There are many, many games about hitting dudes with swords, shooting things with guns, and generally kicking ass.
And that’s fine. We like red-blooded action as much as the next guy.
But there is another way to enjoy your interactive entertainment, and Roia is a perfect example of the way that video games can also sooth, enlighten, and inspire.
Developed by Emoak, the Austrian indie studio behind Machinaero, Paper Climb, and the award-winning Lyxo, Roia is a sort of environmental puzzle adventure game in which the goal is to create a channel for a river that’s descending towards the sea.
According to the press release, Roia is inspired by developer Tobias Sturn’s childhood adventures at the creek behind his grandparents’ house.
Sturn’s grandfather was a skilled woodworker, and together the pair would create waterwheels, dams, and bridges to examine and exploit the ways that water flows. The inspiration of those experiments is plain to see in the finished game.
Alas, Sturn’s grandfather died during the game’s development. Roia is dedicated to him.
The finished product is an utterly unique experience that looks and sounds stunning while maintaining a perfect balance of challenge and relaxation.
Your goal in Roia is to terraform a series of gorgeous handcrafted environments, nudging the landscape this way and that to create a path for a stream of water. Naturally, you’re working within the constraints of the game’s topography, while also navigating around obstacles.
In the process you’ll travel through rugged mountains, dark forests, sunny meadows, and colorful seaside villages, all the time accompanied by a helpful white bird who keeps you on the track.
Roia is a fabulous looking game, with a minimalist, pastel-hued aesthetic that looks like a more organic take on Monument Valley’s revolutionary visuals.
But sound is just as much a part of the experience. Emoak has enlisted composer Johannes Johannson, who previously worked with the studio on Lyxo, to create a stirring, meditative score.
To see (and hear) Roia in action, you can buy it for $2.99 on the App Store or Google Play.