As I walked across the uneven cobblestones of Paraty—a beautiful township located on the southern coast of Rio de Janeiro—smelling the familiar scent of fried tapioca flour and cheese getting readied to become desirous pão de queijos, and seeing the many authors and artists taking part in the annual Flip literary festival—many of whom were independent and sharing their stories to passersby—I was reminded of two stories by a couple of other independent Brazilian creators. Game developers who’d made two of my most beloved indie games from the past decade: Dandara and Unsighted. 

Dandara

Released in 2018 and developed by studio Long Hat House, Dandara is a 2D Metroidvania that tells a reimagined tale about the real life story of Dandara dos Palmares, an Afro-Brazilian warrior during Brazil’s colonial period who helped free her people of enslavement. The most striking element of Dandara is, no doubt, the game’s movement system. Instead of walking or running, players must fling Dandara across the map from wall to wall, timing each teleport correctly so as to not fall into traps or enemy lines. Though it takes a little getting used to, you’ll be whizzing around maps and taking out enemies in quick succession in no time. Be forewarned, though, things get pretty difficult fairly quickly so you better keep your wits about you. 

Dandara’s striking character silhouette combined with the atmospheric world design and strong thematic sensibilities make for both an audiovisual and narrative experience that you won’t soon forget. And the combat, though stands solid on its own, is only made better by the fact that you’re using it to take out colonialists.

Unsighted

Developers Tiani Pixel and Fernanda Dias used their love for Zelda, Metroid, and Dark Souls to create Unsighted, a sci-fi action rpg that has an amazing pixel art-style. In Unsighted, you awake as an automaton named Alma to the ruined world of Arcadia and have to, quite literally, battle against time as you need to save the world before you and the friends you meet along the way turn “unsighted.” It’s a story about survival, but can be very existential and melancholic as well with every character you meet having a death timer, always reminding you that death is looming. 

The pair of developers set out to create a world and story that was not only heartfelt and memorable, but one that also had queer representation, which is always great to see. Gameplay-wise, Unsighted gives nods to both Zelda and Dark Souls with its combat, and some winks to Metroid for its exploration. All together, it makes for a tightly-wrapped package that’s oodles of fun. Its array of accessibility features allow players to customize the difficulty however they’d like, too; whether you’re a hardened Souls player or are just in it for the narrative, Unsighted has got you covered. This game is an audiovisual treat that tells a memorable story and has a gameplay loop that brings the best from gaming’s greatest while keeping things freshly unique.

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