Despelote
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Despelote Media
Critic Reviews for Despelote
Despelote's creators tell a remarkable, pseudo-autobiographical tale about football, Ecuador, and community - but also one about the act of remembering, and the creative act itself.
Despelote is a moving and masterfully rendered game about soccer, growing up, and so much more.
Set during Ecuador's 2002 World Cup qualifying campaign, this fascinating, semi-autobiographical game gives you control of the life of a soccer-mad eight-year-old
Despelote is an emotional leap into childhood, among soccer balls, dreams and nostalgia. As little Julián, we relive the excitement of 2001 in Quito as Ecuador, in the midst of an economic crisis, dreams of World Cup qualification. The game blends deliberately retro digital photography, hand drawings, and ambient sound design to render a touching and well-directed autobiographical tale. Part of the gameplay includes Tino Tini's Soccer 99, a purposefully crude demake of Kick Off that perfectly reflects the nostalgic and messy tone of childhood. It lasts a bare couple of hours, but will stay with you much longer.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Like the drive back home from an away day loss, you’re left wondering: what was the point? Despelote laudably captures the emotion surrounding Ecuador’s qualification for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, but it struggles to craft a satisfying video game about it.
You’re presumably capable of kicking the ball and hitting a bottle perched on a fence post, but it feels apt that you miss time and time again, until one of the other, better kids steps in to take the shot and does what you can’t. At which point, you keep at it, because the world goes on.
Despelote was a bit of a personal one for me, and I can see why some players may not love it due to it being a walking simulator where you kick a ball around. But for anyone willing to give it a chance, you’ll find a snippet of pure sentiment to engage with as you put on the shoes of its developer. You see Ecuador for its authentic self as a child and witness a moment that you probably never batted an eye at before. But you leave with a fuzzy feeling, wanting to reminisce about your own memories you had as a child.
Whether or not you're a football fan, Despelote has a lot to say about the sport, its fans, and the impact it has on them, and much of it is worth listening to.
