Like so many games, A Long Journey to an Uncertain End begins with character creation. But, unlike many games, this one actually gets it right.
Over the years, character creation tools have changed and improved to better reflect the diversity of the tens of millions of people that play games every day. If a game wants us to be ourselves, we need the tools to achieve this. Yet there remain some limitations.
Many games still assign character traits based on gender, for instance. Most recently, Cyberpunk 2077 has offered more extensive options when it comes to allowing us to pick and choose our genitalia, but is still reductive in assigning pronouns based on your choice of male or female voice.
A Long Journey to an Uncertain End shows the future of character creation. A space opera narrative game from indie developer Crispy Creative, it has just hit its Kickstarter goal and is set to be released later this year, with a free demo available to play. The game is indebted to the great sci-fi novels and films of the past, but revels in a more inclusive future.