INDIKA is a third-person adventure set in an alternate Russia at the turn of the 19th century. Join a young Nun named Indika on a surreal adventure of self-discovery. A truly unique journey unfolds with the Devil in her ear and an alley who claims to speak to God. It is a journey filled with puzzles, points, prayers, and even pixel art minigames. Sometimes, it’s a psychological drama and sometimes a dark comedy, but it always had me invested. INDIKA is a very ambitious game, and while it doesn’t always land, I could not appreciate it more.
A Life of Worship
INDIKA is about a Nun who is an outcast in her monastery. No matter what she does, the other nuns seem to shun her even though she is just trying to live by God like they are. The only one that wants to talk to her is a voice she doesn’t want to hear, the devil. Plagued with outbursts and visions, all she wants is to stop hearing the devil talk to her. One day it seems her prayers are answered as she is tasked with leaving the monastery to deliver a letter. As she steps out of the monastery, she embarks on a journey of self-discovery, and a simple errand becomes a test of faith. Soon, she encounters a man who claims to speak to God, and Indika finds herself with two allies. The devil she knows and the God she wants to.
INDIKA‘s story is something I can’t help but praise. It is very ambitious and sticks the landing for the most part. Playing as a Nun trying to atone for her sins of the past who speaks with the devil is already an interesting premise. Tackling subjects like religion and authority isn’t easy, but INDIKA manages to do it well and even be funny about it. This story may be dark and dramatic, but it’s also quite hilarious. I found myself laughing at cutscenes and even putting down the controller at moments to appreciate it. The game has a lot of moments that are just the three characters talking and I love them all. Its voice acting brings them all to life, and I love all their conversations. My favorite is probably the Devil, who made many attempts to corrupt Indika. The dialogue makes everything work, and I wanted more conversations with everyone.
The subject matter of INDIKA is a tricky one, but it tackles it very well. It feels like it’s told by people who have lived it. I also respect how much it toes the line and gives me a strong connection with it. While I am not religious, my family is, and it gives me an appreciation for stories like this. When I was asked to review this, I was on my way home from an impromptu trip to my parent’s hometown for a religious festival. I will not go into specifics about it, but I did feel a strange catharsis plaything this right after. The story is also about questioning authority so anyone can appreciate it no matter their spiritual background. I value stories like this, and INDIKA is one of the strongest ones. The storytelling is something I have to praise as well. It truly tells this story in a way only a video game can.
It’s All a Game
A great story is one thing but telling it through a video game is something else entirely. INDIKA is a third-person puzzle game that has you explore a cold 19th-century Russia. You aren’t equipped with much, just a lantern and a prayer button. The game also has a point and level system but to quote the game “Don’t waste time collecting points, they are meaningless”. Even if the game told me it was meaningless, I still collected a lot of points. You can find little objects and do random tasks outside the main objectives to get more. The main obstacle you will find are puzzles that add a nice break to the game. Each one took some thinking, but none made me stop playing. A couple even made me think and felt great to solve. The game also has puzzles where the world changes, and you use the prayer button to traverse them. It’s all pretty fun, if tedious at moments, but it never brought down the game. Sprinkle in some chase segments with the story unfolding, and you have a fun, albeit flawed, experience. But that’s not the only gameplay INDIKA has, as it even throws in some pixel art mini-games.
INDIKA uses these pixel art mini-games to tell more of the game’s story. Between levels, you’ll sometimes be presented with one of these mini-games. They work as an interactive flashback and a nice break in standard gameplay. Each one is beautifully presented and plays very well. I enjoyed each one I played and thought it was a great way to tell Indika’s backstory. I wish the game had more, but with it being fairly short, I understand why they don’t. INDIKA can be beaten in a couple of hours, and I wanted more. It wasn’t just wanting to replay; I wanted more from it. Even if I did want more, I think INDIKA is the right length. I know game length can be an issue for some, but I think it worked here. It can be beaten in an afternoon, and I want to play it again.
Falling Down
INDIKA is not without flaws. I’ve already said the length and how it can be an issue for some. But as ambitious as the game is it doesn’t always hit the mark. A fair share of bugs came up while playing; there was nothing game-breaking, but some got tedious. I was stuck in walls and found myself out of the map a few times. I had a couple of moments where prompts would not show up or would stay in cutscenes. The game even stuttered on occasion as well. Most of the time, it was fixed in a couple of seconds, but they happened enough for me to notice and write down. None of this was game-breaking, but it dampened the experience a bit. The game is very ambitious and I respect it a lot for that. Sadly, it doesn’t nail everything, and when these issues come up, it does bring an overall great experience slightly down.
Salvation
INDIKA is a very ambitious game that attempts to do a lot. It tells a story of self-discovery while tackling themes of religion and authority. It tries to spice up its standard gameplay with interesting puzzles that help convey the story and beautiful minigames that do as well. Its short runtime encourages a replay, but not everyone might want to. INDIKA attempts a lot, but not everything hits the mark, sadly. The story is great but brought down a little by technical issues. The game may not always hit the mark, but I still need to praise what I can. The story, characters, and voice acting elevate some of the weaker moments and issues. INDIKA left me wanting more of its world, and I hope this team gets to keep making games.
11 Bit Studios provided Final Weapon with a PlayStation 5 copy of INDIKA for review purposes.
