Title: Indika 
Developer: Odd Meter
Publisher: 11 Bit Studios
Release Date: May 2, 2024
Platforms: PC, PS5, XBOX, GEFORCE NOW
Reviewed on: Steam
Price: $24.99 (USD)

Why do humans justify their existence through the divine, while giving animals a simplistic excuse for their behaviors?

Indika asks the question early on why it is that we choose to measure our lives through the lens of religious values. Every menial task can be measured in heaven. Whether it is as simple as retrieving potatoes from a kitchen or saving a stranger from death, everything done in the sake of Righteous Fervor is worth something.

Right? 

Synopsis

This third-person, narrative-led game follows Indika, a nun living in nineteenth-century Russia. It is clear from the onset that Indika is not a nun known for her good fruits. She is instead set apart for reasons at first unknown to the player. The older nuns treat her with contempt and give her chores as a form of punishment–a righteous ordinance from a Higher Power to set the straying nun on the straight and narrow. 

But it does not take long for players to realize that Indika is plagued by a voice–one that Indika is sure belongs to the Evil One, constantly picking and twisting the events around her to fit a narrative. The narrator tells Indika she is right to be angry at how she is being treated. Her actions are good and just, so should she not also be held to such a high standard? Should she not be regaled as a truly humble nun? 

As players follow Indika through her journey, they must navigate the world straddling the thin line between what is good, and what is… evil?

Gameplay

Indika opens as a pixelated game. Strange, when one looks at the marketing for the game which shows 3D art and a third-person view. The shift from pixels to 3D is startling. Mainly because the world as seen in Indika’s mind is a sparkling, beautiful pixel sky of stars.

Meanwhile, reality is bland, dark, and cold. 

In this narrative-driven game, Indika moves through the Russian snow carefully, with the ability to run or crawl up ledges should the opportunity arise. The simple movement opens up the world for interesting puzzles, and moments of driving through frozen paths or picking up interesting trinkets.

Indika’s use of physics is artfully done. For instance, there is a tricky ledge players must heave Indika onto. The only way to access it is by moving to the edge of a slab of ice on a river so that the other end rises up. Players must then run to the edge and heave up onto the ledge before gravity and weight distribution causes the ice slab to sink back down into the water. 

Perhaps one of the most intriguing mechanics of the game is how Indika is unable to progress on her journey without the guidance of the “devil’s” voice. 

As Indika faces obstacles in her path, the terrible timbre of the Evil One takes over. The haunting, sneering voice jabs at Indika’s most private and vile thoughts. And when the devil presses in, the world goes red. Everything around her becomes distorted, and the only way to go back to the present is to clutch her rosary and pray. 

The first real puzzle to involve this mechanic admittedly took me a few minutes to figure out. With a click of my right mouse-trigger, I could listen to Indika whisper voracious, desperate prayers. The scenery went back to normal, and I was able to find my footing in the space. 

But the confines of reality would not let me progress. 

It was only through letting the right-clicker go that I could access parts of the map to move ahead. So, as the troubled Indika, I would make my way up along ledges in the reality I knew, only to then let the devil’s narrative creep in so that a broken bridge would then shift closer to me, and I could make my way to the other side. 

As a story mechanic, it is a fascinating tool to force its players and Indika to balance the line of good and evil. 

Character Development and the Skill Tree

Indika begins at level 8, with the option to spend her points in branches. Yes, Indika, the nun, has the chance to “level up” in her journey of faith.

Players earn these points through finishing fetch quests from Indika’s sisters or collecting holy items on the journey. Golden pointed coins appear, chiming every time players pick them up. At the top left of the screen is the ever present number tracking how many more coins are needed to move up on the branch.

On one end, players can spend points in both grief and/or regret which gives her a +4 or so as she traverses through the Russian winter wasteland. Or you can spend it all at once in humility, which multiplies Indika’s advantage on her quest from the monastery. No matter what you decide, you are treated to a bit of wry dialogue, praising or admonishing you for how you have decided to improve.

But what does leveling up accomplish for a nun sworn to a humble life of serving God?

…Nothing.

I found this to be a wry, piercing comparison to how so many religious organizations equate good deeds to being close to God. And yet, no matter how many good deeds Indika does, she finds herself straying from the Almighty.

There is even a moment where Indika is faced with a terrifying moment to save someone. And while she teeters on the precipice of a decision, the devil’s voice mocks her. Is she looking to help someone because it is a good thing to do? Or is she looking to become a hero, worthy of praise?

The Skill Tree reflects these thoughts, because even while Indika trudges forth on a path to righteousness, she knows it doesn’t really matter in the end.

Analysis

I find the pixel art style chosen to show Indika’s past to be a lovely decision. It is candy to the eyes when compared against the bleak outlook of Indika’s oppressive life.

However, the most frustrating aspect of Indika lies in the pixelated chapters.

The pixel controls are often disorienting. There is a section that involves racing bikes, and the usual forward motion of the WASD pad is backwards. The speed of the bike pushes on, but to turn right, players must hit A, to turn left, it is D–mainly because of the downwards perspective of the map players are racing in.

The platforming leaves a little to be desired in other pixel chapters as well. Its just not all that enjoyable. There is a charm in the art direction and choice to portray a troubled nun’s history in such a bright, pixelated form. But I cannot tell if they meant to portray disorientation in such frustrating controls or if it was just a lack of oversight.

Final Score

Indika’s fearless storytelling, sound design, and voice acting portrays a psychological religious warfare comparable to the tortured writings of Dostoyevsky. I enjoyed sifting through the warped and paranoid thoughts of a nun who measured every action she took against the rigid teachings of her monastery.

The music that twinkles throughout Indika is delightful. Roaming Russia as a nun, shuffling through a foot of snow while 8-bit chimes and quirky synth noises float in the background make the journey that much more interesting.

Camera angles that slide beneath trains or opens beneath the face of Indika in true Blair Witch Project style gives artistic flare to a story that is heavily weighed down in depressing grays and browns. Designing an enemy to look as huge as a horse makes players wonder if it is truly that large, or if Indika’s warped sense of reality colors the entire encounter.

Thoughtful touches such as holy relics or the bloodied palm Indika sports from clenching her rosary like a lifeline portrays the care in which the writers took to tell this story. In some ways, Indika echoes themes from games like Pentiment, works that aggressively challenged the church and all of its ideologies while telling its story in a surreal medium.

However, some of the clunky controls within Indika’s meshing of two game-styles left me wanting.

Indika’s less than ten hours of gameplay also meant that some of the story beats were rushed through. Tackling big ideas like religion, the measurement of a human’s soul within a body, and the purification of works as access to God deserves a little more time, in my opinion.

There was also quite a bit of clipping in the early chapters of the game and sudden cuts from scenes that left me wondering if I had missed something. But once my machine caught up, it seemed to ease into the game’s mechanics with a bit of patience.

The puzzles themselves were fairly simple to figure out. Even if my Rachmaninoff achievement of hitting a piano against the wall five times while solving a puzzle would say otherwise. Still, others might find the mechanics too easy and long for a real challenge among a near walking-simulator.

If you enjoy games that are unafraid to take philosophical approaches to life and do not fear the voice in your head that tells you to step outside the confines of what were you’ve taught, Indika might be the game for you. However, if you would like something a bit more challenging without the psychedelic religious trauma, then Indika may not be your cup of tea.

Boss Rush Network gives Indika 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Featured Image: 11 Bit Studios

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