Indie Dev Spotlight: Polychroma Games Amazing Stories

Polychroma Games is an independent game developer based in the Philippines. The indie dev company was established in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and found success in their hit game Until Then. As a Filipino American, I want to shine a light on this game company based in the Philippines, and explore their success and where they intend to take the company next.

Polychroma Games Establishment

Mickole Klein Nulud founded Polychroma Games and comprises a core team of approximately 10 people. Their primary goal is “to create interactive games and stories that represent Filipino culture and experiences.” It’s such a special way to celebrate Filipino culture, as games aren’t your typical way to do that. But it’s a smart one. Combining stories with interactive play is a wonderful way to showcase a culture that a lot of people are unfamiliar with.

Though the company was established in 2020, Polychroma did not release its first game, Until Then, until mid-2024. The COVID pandemic caused a lot of delays for the game.

Until Then

Until Then is the first game the company developed and received generally positive reviews from players and critics. This interactive story game follows the life of Mark Borja, a Filipino high school student, who starts experiencing oddities in his everyday life after a catastrophic disaster called “The Ruling” causes widespread destruction around the world. This game was inspired by many different games and films, and was praised for its portrayal of Filipino life, especially from the perspective of a high school student living in the 21st century.

It’s noted that during the pandemic, due to travel restrictions at the time, the game’s artists used Google Earth and their own memory of Metro Manila to design the many different settings of the game. The development of the game posed a lot of challenges, from delays to restrictions, to balancing the main story and Filipino representation that didn’t feel cheesy.

The praise the game recieved was well deserved. Scoring a 76 Metacritic score, critics felt awed by the interactivity of the game and how the game showcased and celebrated Filipino representation, without overdoing it. This is Polychroma Games’ first fully developed game and was an immediate success. In terms of new developments, there’s not much that Polychroma Games has revealed. Though given the success of Until Then, I am excited to see what else the indie development team has in store.