This Cambodian mobile game shows how having local culture in a game can work

We recently questioned if local cultures really needed to be in video games, and while it does seem like games that have this element are more likely to get funded by local governments, there are also developers who make use of their own culture, of their own accord, to attain interesting results.

Sok & Sao’s Adventure is a mobile platformer from Cambodian indie studio DirexPlay Lab centred around fighting dengue fever. As either Sok or Sao, you bounce across maps modelled after actual Southeast Asian countries while shooting down vicious (and realistic) mosquitoes.

Director Piseth Chhourm said that the game currently includes background settings modeled after Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, and the Philippines—countries relatively close to where Sok & Sao originated. He also said that the DirexPlay team was saving other countries like Indonesia, Vietnam, India, China, Malaysia, and Singapore for future releases.

The purpose of this game is to feature Asia, as we see most games use Western art and culture.

Sok & Sao’s Cambodian origins grow more apparent as you play on, though you might not recognize them if you aren’t familiar with the country’s culture.

(See: Localizing Plants vs. Zombies for China, and PopCap’s plans for APAC)

Chhourm said that many level bosses in the game are inspired by Khmer myths and legends, although some monsters, like the skeleton, have Western origins. He named the Yaksha and the Garuda bosses as examples.

Concept art of the Garuda.

Yakshas are attendents of the god Vaiśravana, as well as the twelve heavenly generals who guard the Medicine Buddha. Yaksha statues, as well as wall paintings, are common in Cambodia and Thailand, where Buddhism is a dominant religion.

The Garuda hails from the Hindu epic, The Ramayana. King of birds, the Garuda is a half-human, half-bird creature. In Sok & Sao the Garuda boss has been given an additional talent: creating thunder and lightning! Both these monsters are vastly different from what you usually see in games with Western influence.

While the dengue-fever-fighting concept in Sok & Sao isn’t its most attractive part, the lesser-known cultures it makes use give an intriguing air to the otherwise-clumsy platformer. We’ve seen a lot of Western mythology and creatures in game, from your skeletons to your werewolves, and it’s nice to see an Asian game company making full use of the culture that has birthed it.

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