Here's Why Human Trafficking Is the Focus of Made-in-India PS5 and PC Game Mukti
Sure, commercial considerations are often a concern in this newsletter but art too has its place.
From all the games announced during Sony’s India Hero Project event, Mukti is quite likely the most serious of the bunch due to its focus on human trafficking. Developed by Mumbai-based Underdogs Studio, it’s an adventure game for the PS5 (with PS VR2 support) and PC.
Underdogs itself is no stranger to the game development scene in India. Its CEO and founder Vaibhav Chavan is a regular fixture at industry events. And he maintains a consistent presence on YouTube, peeling back the curtain on game development ever so often on his own channel.
Suffice to say, I reached out him to know more about Mukti’s inspirations and PS5 features. He also shed light on what it’s like to work with Sony and why bold story-telling is necessary. Some responses have been edited slightly for clarity and length.
For the uninitiated, could you give us a brief background of your game development journey?
I am a computer Engineer by qualification but started as a game designer in 2007 with Indiagames. Driven by my passion for creativity, I transitioned from there to roles as a Game Producer at Games2win and Hungama, accumulating about three years of experience. In 2011, I took the leap and founded my own venture, called Underdogs. Since then, we've developed over 250 games for various platforms, collaborating with gaming companies, brands, digital agencies, and even movie production houses. Presently, our primary focus is on the development of Mukti, a significant console and PC title.Why did Underdogs apply for the India Hero Project?
There has been conversations for years about why India hasn't ventured into producing large scale console games. Honestly, the problem is not the lack of talent, it's primarily about access to capital and the willingness to take risks. Developing these games demands significant investments of both time and money. I believe that many of the reasonably successful studios in India have always had ambitions to create that one monumental game but have been hindered by these same challenges.
What the Sony India Hero Project has achieved is the establishment of an incredible platform for those who aspire to realise their grand gaming visions. It was inevitable for Underdogs, like many others, to seize this opportunity and present our best pitch to Sony. Their involvement not only addresses funding concerns but also offers substantial support throughout the development process.
What's Mukti about and what can players expect at launch?
Mukti is a first-person story exploration game set within the immersive environment of an Indian museum. It surfaces a critical social issue that demands our attention: human trafficking. In Mukti, players embark on a journey of discovery as they navigate the labyrinthine corridors of the museum, uncovering the harrowing truths, and hidden narratives behind it. Through rich story-telling and immersive gameplay mechanics, Mukti invites players to confront the realities faced by victims and survivors alike, shedding light on this pressing global issue.
Drawing inspiration from authentic narratives and meticulously researched historical contexts, Mukti aims to raise awareness, provoke thought and inspire action. Each interaction within the game is designed to provoke empathy, spark dialogue, and ignite change.
What are the inspirations for Mukti and how long has it been in development?
We've always drawn inspiration from narrative-driven games such as The Wolf Among Us, Gone Home, Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, and What Remains of Edith Finch, among others. As a game director, my background spans over a decade in theatre as well, where I immersed myself in acting and directing regional plays. This fostered a deep appreciation for story-telling. We’ve always admired what Naughty Dog has done combining great gameplay and tech with amazing story-telling. We aspire to undertake similarly ambitious endeavours in the future.
The initial draft of Mukti was written by my co-founder Sankesh More and I back in 2017. We've continually refined and enhanced the storyline. Additionally, We also dedicated approximately two years to pre-production, meticulously shaping the game's world to blur the boundaries between reality and fiction.
The description for Mukti on the PS Blog says that this is a game that deals with human trafficking. What's the reason for choosing such a theme?
Our intention was to infuse this game with a sense of purpose. We recognise the immense potential of video games as a medium to convey powerful messages to a broad audience. We strived to strike a balance by combining story-telling with gameplay and puzzle mechanics, all wrapped within a narrative that demands attention.
Moreover, as per the PS Blog, ''Mukti invites players to confront the realities that victims and survivors face'', while most PS5 games don't take such a serious tone or talk about it in such a front-loaded manner, what's the thought process behind this approach?
While we were researching about this in 2017, we encountered numerous articles and reports detailing the scourge of human trafficking in the north-east region of India. Our aim isn’t to dictate behaviour but rather to craft a narrative that communicates a message. The game will take you very close to the lives of the trafficked and reveal a world not many are even aware of. I believe if you want to tell a bold story, you need to be prepared to embrace vulnerability, and we are geared up already.
While it's early days, what's it been like working on PlayStation hardware?
Yes it’s early but I must say It’s an absolute treat. This is the first time we are working on PlayStation hardware. We have been learning something new every single day, thanks to the amazing team at Sony. Right from setting up the devkit to actually testing and analysing the builds for performance, it’s a complete different pipeline and process to fully leverage the hardware’s potential. We are really glad to be a part of IHP [India Hero Project] with all the support Sony has provided, you wouldn’t find all these learnings on the internet otherwise.
Will Mukti support PS5-specific features like adaptive triggers, haptic feedback, and activity cards?
Yes, the game will support most of PS5s new features. The tests with DualSense have been amazing, since our game has an exploration element we have the liberty to fully utilise the haptics and adaptive triggers in the game. Every object in interactions has different sizes and weights which you can actually map it to the DualSense features which can give you almost realistic experience. We are still learning a lot every day on the same, but the final game will have a lot of surprises for the players in terms of these experiences.
What's it like working with PlayStation as an indie developer versus sticking it out on your own? You've done both so it would be interesting to hear what it's like.
I can’t stop being grateful to have this opportunity. Sony is not only helping with funds, but also providing access to exceptional internal teams from different domains, be it tech, hardware, art, production or marketing. Also, each conversation we have with these teams, make us richer in knowledge every single day.
When Sony says they want to build an ecosystem of developers who can create massive games in the next 5 years, we get their point now. It’s all going to be possible because Sony has stepped up into educating the teams to international standards which eventually will translate into studios making games that can compete with global studios.
Finally, Mukti is coming to PC as well. While I understand that it's still too early to talk pricing, Indian audiences usually expect a lower price tag on Steam. And while you are probably still deciding how much to charge, I'm curious to know, as a developer, what are your thoughts on regional pricing?
Yes, it’s too early to predict that. The original vision for Mukti was modest, but it gradually evolved into a much more ambitious project as we began to think on a larger scale. Presently, our aim is to craft a game that introduces novel elements, features, and visuals, distinguishing it from others in the market. Likewise as our development progresses, we will gain a clearer understanding of the game's potential pricing.
From speaking to Chavan it’s abundantly clear that Mukti is a passion project that not many a keen-eyed investor in the space would be eager to fund. That said, if games in India are to be taken as seriously as cinema or literature, let alone art, it’s crucial that endeavours like this exist.
While commercial considerations are so often a concern in this newsletter, Mukti’s continued existence also speaks volumes of Sony’s risk-taking appetite which in this case, doesn’t seem like such a bad thing after all.