Hiboka (Flying Carpets Games) -Play NYC 2023

by · 08/14/2023

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Back to: Play NYC (August 2023)

Game: Hiboka
Developer: Flying Carpets Games

The year is 1942. Alexandre, a young boy in France is grieving from his mother’s passing. Determined to reconnect with her somehow, he follows old legends and folklore to Madagascar where the entrance to the land of the dead is rumored to exist – the land that is called Hiboka.

Hiboka is a third person survival/horror game developed by Flying Carpet Games, based on real Malagasy folklore, fables & mythology. It plays in the spirit of Silent Hill, Fatal Frame, or Resident Evil; if you like this kind of genre, this game is for you.

The gameplay alternates between Alexandre (the protagonist) and Ramala, a local Malagasy girl who decides to help him. Actions taken by one of them will affect the other character when switched.

The game takes you through a mansion with a mixed variety of gameplay, for example:

  • Level 1 plays like a puzzle to unlock your way to level 2.
  • Level 2 contains denizens of the dead. Shoot & make your way past them however you can.

Development

Hiboka has been in development for 2 years by Flying Carpets Games, an independent video game studio based in Montreal. It’s a 5-6 person team located all over the world with people in Japan, London and Spain. Based on the Unity platform, estimated game time is slated to be about 5 hours with around 15 levels in total.

From left: Stephanie & Salim

INTERVIEW (edited for brevity)

Salim, the head of Flying Carpets Games, previously worked at a large game studio before venturing out on his own in order to make more creative and artistic games for players. He grew up learning Malagasy myths and legends from his grandmother’s side of the family, with Hiboka being his passion project based on that knowledge.

The game itself contains a lot of historical research of the scripts and literature of Madagascar. In fact, Salim is planning another trip there to meet with elders to get more information – and to share with you the wonderful past of the country!

Availability

PC (Steam) & consoles – best estimate, late next year 2024 (maybe 2025).

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More Info: https://flyingcarpetsgames.com/
Event: Play NYC (August 2023)

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Young

Young is a Jack-of-many-trades. He's lived/worked on several continents for all sorts of companies (and has had his own too.) He meditates with origami and likes coffee, though he really should lay off that stuff.

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