The Filipino gaming community is rich with indie companies infusing local flair and culture into the global gaming scene. Some of our local leading gaming production companies include Anino Inc. and Altitude Games, both of which have been successful in breaching the global market with games that reflect the Filipino culture. It’s interesting to see a growing industry that generates jobs for more Filipinos to enjoy a niche craft and produce a living out of it. But what’s even more fun about it is that we get closer to our culture with every new story and innovation we produce in every new title or concept.

Entering the indie game market is Bayani, a fighting game released June last year and continues to update until today, developed by Ranida Games. The game is similar to the likes of Tekken, Street Fighter, and Mortal Kombat where you choose a character to combat another character 1-on-1. It features an anime aesthetic but the references from the music, characters, to the whole concept are very Filipino. On their website they mention, “[Bayani] draws heavily from historical figures and landmarks from the Philippines as inspiration. However, the game’s characters, levels, and storyline don’t depict historical events but are more trivial in nature.” So with that, you can familiarize yourself with their creative twist and take on Filipino culture on a more whimsical and fantasy-themed execution.

The game is set in a parallel universe and shows some landmarks like the Rizal Park reimagined in shambles in an post-apocalyptic year 8096. The trailer shows resemblance to some of our heroes like Rizal reimagined as Jose Maria H. Rizal whose bio reads a person with split personality on whether he fights with brains or brawns, then there’s Andres Bonifacio as Dre who’s a revived person overcome with rage and seeks revenge for his death, and then Apolinario Mabini as Rio, who acquired a Polio Virus and has since developed an inferiority complex. These are just some of the interesting characters you can use in the game and find interest in the contrast of its references in real life.

Onto the gameplay, the game is more than just a fighting game but also fantasy-based experience. So there’s magic, powers, and interesting costumes involved to amplify the action. Just this Aug. 31 on National Heroes Day, they’ve added a new playable character, Lolang Tsora, who was based on the Ina ng Katipunan heroine Tandang Sora. Her attacks include Light Magic which draws power from the moon, Dark Flames that summon the Filipino mythical creature Bakunawa, and combined light and dark magic that’s a combo of powerful hits.

With the completion of its base character selection, the team behind it announces that developments on its other features are ongoing. They’re currently working on an updated Story Mode, Arcade Mode, and an enhanced Training Room. DLC characters are also in the works and their site already teases some new concepts including Datu Lapu who is inspired from Lapu-Lapu, Ela Silang based on Gabriella Silang, and John Luna based on Juan Luna, just to name a few. Aside from the eight available characters now, they’re teasing a ninth secret character will be available soon via DLC.

Bayani is available on Steam for download and a playable demo can be found at Itch.io. So next time you wanna spice up your gaming library with something closer to your culture, check out Bayani and experience fighting like our heroes but with supernatural powers.