Beautiful 2D action game woven from Slavic folklore 'Marko: Beyond Brave” - The developer talks about its charm [gamescom]

"Marko: Beyond Brave" by Studio Mechka is a 2D action game based on Slavic folklore. Featuring beautiful hand-drawn animation and a unique battle system, the PC version is scheduled to be released on September 17, 2024. This work is being exhibited at gamescom 2024, which is being held from August 21st to 25th, 2024 in Cologne, Germany. Studio Mechka representative
Boyan Vasilev
explained it to me, so I will introduce it in this article.

Boyan Vasilev "Marko: Beyond Brave" is a work created by development members born in the 1980s and 1990s. They say they were inspired by Saturday-morning cartoons, Disney movies, and Studio Ghibli works, and that influence is clearly visible in the animation used in this work.

Approximately 35,000 frames of animation
are used throughout the game, all of which are said to have been drawn by one artist. Mr. Vasilev jokingly said, ``I was worried that the artist's wrist would hurt when he drew it,'' but this vast amount of hand-drawn animation is a major feature of ``Marko: Beyond Brave.''

The story and world setting of this work is based on Slavic folklore, and Vasilev emphasizes that ``Even people who are not familiar with Slavic folklore can enjoy it.'' He said that for people who aren't familiar with Slavic culture, it would be rather refreshing.

By the way, it is said that there are actually not many recorded creatures that appear in Slavic folklore. For example, dragons appear in Slavic folk tales, but there are almost no pictures of them. Given these circumstances, the development team apparently designed the characters with free ideas.



The gameplay of ``Marko: Beyond Brave'' emphasizes exploration elements. In many games, it is basic to move to the right, but this is not necessarily the case in this work. "We want to make exploration as natural and as easy as possible," Vasilev said. Therefore, there is almost no explicit guidance such as ``go here,'' and it is important for players to explore based on their own curiosity.

Combat uses a combo system. The longer the battle, the stronger the attack, and when the ``courage'' gauge is full, the main character Marco's attack becomes even more powerful.
Additionally, this work focuses on dodge mechanics instead of parrying (repelling enemy attacks), which is used in many action games. By dodging at the right time and pressing the attack button at the same time, you can quickly counterattack without having to turn around to face the enemy. This allows for more dynamic and natural combat.




In this work, Marco himself does not become stronger as the game progresses. Instead, the emphasis is on the players themselves getting used to the game and improving. At the beginning of the game, Marco moves awkwardly and lacks mobility. However, as the player continues to play, they will be able to control Marco freely. Vasilev said that he wants players to enjoy the game while feeling their own growth.

This work has attention to detail throughout that you might not notice at first glance. For example, the pillars in the game are carved with actual ancient Slavic characters, and you can find out their meanings by looking them up online. In addition, the concept of an "unreliable narrator" has been introduced, and it seems that the meaning of the characters you see in the game should not be taken literally.

The character design is also distinctive. Marco has a mustache that is rarely seen on anyone other than Mario. Also, the humanoid characters in the game, including Marco, have no heads. This is an homage to the Rayman series.

Interesting efforts are also being made on the audio side. The characters converse in meaningless words, so-called ``gibblish''. It was inspired by the Bulgarian TV show 'The Triples'.
It is said that although it is difficult to understand what any of the characters are saying, their intentions can be conveyed. This has the advantage of being able to express a character's individuality without using a voice actor, and also making localization easier. Incidentally, Vasilev also said, ``If I had the money, I would have hired a voice actor and made him speak properly.''

Trajectory of independent development born of passion

Studio Mechka started in 2016 as a company that performs outsourced development. In 2020, we decided that we had enough experience to develop our own IP, and decided to develop "Marko: Beyond Brave." We conducted crowdfunding on Kickstarter in 2021 and raised development funds with the support of 700 backers.

The full-time development period spanned two and a half years. "If we were to do it again, I think we would be able to complete it much faster," Vasilev said. This time it took a while because they had to solve many things themselves.

Marketing was particularly difficult. Although he had experience in game development, he was an amateur when it came to marketing. Since he chose to self-publish, he had to learn marketing know-how from scratch. Vasilev recalls, ``Since we are a small team, I wanted to learn how to do everything properly.''

After this challenging development process, the PC version of "Marko: Beyond Brave" will be released on September 17, 2024. The consumer version is scheduled to be released at the beginning of 2025, around January or February, but the specific date has not been determined.

　Vasilev氏は日本のプレイヤーに向けて「『Marko: Beyond Brave』は，レトロなゲームの魅力と現代的なゲームデザインを融合させた作品です。スラヴ民話の世界を探索し，手描きアニメーションの美しさを堪能しながら，チャレンジングな冒険を楽しんでいただければと思います」とメッセージをくれた。レトロゲームの魅力と現代的なゲームデザインの融合を目指す本作に，今から期待が高まる。

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