The first-person soccer-based adventure game Despelote is set to be making its way to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series S/X, and PC sometime in 2024. Developed by Julian Cordero and Sebastian Valbuena Despelote definitely has an interesting premise and a stylized art style. The thought of a first-person sports game is an exciting concept and publisher Panic must think so as well since they’re publishing the game. Panic is best known for publishing much beloved titles like Untitled Goose Game and Firewatch as well as the upcoming title Nour: Play With Your Food which is set to release sometime in 2023.
In a PlayStation blog post Nick Suttner, Head of Publishing at Panic described Despelote as “a beautiful slice-of-life adventure about childhood, and the magical grip that soccer held over the people of Quito, Ecuador in 2001. Right from their first pitch, we were instantly transported by the work of its creators, Julián Cordero & Sebastian Valbuena. As a semi-autobiographical story of Julián’s childhood, it feels deeply authentic to a specific time and place – while also managing to feel universal in many respects, as you wander the streets of Quito, getting caught up in mischief and soaking in the local culture.”
Despelote is set to focus heavily on making dribbling, passing, and kicking a soccer ball in first-person feel great. Alongside this, you’ll also get the chance to participate in some funny interactions as you explore the town of Quito, Ecuador as the country celebrates its first time qualifying for the World Cup.
The game is definitely looking to really tell a unique story here as the visuals and textures are inspired by reference photos of the time as well as some actual textures being captured on-site in Quito. Alongside this, the game’s developers also wanted to create an authentic audio ambiance with recordings of real conversations and ambiance being present in the game. It’s also voiced entirely in Spanish with localized subtitles.
If you’re a soccer fan you’ll be sure to get something out of Despelote but even if you’re not the narrative and rich cultural storytelling this game is aiming to portray may be of great interest to those who aren’t even into the sport itself. There’s more information to be revealed in the future but for the time being, all we know is that the game is set to release in 2024 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series S/X, and PC.
