South of Midnight's heroine isn't much of a hero at all, because its devs thought it was "good to not have a Chosen One"

The developers behind action-adventure game South of Midnight said they thought it was important that their hero wasn't a 'Chosen One' - because sometimes you just need someone to listen to your problems.

In an interview for the Future Games Show Spring Showcase - Live from GDC, Compulsion Games writer Zaire Lanier introduced main character Hazel, who's "in this weird liminal space between [being] a kid and becoming an adult." Crucially, Hazel is "not a superhero, she's a pretty normal kid, and she's just focusing on finding her mom."

• Wishlist South of Midnight on Steam now

Lanier explains that Compulsion "thought it was good to not have a Chosen One" because the studio preferred the idea that "anyone can be a Weaver, it's something that the land will choose for you, when you're in a time of deep need. So Hazel, when she's chasing after her mom's trailer in the hurricane, the land chooses her."

It's kind of at random, she blinks and you can see the strands in the sky. Weavers are able to see the fabric of the universe - we call it the grand tapestry - and they're able to manipulate those strands to do various types of spells. Their mission is that they heal stigma in the land where bad things have happened.

[Weavers] are able to see into your traumas. They don't fix your traumas for you, only you can do that, but they listen to your story, they see your story, they get to see those memories, and I think sometimes that's what you need."

The wait for South of Midnight is almost over, as its release date is almost upon us - you'll be able to play from April 8.

If you’re looking for more excellent games from today's Future Games Show, have a look at our official Steam page.