This Land is My Land takes a different view of the Wild
West than Red Dead Redemption
Stealth game tells the story of Native Americans
repelling invasion
By Colin Campbell
With Red Dead Redemption 2 coming later this year, interest
in Wild West games is at a heightened level. So it’s interesting to take a look
at a game in development that seems broadly similar to RDR 2, but is taking a
very different approach to the subject. This Land is My Land — due out in the
first half of next year — is an open-world game set in late 19th century
frontier, but it’s played from the point of view of a Native American.
By contrast, Red Dead Redemption 2’s protagonist is a
white man. Promotional footage thus far released has shown little evidence of
Native Americans, likely because RDR 2 is set in 1899, decades after the defeat
of plains tribes by a combination of the United States military and by the
influx of white settlers wielding advanced technologies.
This Land is My Land is set at an earlier time, when
Native American country was being overrun by white settlers. The game is being
created by Ukrainian outfit Game-Labs, best known for the PC strategy Ultimate
General series, set in the American Civil War, and the excellent age of sail combat
MMO Naval Action.
The hero is a man who makes use of traditional weapons as
well as modern guns to stem the invasion. According to the game’s development
lead Denis Khachatran, he represents an amalgam of western tribes.
“You represent them all,” he said in an email interview
with Polygon. “The Chickasaw, Cherokee, Lakota, Cheyenne, Apaches, Navajo,
Shawnee, Shoshone, Mohawk, Utes and all other tribes large and small. These
last patches of your homeland seem insignificant for the settlers, but for you
it is the center of the universe; the heart of everything.”
He added: “We could not find any good games which would
let us play as a Native American warrior, or as the Declaration of Independence
called them, ‘merciless Indian savages’. So, we are making one.”
Rollicking stories
Europe has a long history of fiction sympathetic to
Native Americans. During the Cold War, movies like The Sons of the Great Bear
(1966) portrayed the U.S. Army as hostile invaders. Such anti-American movies
were part of a genre called Red Westerns, which pilloried and critiqued
Hollywood’s version of 19th century American history.
Khachatran cites Karl May (1842-1912) as an inspiration.
He is the most popular author in German history, best known for writing
rollicking stories about Native American warriors. His work is still popular
today, though he is almost unknown in the English-speaking world.
Native American games
Games have a poor history of portraying Native Americans.
In this story about a game made by Native Alaskans, we took a look at the
cliches and stereotypes down the years.
This Land is My Land doesn’t have the lavish budget of
Red Dead Redemption 2, but its developers are finding smart ways to add value
to their production. While RDR 2 boasts a huge map, This Land is My Land’s open
world resets on each new game, with mines, camps, towns and other settlements
appearing in new places.
This Land is My Land relies on stealth more than
shooting. Players will be able to make use of baits and traps, creeping in the
shadows in order to kill enemies or create panic.
“Stealth is an integral part of asymmetric warfare that
is one of the few working strategies when facing a superior force,” explained
Khachatran. “Open combat is dangerous, but stealthy destruction or quiet
sabotage can defeat the strongest opponents.”
It’s a single-player game, but AI allies can be used to
scout out locations, help with crafting and create distractions during attacks.
Vulnerable Families
The American Indian Wars are now remembered for their
brutality toward innocents, including the massacres of vulnerable settler
families by Natives, and of non-combative women and children by United States
forces. But this game will feature neither women nor children.
“The frontier is too dangerous during this time,” said
Khachatran. “Native American women and children have been sent farther west,
and [white] women and children have not yet arrived.”
The
Land is My Land Game-Labs.
The game’s history focuses on the invasion of Native lands,
as the indigenous people saw it. While Red Dead Redemption 2’s publicity
talks of “civilization spreading rapidly into the wild, lawless frontier,” This
Land is My Land recognizes that complex, thriving civilizations were
already in place, long before the United States arrived.
“Aliens [white people] came to this place from all latitudes
and longitudes and for different reasons,” said Khachatran. “They think they are
claiming the empty lands, but your people have always been living here.
“This is a game; not a simulation,” he added. “But it takes
place during a time when Native Americans faced a choice of becoming part of
the alien civilization or disappearing. The player is fighting people who want
to terminate his people’s entire history. The events happening in game could
have happened in reality.”
Game-Labs has yet to announce specific platforms for This
Land is My Land, but Windows PC is likely the lead format. We’ll keep you
updated as news emerges.
Vulnerable
Families
The American Indian Wars are now remembered for their
brutality toward innocents, including the massacres of vulnerable settler
families by Natives, and of non-combative women and children by United States
forces. But this game will feature neither women nor children.
“The frontier is too dangerous during this time,” said
Khachatran. “Native American women and children have been sent farther west,
and [white] women and children have not yet arrived.”
The game’s history focuses on the invasion of Native
lands, as the indigenous people saw it. While Red Dead Redemption 2’s publicity
talks of “civilization spreading rapidly into the wild, lawless frontier,” This
Land is My Land recognizes that complex, thriving civilizations were already in
place, long before the United States arrived.
“Aliens [white people] came to this place from all
latitudes and longitudes and for different reasons,” said Khachatran. “They
think they are claiming the empty lands, but your people have always been
living here.
“This is a game; not a simulation,” he added. “But it
takes place during a time when Native Americans faced a choice of becoming part
of the alien civilization or disappearing. The player is fighting people who
want to terminate his people’s entire history. The events happening in game
could have happened in reality.”
Game-Labs has yet to announce specific platforms for This
Land is My Land, but Windows PC is likely the lead format. We’ll keep you
updated as news emerges.
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