From the name of a Celtic tribe established on the Swiss plateau at the beginning of the 1st century BC. J.-C., “Helvetii” is a 2D action video game inspired by Japanese arcane games, in particular by the work of the Vanillaware studio of Osaka, now available on PC/Linus, Nintendo Switch and PS4.
It is presented by its creators as “a game that revolves around the exploration and reinvention of Gallic and Helvetian myths, mixed with fast-paced and varied combat mechanics”.
Taking place in Swiss landscapes – Jura forests, the shores of Lake Geneva, Valais mountains -, “Helvetii” allows you to embody three characters who each have a unique game style and special attacks: Divico, a young warlord, Renart, a fox-turned-man or Nammeios, a reclusive druid. Martial prowess, powers conferred by primitive deities and invocations will be necessary to manage to fight monsters and creatures present throughout a quest which must make it possible to put an end to a curse.
“The game is complicated, but the more you understand the mechanics of the game, the more enjoyable it becomes to play. In the end, I had a lot of fun”, explains Nastasia Civitillo, head of the Noetic Academy, during the gaming meeting at 12:45 p.m. .
Swiss folklore well present
To the delight of Swiss players and like the various Tschäggättä of Lötschental, dahus, fondues and other characters scattered throughout the game, “Helvetii” does not hesitate to summon Swiss traditions and folklore, fully assuming some anachronisms.
“It’s very daring to make an international game with references to Swiss deities and Swiss gastronomy”, laughs for his part David Javet, co-founder of the UNIL-EPFL GameLab, in the 12:45.
>> To see: video presentation of the game “Helvetii” (in English)
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Entirely drawn by hand, “Helvetii” was developed by the small independent Lausanne studio Team KwaKwa. Kevin Péclet is the creator and main artist. At his side, we find Isabelle Roesch for the programming, the artist Julie Baechtold and the sound designer Greg Bedford.
>> To listen: Kevin Péclet’s interview regarding his game “Helvetii” then in development (“Point Barre”, October 2019)
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Funded in part by the canton of Vaud
“Helvetii” was created in part thanks to crowdfunding and a support envelope for the creation of video games of 20,000 francs donated – and it was a first – by the canton of Vaud in 2019.
An amount which allowed, among other things, to produce the sound part composed by the Californian Dale North, with the voice of the British singer Emi Evans who might be heard on the soundtrack of the game “NieR”.
Andréanne Quartier-la-Tente
“Switzerland”, available on PC/Linux, Nintendo Switch and PS 4.
