HPP: Ayo: A Rain Tale is a game whose setting is a largely unexplored and underrepresented one in video games. Africa, specifically the Sub-Saharan region of the continent, has the rich potential to tell stories that would otherwise be unfathomable to those more accustomed to a comfortable first-world lifestyle. I was very much looking forward to playing Ayo, specifically because I think these kinds of stories need more representation and the developers have made it clear they wanted to talk about the struggle of many women in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, that being said, no amount of good intentions or an interesting setting can fix what is ultimately a very flawed platformer mechanically.
Sometimes we First World folks don’t know how good we’ve got it. Cars, computers, heaters, lotions - every kind of comfort we need and even what we don’t need are at our fingertips. All the while, there are countless communities who’d consider themselves blessed to have just a half decent source of food. Parents and their children there endure heavy labor just to live. Well, one First World game wishes to pay tribute to one such type of local hero. The kind of hero who braves treacherous miles everyday just to carry forty pounds of water back to their families. This is Ayo: A Rain Tale.
Ayo offers an engaging, worthwhile African adventure, but is marred by lack of polish.
Previously released onto Steam, the indie-made 'Ayo: A Rain Tale' is now available for iOS and Android devices.
The game looks interesting, but it's hard to tell exactly how it's supposed to play just from that video. It looks like there's a lot going on.
It seems to be a side scrolling action adventure with just left/right movement and a jump button featuring a sweeping camera for dramatic moments.
It’s a good game with simple controls, strong story and some good puzzles. A good mobile platform game
