The post-apocalyptic dimensional space of Native video game design

Far beyond Custer’s Revenge

LaPensée helped organize the Natives In Game Dev Gathering, hosted by the University of California Santa Cruz in late May, in part because it spoke to how her cultural heritage was far more connected to the world of video games than outsiders might otherwise assume.

“Think about how space was represented [in Doom] and what made that game so interesting,” LaPensée said. “What created the impact. For us, time is not linear. It’s actually space-time. They’re connected. Really, our worldview has always been [similar to] Internet connections, about communicating from long distances. In our cultures, we’ve always had that technology.”

LaPensée spoke to Ars largely about the steps Native developers can take going forward to create and share new experiences, as opposed to addressing representations, both good and bad, that have appeared in older games. She had previously spoken at length at conferences and in blog posts about negative stereotypes, like those found in the sexually violent Custer’s Revenge, along with triple-A games that have included better writing and consultation, like in Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed III.

“At most [conferences], we’re put in a position to say what [Native design] isn’t, or what it is in comparison to other games,” LaPensée said. “We’re always pinned to talking about negative representations in games.”

Instead, she said, the Natives in Game Dev Gathering was able to follow the success and strides of very recent efforts, particularly last year’s Never Alone. Before starting the game, players are encouraged to watch a polished mini-documentary about the storytelling tradition of the Iñupiat peoples in Northern Alaska, narrated by members of the community—most of whom worked on or consulted for the game.

“We aren’t a museum piece,” one narrator in the game says, and the puzzle-platformer that follows is a reminder of that fact: Quite frankly, it’s gorgeous stuff, full of lovely snow effects, superb visual cues, and smart co-op puzzle design that blends unique supernatural storytelling into the player’s actions. This game, steeped in centuries of Native storytelling, also feels modern and fresh.