Ara History Untold developed by Oxide Games and published by Xbox Game Studios, which aims to be a competitor to Civilization will feature a so-called “non-binary” leader.
A screenshot of Ara: History Untold (2024), Oxide Games
The game, which releases later this month, features a Game Pass trophy called Barbenheimer that requires players bombard cities 100 times as a female or non-binary leader according to True Trophies. The trophy provides 20 gamerscore.
It’s unclear which historical figure Oxide Games is turning into a so-called non-binary individual. In its Gamescom showcase, the company revealed a number of historical figures that will be leaders including Sappho, Itzcoatl, Wu Zetian, Nefertiti, Elizabeth I, Jeanne d’Arc, Otto von Bismarck, Yaa Asantweaa, Tokugawa Ieyasu, and Shaka.
Other leaders confirmed for the game include Alexander The Great, Amaninenas, Ashoka, Askia Muhammad I, Benito Juarez, Boudicco, Catherine the Great, Cesare Beccaria, Charlemagne, Confucius, Elizabeth I, Eva Peron, Gneghis Khan, George Washington, Hallie Selassie, Harriet Tubman, Harun al-Rashid, Hildegard von Blingen, Howard Florey, Irene Sarantocopechaina, Isabella I, John A. Macdonald, Julius Caesar, Leopold I, Nefertiti, Nicolaus Copernicus, Osh-Tisch, Pachacuti, Xu Fu, Pyrrhus of Epirus, Ram Khamhaeng, Sejong the Great, Zenobia, Simon Bolivar, and Zhang Qian.
As for how the game approaches history, the company’s Narrative Designer and Historian Grace Rojas explained, “In my eyes, history is about storytelling. It’s a common misconception that history is strictly about the facts and figures, or in the case of a game like ours, the victors and the losers. But history goes way beyond that.”
She added, “To truly understand history, we must also be willing to dive deep into the past and acknowledging and examining pieces of the story that can often be overlooked, and how that information contributed to the development of the world as we know it.”
Rojas continued, “Another piece, which was key to our approach for this game, was ensuring that the information we present to the players is as accurate and unbiased as possible.”
“I do want to acknowledge thought that history itself can be biased for a variety of reasons, but we worked tirelessly to ensure that we present to the world accurate and respectful representations of the cultures and people we decided to highlight,” she said.
“To do this we worked with a mix of primary and secondary sources. We consulted with experts on the subject matter and we received feedback from folks who have ties to the regions we cover and so much more,” Rojas relayed.
A screenshot of Ara: History Untold (2024), Oxide Games
Speaking specifically on the leaders that they chose, Rojas was asked if there were any that she was particularly excited to include.
She responded, “During this election process, I was really stoked to see leaders like Benito Juarez, Sappho, and Sejong the Great.”
Rojas went on to explain that “every leader’s personality traits are driven by research into their real world history, and each leader’s unique leader ability speaks to one of their great accomplishments as leaders. The initial relationships between leaders are impacted by how much they may or may not not have in common with each other and it also impacts the way that their AI chooses to pursue prestige and ultimately victory.”
Later in the video, Rojas declared, “Ultimately, we’re trying to render a living world with authentic historicity, which includes little moments of levity, but also really fine details discovered during the research of the game.”
A screenshot of Ara: History Untold (2024), Oxide Games
What do you make of Oxide Games including a so-called “non-binary” historical leader in Ara: History Untold?
