Factsheet

Developer:
Santa Ragione
Based in Milan, Italy

Release date:
October 27th 2022 | November 8th 2023

Platforms:
Steam
Epic Games Store
PS4, PS5
Xbox One, Series S|X
Nintendo Switch

Website:
saturnaliagame.com

Regular Price:

$19.99 / 19.99€

Description

A survival-horror adventure inspired and heavily influenced by the folklore of Sardinia, Italy, a region rich with unique traditions and culture. You will play as four characters, experiencing a deeply connected storyline that ties back to the haunting traditions of this ancient village. The village itself is an elaborate maze with no two iterations being precisely the same - you will have to explore and solve the mysteries of the game largely unguided. Die, and watch the village reconfigure itself into a new form. Solve puzzles and open shortcuts to new areas with tools and items you find along the way, unlocking every piece of the story with different characters, each suited for another aspect of exploration and investigation. Heavily stylized visuals feature ‘sketched’ artwork and animations inspired by stop-motion and rotoscoping film techniques to immerse players in a world unlike anything else. Music and audio performed by reinventing ancient music and sounds, with an electronic twist in the style of Italian giallo classics from the 70s. With a limited supply of matches to light your way and darkness encroaching, can you find your way through the fog to reveal the truth? Or will you be engulfed by the secrets this town doesn’t want you to know?

History

Developed and Published by Italian game studio Santa Ragione (FOTONICA, MirrorMoon EP, Wheels of Aurelia) in collaboration with Big Trouble. We are an international team drawn from theatre, cinema, television and cult video games, supported by the Fondazione Sardegna Film Commission and the Creative Europe program of the European Union. Launched in 2022 on Epic Games Store on PC and on all consoles. Coming to Steam on November 8th 2023.

Features

  • The village structure changes each time all your characters die
  • Discover charcters' special abilities, use tools and consumables to open shortcuts
  • Keep narrative and puzzle progress across game-overs (roguelite-like)
  • Manage your supply of matches to help your sight and solve puzzles
  • Non-linear progression, dynamic and adaptive narrative
  • Investigate the ritual at the heart of the game and use what you find to stop it

Videos

Accolades YouTube

Steam Date Announcement YouTube

Coming to Steam YouTube

Launch Trailer YouTube

Console and Date Announcement YouTube

Gameplay Overview YouTube

Gameplay Teaser YouTube

Story Trailer YouTube

Wishlit on EGS YouTube

Announcement Teaser YouTube


Images

download all screenshots & photos as .zip (33MB)
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logo
logo

Awards & Recognition

  • " IGF 2022 " Seumas McNally Grand Prize Honorable Mention
  • " IGF 2022 " Excellence in Visual Art Honorable Mention
  • " A Maze Awards 2021 " Grand Prize Finalist
  • " IndieCade 2021 " Systemic Design Award Finalist
  • " Indie Mega Booth 2020 " Official Selection
  • " Indie X 2020 " Finalist
  • " Day of the Devs 2019 " Official Selection
  • " Creative Europe 2017 " Co-funded by the Creative European Programme of the European Union


  • Selected Articles

    • " These people make games that create obsessions in their players "
      - Chris Donlan, Eurogamer
    • " We're looking forward to finding our feet in Saturnalia, and no doubt having them swept from under us "
      - Staff, Edge Magazine #357
    • " The 21 most-anticipated indie games coming in 2021 "
      - Nicole Carpenter, Polygon
    • " The Clues screen is something of a work of art in itself "
      - Ryan Lambie, Wireframe Magazine #58
    • " The game hones in on the conflict between tradition and progress, how the specter of the past haunts the present "
      - Noam Radcliffe, DBLTAP

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    About Santa Ragione

    Boilerplate
    Santa Ragione is an Italian game design studio founded by Pietro Righi Riva and Nicolò Tedeschi in 2010, creators of FOTONICA, MirrorMoon EP, Wheels of Aurelia, and Saturnalia. Santa Ragione’s games focus on achieving a visceral response from the player, whether through the desolate landscapes of MirrorMoon EP, the uncompromising, vertigo-inducing speeds of FOTONICA, or the controversial politics in Wheels of Aurelia. The studio has a unique, experimental approach to accessibility that encourages exploration and personal interpretation, to achieve depth. Santa Ragione's ambitions are to influence game design through new genres and to continue the tradition of Italian design.

    More information
    More information on Santa Ragione, our logo & relevant media are available here.


    Saturnalia Credits

    Developed by
    Santa Ragione

    Co-funded by
    Big Trouble

    Published by
    Santa Ragione


    presskit() by Rami Ismail (Vlambeer) - also thanks to these fine folks