The Espada universe was co-created with a creative director who’s passionate about games. When she was younger, she often heard that video games were “for boys.” But she went beyond that and discovered a passion: diving deep into the worlds of games.  

When a woman decides to step into a universe, she brings her femininity with her — in the details, in the colors, in the care she puts into everything. One of the main ideas behind Espada is that the player encounters female characters and, through them, gains a new perspective on this universe and the actions within it.  

In the game, Espada is the first character you’ll meet. She’s a strong and courageous girl who must go through a dangerous journey in order to grow. Many women face similar paths and become survivors, mothers, leaders, entrepreneurs, dreamers... Together with other incredible people, they write life stories full of meaningful memories.  

Today, the gaming world is full of women making their mark — like game developers, for example. Check out this talk about initiatives that are paving the way for women to create amazing games:  

In addition to these initiatives, many amazing women generously share their knowledge to help others create games. Our team drew a lot of inspiration from the work of Miriam Bellard, who has a background in Architecture. She creates incredible worlds for Rockstar Games and works as an art director and visual developer. Here are two videos where you can learn more about her work:  

For animation, check out the art of Mariel Kinuko Cartwright:  

Do you have a woman who inspires you in game development? Tell us in the comments of this post!  

Oh — and this post was written by a woman too! Our creative director, Ohanna. 

Cheers to all women who dare to dream beyond! 

Hi, I’m Dayvis, and my role in the development of the game Espada is that of a lore designer. But what does that mean? The lore designer is the professional responsible for creating stories and content related to the world, characters, and even objects in the game. I like to think of myself as the one who explains the whys of everything — for example: Why is a certain character older or younger? Why are the monsters pink? Why do they look like elephants, and so on?  

How do you explain a "why"?  

First, I have a meeting with the creative direction team and receive basic information about a specific item or character, usually in a document that looks a lot like a tabletop RPG character sheet. This information gives me a “direction” that I follow to create the content. During these meetings, I like to take notes on paper (this helps me retain the information better), and I use those notes while building the lore.   

Second, I carefully reread both the information I received and my notes. Then, I write a rough draft — a relatively short text that follows the flow of ideas that come to mind. This draft already has a beginning, middle, and end, but it's still a rough stone, as I like to say, full of grammar mistakes and sometimes even logic errors. After finishing this first draft, I like to take a break and do something else — especially studying (reading, watching, or listening to things related to the theme I’m writing about). After a few minutes, hours, or even a day, I return to the text, rereading it and correcting mistakes. Then I move on to polishing: choosing better words and comparisons, aligning the text more closely with the theme of Hope, which is the core of Espada. I try to include the best references possible based on what I’ve studied. If I’m satisfied, I move on to the third step. If not, I keep working until I feel the text meets the standards of the project.  

Third, I submit the text to the direction team. If it’s approved, we move on to the next text. If adjustments are needed, we make them together until everything aligns with the project’s expectations.  

This role in the development is both wonderful and challenging, as it requires attention to detail and consistency with the game’s logic. After all, when we create a story, we’re weaving a whole web of events that must be properly connected — otherwise, the player might feel lost and lose immersion in the game.  

Espada is definitely one of the most beautiful ideas I’ve ever seen, and it will absolutely be worth every second of your time. It’s a project about Hope in a turbulent and sometimes agonizing world. Our goal is to bring light and fun into every pixel.  

Enjoy the game!