An indie developer is paying tribute to his late daughter with an incredibly heartfelt action RPG inspired by The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening and Earthbound.
"This game was created to pay tribute to my daughter Everly who we lost 5 years ago," reads the game's description on its Kickstarter page. "Everly's story is important, especially to any parent who's had a premature and unexpected delivery. Even though we had so little time with her, I cherish those memories and being able to hold her but only for a moment. If you know someone who's gone through this, or lost a child, you know how important keeping their memory alive is. I especially wanted her younger sister Winsley to know that she has someone always watching over her... her guardian."
The story follows the titular young girl as she seeks someone described only as her guardian. As you progress through levels like Winsley's hometown, the Zoo, School, and the Dreamworld, you'll gradually watch the protagonist progress through her childhood, teenage years, young adulthood, middle age, and retirement before facing off against "death himself."
The tools at your disposal will include "every day weapons" (you start with a "pool noodle sword" as well as "the powers of your Guardian" as you battle enemies and bosses in 2D retro Zelda action adventure fashion.
I only played a few minutes of the demo and very quickly felt a lump growing in my throat as Winsley finds her older sister's blanket in her childhood home's basement and is told it belongs to "someone who will always be there for you." With every line of dialogue, it's immensely clear that Winsley's Guardian was created by a loving parent for his daughter, and it adds a ton of emotional weight and a deeper meaning to both the story and gameplay.
I was also delighted by the lovely Game Boy-inspired animation in which characters bounce to the rhythm of some truly nostalgia-inducing music. Heart-wrenching backstory aside, the game is fun and nicely polished for being so early in development.
Guardian Games is a new indie "female-led" indie studio with Rakhi Narain serving as creative director. Spencer Walters, Winsley's real-life father, is the studio's CFO. "All of our games at Guardian Games Studio have meaning and purpose. We aim for fun first, narrative-driven games that will leave a lasting impact on our players," the studio says of itself.
There's no release date for Winsley's Guardian just yet, but you can support it on Kickstarter and check out the demo, which I highly recommend. Once it ships, you'll have the option to download a ROM file and play it on an emulator or, for my galaxy-brained readers, get the version that comes on an actual Gameboy Color cartridge and play it as the universe intended.
Just one more to add to the list of upcoming indie games I can't wait to play.
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