The articlegameplay, story, development, reception
Gameplay
Umurangi Generation is a first-person photography game. The player is tasked with taking photos meeting specific conditions (such as photographing a particular piece of graffiti with a specific camera lens) but is otherwise free to exercise their creativity. The game allows the player multiple methods, techniques and opportunities for achieving their photography bounties, as well as complete freedom over any editing or effects put on photos. The player unlocks camera and lens attachments to achieve different effects, such as telephoto and fisheye lenses.
Story
Umurangi Generation takes place in Tauranga, New Zealand, in the near future during a time of crisis. The player takes the role of a Māori courier for the Tauranga Express. The United Nations has deployed soldiers and towering mecha to defend the island nation against alien invaders which resemble bluebottle jellyfish. The player travels around settings such as a rooftop party, a military checkpoint, a battle and an evacuation train to take pictures along with their friends, Micah, Atarau, Kete, and a chinstrap penguin named Pengi.
In-game advertisements and images provide further context, such as local resistance against the UN occupation, the prime minister being away on holiday during the crisis, and a dangerous contagious parasite epidemic. The player is punished for taking pictures of jellyfish but is otherwise free to roam and photograph.
Development
Umurangi Generation was developed by a Māori developer, Naphtali Faulkner. Faulkner developed the game in Unity in 10 months, starting full-time work on the project at the start of 2020. Before development, Faulkner worked on community apps with local Aboriginal groups, and would dabble in smaller projects in his free time. Faulkner says that Umurangi Generation is the first "real" game he's made.
Faulkner was inspired to make the game's photography system after teaching their younger cousin how to use a DSLR camera, and noting that explaining it to him felt like a video game tutorial. The gameplay was also inspired by the item management of the Arma series noting that the loadouts for characters in Arma felt like accessories that the player gets to play with minute to minute.
Reception
Umurangi Generation received "generally favorable reviews" according to review aggregator Metacritic. Fellow review aggregator OpenCritic assessed that the game received strong approval, being recommended by 88% of critics.
Khee Hoon Chan gave the game a 9/10 for GameSpot, and praised its beautiful environments and engaging photography mechanic, as well as its biting social commentary that served to reinvigorate the ideas behind cyberpunk from a new perspective.
