What is Realm of Relics?
Realm of Relics is a puzzle and mythology game. You play a child left behind in a museum exhibiting five different mythologies. To escape, you solve various puzzles and collect the five artefacts that open the exit. This game is made especially for puzzle enthusiasts and mythology nerds.
The indie game is being developed by Umbral Studios. The studio's founders met during the Game Development minor at The Hague University of Applied Sciences in Zoetermeer. Afterwards, they decided to make a new game together. Co-founder Bram Mulder received support from GameLab for six months.
Demo
The Realm of Relics demo is not yet publicly available, but can regularly be played at events organised by the games programmes and GameLab in Zoetermeer.
The game is still being actively developed. Currently, only the first room, with an Egyptian theme, is playable, offering several puzzles to solve.
Umbral Studios and GameLab
Before developing the game, the team behind Unbral Studios visited the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden.
Leiden resident and game developer Bram Mulders: "We currently have an initial version of one room, focused on Egyptian mythology. The biggest challenge so far has been making sure players understand our puzzles and stories clearly. We will soon start improving the Egyptian room, then finish the other rooms one by one — Celtic, Japanese, Chinese and Hindu — until the game is complete. We hope to release it in around four years, but this may change depending on how much our team grows."
Umbral sees GameLab's main added value in the knowledge available there. They also appreciate being able to discuss ideas with like-minded people while everyone works on their own project. "You can bounce ideas around, and plenty of resources are shared that can help with making a game."
After its time at GameLab, ending in June 2024, Umbral Studios will continue development independently, drawing on GameLab's knowledge and contacts as alumni.