When a game sets itself in a “guns versus gods” setting likeFlintlock: The Siege of Dawndoes, the design and overarching role of those gods becomes critically important.Flintlocklooked to an unexpected source forits gaslamp/Flintlock fantasy pantheon: Mesopotamian myth.
Daniel Baider,Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn’s lead narrative designer, spoke with Game Rant about the design of the game’s gods, their inspirations, and their role in the City of Dawn and the wider world beyond.
Twilight of the Gods
When designing a world for players to explore, a central question is always that of faith. From religion built around abstract notions and pieces of lost history likethe faiths ofHorizonto games where gods walk among the people, the kind of relationship characters have with spirituality informs a lot both about their lives and about the world they inhabit.
That’s especially critical inFlintlock: The Siege of Dawn, which pits its fantasy Napoleonic-styled armies against monolithic gods. Making those gods feel important and iconic is essential to the worldbuilding and gameplay present in protagonist Nor Vanek’s journey. Scale, memorability, and threat are already important forserious enemies in Soulslike games, and making some of those titanic figures literal gods only magnifies the importance. In terms of scale, Baider explained the wayFlintlock’s divine beings play a part in the world.
All ofFlintlock’s Gods reside in the Great Below, the same realm that souls pass on to after they die. Within the Great Below, each God has their own domain and holds influence over the souls within its boundaries. In this way, the Door to the Great Below can also be thought of as a barrier between the natural and supernatural worlds.
The inciting incident of the game’s plot, however, is that Door breaking open, and spilling forth the denizens of the afterlife into the living world. That is where the gods move from abstraction to tangible, threatening presence. Baider detailed the four main gods players will encounter as they take Nor’s journey: Rammuha, Dukmar, Inaya, and Uru. Enki,Nor’s companion inFlintlock, is also a god, but he’s clearly not the threat among them. As Baider explained of each one,
Meanwhile, Enki’s name comes directly from a Mesopotamian God, though only parts of the character’s personality are based on the mythological figure. One of those elements is sympathy for humankind, which explains why he stands alongside Nor than these other gods. Notably, each god’s knowledge of the Above is warped by humanity, and the intentions and designs of each god are centered around that as well. As Baider said,
Each God has their own agenda, but having been isolated in the Great Below, they all share a warped understanding of the living world based on stories from the souls that entered their domain. Effectively, the Gods are trying to twist the world into their own idea of perfection, regardless of the destruction this entails.
Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn
WHERE TO PLAY
From games studio A44, makers of Ashen, comes an explosive Souls-lite, where Gods and guns collide in a battle for the future of humanity.The Door to the Great Below has been opened unleashing the Gods and their armies of the Dead. The lands of Kian are besieged, the city of Dawn is on the brink of destruction. It’s time for the Coalition army to fight back. Embrace vengeance, gunpowder and magic as you embark on an epic journey to defeat the Gods, close the door and retake the world.Kill all gods.Your battle begins now.
