A nun, the devil, and Russia star in the Steam Next Fest demo for the wildest story-driven game I've played in years

Indika is one of the wildest story-driven games I've played in recent memory, and its captivating demo is out now as part of Steam Next Fest.

Odd Meter's indie game starts out in an alternate version of historic Russia, where a nun is on a journey of self-discovery along with a mysterious young man. Sure, that doesn't sound so weird, but how stranger does it sound if I said the Devil himself was her companion, and the act of praying is a literal gameplay mechanic to solve platforming puzzles?

Indika has somehow become inadvertently trapped with a very violent, angry young man on her journey. The demo's beginnings don't tell you much, drip-feeding you nuggets of backstory in a move that's pretty enticing. You eventually learn that both were in some sort of accident, Indika threw away a pistol, and the man is seeking a cure from the very heavens above for his ailing body. 

To get the pair where they want to go, you need to journey through the harsh, inhospitable Russian countryside, occasionally fleeing from wolves the size of bears. There's a lot of environmental-based puzzles at work in Indika - one early moment has you mantling through abandoned houses and up ladders to find a wrench to help remove a vehicle stuck in your path, for example. 

The entire demo reaches a climax when it reveals, very casually, that the Devil is manipulating the world around you. The voice from down below can quite literally tear apart the ground you're stood on, and the only way to temporarily bind it back together is to hold down the right mouse button to pray. Sure, praying to mend the world is a little heavy-handed, but it gets the job done. 

Indika is, as you might've guessed from a game starring a nun, in direct conversation with religion. The nun and the enigmatic young man trade barbs on the topic - she ruminates on why a God so powerful wouldn't outright heal the man, while the Devil unsurprisingly pokes holes in the entire concept of God and his followers. If judging sins against one another is meritless, why do clerics dole out different punishments depending on the sin? 

Indika's enthralling demo is out right now on Steam as part of the ongoing Steam Next Fest. There's no release date or window for the game just yet, but you can always wishlist it to keep abreast of all the developments from Odd Meter.

While you're at it, read up on our upcoming indie games guide for a look over all the other small-time titles releasing in the near future.