Hello!
My name is Yakov Butuzov, and I am an indie game developer. I would like to present to you a game that I have been working on - Loretta.
Loretta is a psychological thriller that would make the player an accessory to the heroine’s crimes and would lead her through a self-crafted nightmare.
This story is about a woman, dealing with betrayal, her husband’s infidelity, relationships problems and difficult social situation of the 1940s.
Small teaser-trailer: https://youtu.be/ReWu9hMH1Es
Conceptually and aesthetically, the game is inspired by the American art of the twentieth century, the works of Andrew Wyeth and Edward Hopper, film noir of the 40s-50s, thrillers by Alfred Hitchcock, the Philip Ridley movie "The Reflecting Skin", the books "1922" by Stephen King and "Lolita" by Vladimir Nabokov.
Although it is usually difficult to pinpoint specific source of inspiration, I know it clearly for Loretta.
One day I stumbled across "Christina's World".
The story of the "Christina's World" is rather melancholic, even scary, but it inspired me.
I wrote the first draft of the "story" in a few days. It was not a proper script, but sort of a synopsis. Then, to better understand the heroine, I wrote the story from her point of view. Although not essential for game development, this preliminary creative work, especially
in the beginning, allowed me to think through some of the nuances, and helped to unleash imagination.
For quite a long time I was enthralled by writing an ambiguous hero, even an anti-hero. Although not the most popular topic, it is probably one of the main challenges for me in "Loretta": to create a complex character, who, despite her evil actions, would evoke sympathy and understanding if not forgiveness.
Story
The year is 1947. Lora and Walter Harris move to a farm, which used to belong to his parents. Walter is a writer and Lora is a housewife. Both are quite unsuccessful.
The family is going through financial difficulties. The situation is also complicated by the fact that Walter owes money to people from New York. And although the husband keeps it a secret from his wife, Lora has a suspicion. Moreover, she suspects him of cheating.
Lora understands that she gave up her job, her dreams and other opportunities for her failure of a husband she doesn’t even love. Now she is stuck in a cold empty house barely making ends meet.
As she struggles to make loan payments, she finds out that Walter’s publishing house has insured his life. In the event of his death, the insurance sum would be 30.000$. A plan is born in Lora’s mind.
Loretta is a story-driven adventure game in which gameplay focuses on choosing phrases in dialogue, interacting with objects, and making decisions: planning the murder and getting rid of the evidence.
Recently I released my first game. Its reviews helped me understand what players expect from games like that. Focusing on the plot and how the player’s actions affect it, it is essential to give a possibility to replay some moments, while avoiding complicated or distracting mechanics. The storyline may be extended by replaying certain episodes or the whole game. The game is being developed using GameMaker Studio 2, for РС at the moment.
Loretta's sanity begins to suffer. This is reflected in the mini-games that take place in the Subconscious. Player is free to decide the fate of the character not only during the main game, but during mini-games, the result of which is also reflected on the plot.
I work on Loretta with Daria Shorohova - who is responsible for drawing characters and animation. Sometimes I hire freelancers for certain task, but most work I do myself.
I released my previous game DOM RUSALOK without a publisher, and got positive feedback from both journalists and players. Also, it gave me an opportunity to gather a small, but loyal audience.
Despite having studied epidemiology, I soon realized that I wish to dedicate my life to game development.
My social networks:
vk: https://vk.com/dom_rusalok_loretta
twitter: https://twitter.com/yabutuzoff
youtube: https://youtu.be/ReWu9hMH1Es
Sorry for my English, I'm from small Russian town and just learningh)
Thank you for your time!
Sincerely,
Yakov Butuzov