The indie tactical RPG We Are The Caretakers carefully chose today, Earth Day 2021, for its Early Access launch, and there's good reason for that. The team behind the game, Heart Shaped Games, has pledged 10% of revenue to the Wildlife Conservation Network's Rhino Recovery Fund.
In the game, players take on the role of an afrofuturistic tribe determined to protect the Raun, a rhino-like species in the game's sci-fi setting, from both human and alien poachers. Players build their squads from over 20 classes and more than 70 special abilities to do so, and the game leans heavily into its environmental and animal protection themes.
Here's more from the team about this unique project:
We Are the Caretakers features a cast of primarily Black characters envisioned by art director Anthony Jones (former cinematics artist at Activision Blizzard) combined with synthetic and organic elements for his interpretation of afrofuturism. Experience a story-rich campaign from BAFTA and IGF-nominated narrative director Xalavier Nelson Jr. (Hypnospace Outlaw, SkateBIRD) or take on the procedurally-generated Survival mode.
The game's creators hope its story of conservation can extend beyond its end credits. "In our quest to have a quantifiable impact in the world with our game, we’re proud to work with real-world groups like WCN,” said Scott Brodie, founder of Heart Shaped Games. “Raising awareness is important, but we wanted to make sure We Are The Caretakers has a real, lasting impact on supporting animal conservation efforts."
While the Steam Early Access Version arrives today, the eventual 1.0 launch is booked for Xbox platforms later in 2021 as well.
