Two Falls game Montreal
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Two Falls is the first video game to feature an Indigenous Canadian perspective

by Natalia Yanchak

Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) is a narrative exploration game developed by Mile End’s Unreliable Narrators Games.

Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) is a narrative exploration game in which you follow the story of two characters whose paths intersect: that of Jeanne, a young shipwrecked Frenchwoman who finds herself stranded far from the French colonies, and Maïkan, an Innu hunter who tries to cope with the rapid changes that threaten the land of his ancestors.

With an interactive movie feel, players will explore the wild Canadian territory through the two radically different points of view of Jeanne and Maïkan. As you cycle between protagonists, you find they each have their own distinct artistic directions, which immerses the player into each character’s perspectives. 

Detective-like scene inspections and branching narrative paths are the main gameplay mechanics, with indie titles like Firewatch and What Remains of Edith Finch as definite inspirations. With an expected playthrough time of between four to nine hours, the singleplayer game is replayable due to your choices directly impacting each character’s traits. 

In the most basic and broad terms, Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) might be described as Valheim meets Pocahontas — Valhiem for the experience of surviving in the brutal majesty of nature, and Pocahontas for giving larger audiences access to an Indigenous story in the face of colonialism. And while Pocahontas does a great job of whitewashing the past, it also reminds us of the power and importance of empathy, as Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) does.

The studio behind the game, Unreliable Narrators, is based in Mile End, and is a member of the Indie Asylum co-operative group. Employing about 20 developers, the studio has been making headlines recently, touting Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) as the “first” video game to incorporate Indigenous perspectives.

Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) was made by a team that included many Indigenous creators: composer Eadsé, 3D artists at Awastoki, actors and Wendat writer Isabelle Picard. The project was also supported by a Council of Innu and Wendat Elders and other Indigenous partners, including the Tshakapesh Institute, who ensured that the Innu culture, traditions and legends of these people were respected. They helped the developers by advising and guiding which versions of the story to put forward. 

In an interview with Unreal Engine, game designer Francis Rufiange offers a local perspective: “Our heritage as a French Canadian Studio definitely made Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) the right story to tell for us. Many of us grew up here and learned in school about the fascinating stories of the first settlers arriving in Canada, with coureurs des bois — fur traders — surviving long and arduous journeys in the wilderness. But we also learned, in much less detail unfortunately, about the tragedy of colonization and religious conversion.”

Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) hopes to encourage more dialogue about reconciliation by providing a unique opportunity for accessibility to their stories in an educational setting. “We really want to work with schools to integrate it into the curriculum so that teachers can use it to spark conversation with the students,” says the game’s general director Kim Berthiaume. ■

Two Falls is the first video game to feature an Indigenous Canadian perspective

Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) is available now on Steam and on the Epic Games store, and coming to consoles later this year. This article was originally published in the Dec. 2024 issue of Cult MTL.

For more Montreal arts coverage, please visit the Arts & Life section.

Posted in :game jam, Gaming

by Natalia Yanchak

Contributor
Natalia is a science fiction and video game writer who also plays in a rock band called The Dears.