I also had the opportunity to test out a few games on location in addition to our shooting for the Indie Arena Booth mini-documentary and the space.games.film promotion. Here are my personal favorites:
1. Neo Cab
A mix of Cyberpunkt / Film Noir, which at first caught my I with it looks, but when playing it, it blew me away narratively. As a taxi driver in a neon colored sci-fi world you meet different passengers und get lost more and more fascinating and sometimes bizarre conversations.
The subject matter of the Lebensborn children in Norway is being brought to you in this game in a very sensible and emotional way. You witness the tragic situation of a child, which is being exposed to the prejudice and hostility of its classmates and neighbours. The child, which was fatherd by a Nazi soldier, longs for the truth about its father. As the player you have to take care of this child and also speak out the painful truth. I never thought, that a tabletop/smartphone game could move me like that.
3. Edna & Harvey: The Breakout – 10th Anniversary Edition
What, that old piece? Yes, definitely! This indie game, which 10 years ago was the cornerstone for one of the biggest German developer and publisher. Beautifully remastered Daedalic gets this title out to PC and the current console generation. Besides, creator Jan “Poki” Müller-Michaelis remained faithful and visited the Indie Arena Booth a few times. For me as an old adventure-lover, this is one of the highlights of this years Gamescom.