By: Jordan Chua
‘One Last Game’ is a nostalgic love letter to Filipino childhood in a pixel RPG.
Goodbyes are never easy, and saying goodbye to your childhood is no exception. ‘One Last Game’ captures the essence of Filipino childhood and dealing with major life changes at such a young age, namely moving away from your hometown and friends.
In ‘One Last Game,’ you play as Danny, a kid who is about to move out of his childhood home and into the city for his father’s promotion. At Danny’s request, he gets to stay behind for one more day – giving him the chance to properly say goodbye to his friends over their favorite games.
The game was developed by Paulo Arnante, a student of Ateneo de Naga University’s Department of Digital Arts and Animation, who created it for his senior project. It was featured alongside behind-the-scenes development shots on Ateneo Animation’s Facebook page and has gone viral ever since.
Despite the title, the game features several well-known Filipino street games – namely Sipa, dodgeball, and Tumbang Preso – and an adorable pixel RPG-style design. It takes around 20 minutes to complete, and within that small time frame, the game becomes a short and sweet love letter to Filipino childhood and nostalgia.
“The vibe it has is just awesome! I could seriously see this as the setting of a really good cartoon. Great job 👍” says itch.io user ZONGE in the comments of the game’s download page.
“That was so good!!! I liked how you said goodbye to your friends, sad but not lonely! I especially liked the quality of the pixel art and the description of the ending episode. If I had a wish, I would have liked to see a group photo of the pixel art after the ending credits!” another comment reads, this time by user tunegoro.
During a time of increased uncertainty towards new diseases and social distancing, ‘One Last Game’ is a heartwarming reminder of the fun times of our childhood and the friends that await us on the other side of quarantine.
The game’s prototype is available for free on Windows via its itch.io page. Other games by ADNU students are also available on ADNU’s itch.io page.
Are you interested in playing ‘One Last Game’? What are games set in your country that you think deserve recognition? Let us know in the comments!
Featured photo courtesy from Ateneo Animation Facebook