Archaeology can be a hazardous affair at times, but nothing ventured, nothing gained, right? I suppose a similar thought bounced around in the head of Antherian archaeologist, Mura when he set out with a team of specialists to explore the forgotten city of Niravasi. Unsurprisingly, things didn’t exactly go according to plan, although had that actually been the case, there wouldn’t be much of a mystery to this horror adventure.
What went wrong, and why is Mura suddenly by his lonesome in Niravasi? Hmm… oh. Yeah. Right. I actually haven’t the foggiest. So let’s instead focus on what the deal is with the city, because… something truly strange is going on there, a sinister machine having taken over the entire place in however long it’s been since humans, well, left. This means there is now an army of mechanical constructs to deal with, on top of treading carefully (because as I’m sure you’re aware, ancient ruins aren’t exactly stable at the best of times).
Boasting monolithic towers of metal and light, Niravasi was at the heart of human advancement. From exploring an ancient Stepwell to riding the skylines of a Perfection Complex, the city offers many wonders for players to explore.
“But wait, what about that mysterious ally shown in the screenshot above all this here text?” you ask. Ah, that’s just it: a mysterious ally. That’s about the extent of my knowledge regarding that character, so for all we know, Mura is by his lonesome throughout a decent chunk of the journey. A journey that is likely to require sharp wits, reflexes, and more than a little luck, if they are to eventually leave the city in one piece. Before Mura’s journey to Niravasi can even begin, however, there is the matter of a Kickstarter to deal with. One that is sitting at a lovely £1,126 ($1558) of £3,000 ($4151) at the time of writing, so let’s see what’s what, eh?
Now, I’m sure this is common knowledge, and yet it still bears repeating: making a video game is difficult, time-consuming, and oftentimes downright expensive. Unlike so many crowdfunding projects nowadays, NIRAVASI actually has a playable demo, featuring some 45-90 minutes of playtime with 2 of the levels from the final game. Oh, and a trailer that’s available outside the Kickstarter page (ie. YouTube), which is also annoyingly rare – especially for bloggers who has a helluva time embedding other video sources, for one reason or another. As for exactly why the crowdfunding route was chosen… marketing ventures, business costs, soundtrack composition; the usual stuff. That and I suspect it will also prove useful in figuring out how interested people generally are in ensuring NIRAVASI becomes a thing, ahead of its planned December 2021 launch.
One potential problem that King Sangos also mentions on the Kickstarter page is that NIRAVASI is an RPG Maker MV project. Not exactly an engine with the best reputation, as a ridiculously high percentage of asset flip shovelware on Steam are made with it. But how about we don’t judge this one by its engine brethren, and instead let the trailer below speak for itself, piquing your curiosity as it did mine?
The Kickstarter campaign for NIRAVASI – An RPG Maker Adventure/Horror Game ends on March 27, 2021, at 2:02 PM CET.
