UnReal World is a unique low-fantasy roguelike game set in the far north during the late Iron-Age.
The world of the game is highly realistic, rich with historical atmosphere and
emphasized on survival in the harsh ancient wilderness.
UnReal World is a unique low-fantasy roguelike game set in the far north during the late Iron-Age.
The world of the game is highly realistic, rich with historical atmosphere and
emphasized on survival in the harsh ancient wilderness.
The spirit of UnReal World RPG
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Sami (UrW author) has been working with the project UnReal World for two decades, and it took many years to find the unique idea and style
of the game. In the beginning the game was yet another roguelike with many of the traditional features of sword & magic games.
As the world of the game grew more complex, Sami asked his remote friend, Erkka, to invent some religions and cults to be
found in UnReal World. A simple cult of Beron, a legendary warrior who was killed by a thunder-bolt, was added to the game.
But dealing with only the traditional roguelike fantasy elements was not satisfying; a seed was growing. After a year of intense thinking,
discussing and testing the idea grew clearer: Instead of familiar elements of fantasy we will turn to roots of our
own, into the folklore, mythology and history of Finland.
Orcs, elves and magic weapons were ruled out. The project of "fenno-ugrian-fantasy" was on the way. We decided
not to stick too close to the historical facts, but not to fly too high off the ground.
So, the world of the game is based on the ancient Finland in the late Iron Age - roughly 800 - 1200 A.D.
The finnish folk lived on their own in their loose villages, farming,
fishing and hunting for food. They had their own tradition, myths and
rituals. They were trading furs for swords and tools. And there were
plenty of wilderness forests, owned by no-one, so that a young man could
freely go and build an own house with just an axe and a knife.
In order not to make a imperfect copy of the historical Finland, we have altered the map and the cultures. So the land
is not a copy of the map of Finland, the cultures are not identical with those of the iron-age Finland. But still the spirit
and many of the features are the same. As said, our main source of inspiration is the late iron-age, and the beginning of
the middle-age; roughly 800 - 1200 A.D in Finland. We use historical facts for example when we create weapons, tools, animals, villages
and so on. Instead of knights and dragons, or ninjas and ronins, we turn back to peasants and hunters, rune-singers
and sages of our own cultural history. So do not be surprised when you encounter some low-fantasy elements from finnish folk-lore,
like a Tonttu taking care of the sauna. And remember not to hunt without bearing in mind that besides of men and animals,
there are also supernatural dwellers and guardians spirits in the forest...