Heavily inspired by the art style and gameplay of Link’s Awakening, Mysplaced captured the hearts of gamers in order to win $50,000 at IGN and Rogue Game’s indie competition “Rogue Jam”.
Throughout the past month, the Zelda-inspired adventure went against numerous games worldwide to bid for prizes ranging from cash to publishing deals with Rogue Games. One such prize was the Audience Choice Award which let viewers vote on the hundreds of games to determine a top three. From here, a panel of judges would select which game would win the $50,000 award. The three games nominated by audiences were I am not Jelly, Cold Fortune, and of course, Mysplaced which would win the category.
The cute game follows a left-handed hero who is lost in a strange land that is plagued by an unknown evil. In order to beat this evil, the hero must travel the world, collect various items, and solve numerous puzzles. While this setup sounds a lot like a typical Zelda story, the developers believe the non-linear, Metroidvania-like, progression separates Mysplaced from its inspiration. The game also is unique from the Zelda series by releasing on the Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X/S but not the Nintendo Switch.
Unfortunately for Clear Sky Games, the judges felt like these differences did not set Mysplaced apart from Link’s Awakening enough for it to be considered in the Overall Winner Cut of Rogue Jam. Though the ultimate verdict there will be up to fans when the final game is released to the public.
