. It doesn’t exactly reflect our feelings, so we decided to approach it from a different angle. We think it’s important to talk about things a lot of people don’t know. For example, about ostarbeiter* – workers transferred from Eastern Europe.. While it has a cultural background in general, we aim to make asia’s story understandable to everyone. And by empathizing with our hero, players will be able to learn more about these difficult times in human history and better understand that period.
[*OST-arbeiter or Ostarbeiter (Eastern workers): Prisoners whom the Nazis transferred and employed in Germany from the territory of Eastern Europe they occupied (especially from Ukraine), in other words, captive workers. A significant number of these prisoners, numbering in the millions, were women and children under the age of 16.]
In fact, there are too many stories to tell (I think they should also be told) on the Eastern European/ Eurasian front of World War II. But so far we’ve mostly heard western and central European stories. Do you intend to address this issue in the coming years and tell more stories about this part of the war?
It’s hard to say if we can get back to the subject of war, but we’re going to continue to tell emotional stories using the language of play.
What are the key features that will make Torn Away different from similar games? What do you think can attract players to Torn Away?
Although in some ways there are games that resemble our game, there are a few nuances that make Torn Away separate from others. It’s a play about war, but it’s told from the front of a defenseless child. Although it has a dark theme, we use pastel colors and elegant shapes in many places. Yes, we have a combination of different types of games, but what we really trust is precisely these contrasts and nuances.
Since our game is not yet complete, I refrain from making certain statements about certain issues, but we are doing our best to reflect our vision on the game and pass it on to the players in the best possible way.
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