The Croatian video game Dark Queen of Samobor has arrived on Kickstarter, and at the same time, a demo of the game has been launched, revealing more about the incredible 2.5D action-adventure world inspired by the books of August Šenoa and the myths of Barbara Celjska to the first players.
The goal is set at $10,000, which is what the Downtown Game Studio from Osijek needs to finish the final details and prepare everything for the official launch, scheduled for the first quarter of 2027.
“The demo includes one chapter of the game that lasts about half an hour. In it, players will already get a sense of what awaits them, from hack and slash gameplay to cinematic experiences. We can’t wait to hear the reactions because we are really pumped for Dark Queen of Samobor to see the light of day as soon as possible,” said Josip Vincetić, producer and chief operator of Downtown Game Studio.
There are already quite a few eager players, specifically more than 15,000 who have added Dark Queen of Samobor to their wishlist on Steam, including the author of these lines.
What’s all the hype about, you ask? First of all, the game is “local” in every sense. The creative minds behind it are the Osijek brothers Josip and Mato Vincetić, and alongside them, programmer Aleksandar Baranji and sound designer Matija Marković are working on the game. The game is co-financed by HAVC funds, and the voice of the Black Queen in the game is provided by Croatian actress Sandra Lončarić, the national champion of Drama at the Croatian National Theatre in Osijek, while the original soundtrack will be composed by the award-winning local film music composer, Dalibor Grubačević. It’s worth mentioning that a friend of Downtown Game Studio, Daniel Rafaelić, a Croatian film historian, directed them towards Šenoa and Barbara Celjska, the Croatian-Hungarian ruler who is remembered in history as the Black Queen. The number of legends associated with her is incredible, and each one is more mysterious than the last. One of the most famous is that she gave herself and the Zagreb fortress Medvedgrad, which was governed by her brother Fridrik, to the devil to save her treasure from Turkish attacks. And because of that, she found no peace even in death, but transformed into a snake queen who still guards immense wealth in the tunnels between Medvedgrad and St. Mark's Church in the Upper Town. Sounds like a perfect backdrop for a video game, doesn’t it?
Well, the story of this game is set in the time after the Crusades, and the player controls a knight who returns home to his girlfriend after a campaign. However, when he returns, he soon learns that the evil queen has kidnapped her and imprisoned her in a castle in Samobor. To save her, the knight must fight crows, snakes, skeletons, and various other creatures rooted in Slavic mythology and local folklore, as well as solve various puzzles to progress further in the story. The art itself is impressively striking and strongly reminiscent of Disney animated films, just with a slightly (or much) darker tone.
And while the character in the game has his own “hero’s journey,” the game itself has been going through one for years. As we mentioned, the creative minds are the Vincetić brothers – Mato, a construction engineer by profession, and Josip, who graduated in philosophy and English. The two grew up on the PlayStation One and titles like “Crash Bandicoot,” “Spyro,” “Tomb Raider,” and “Metal Gear Solid.” Those formative years cemented their connection to the world of video games, which then became a part of their lives. Initially just as a hobby, until they decided to take the “wheel” themselves.
“Five years ago, we both quit our jobs and started developing mobile games for major publishers. These were hypercasual, ultra-simple games, and we would make two a month. It was, in every sense, production line work, but hey, we were making video games,” recalls Josip.
Mato was in charge of art, Josip of the story, and the programming part was handled by Aleksandar from Kikinda in Serbia. The three of them developed a series of games, but all the while, there was a desire for their own title, one that would truly leave a mark in the history of the gaming industry.
They knew they wanted an atmospheric sidescroller with puzzle elements, just like "Inside," a game that thrilled all three of them. And they knew they wanted it to be related to Croatian folklore. Initially, they had the idea for the game to be connected to Ivana Brlić Mažuranić, but in the end, they went with Barbara Celjska at Rafaelić's suggestion. They submitted Dark Queen of Samobor to the HAVC competition and – they didn't pass.
Despite the rejection, they didn't give up on their idea. They continued to “grind” mobile games and resubmitted Dark Queen of Samobor in 2024 to the HAVC competition. That year, they managed to secure funding, after which they shut down all other projects and directed all their resources and time into their own game.
“Entering the gaming world is very easy – you only need a laptop and 100 dollars for a Steam account. What’s hard is staying in it. You have to gather funds for normal operation, work on the game's marketing, and deal with the challenges of development, constantly wrestling with deadlines. But still, the feeling is great because we are doing something we want and love. Each of us can at any moment throw in the towel and find a job, but we all want to be here and work on our game. No matter how tiring it is, it also nourishes us,” Josip will sincerely say.
The fact that they have no intention of leaving the gaming world is confirmed by the fact that they are already working on a new title for which they received pre-production funding from HAVC, and it is a game that will be inspired by current geopolitical events in the world. But that’s a story for another time. Now we await the arrival of the black queen of Samobor, who will certainly illuminate the face of the Croatian video game industry in the global gaming community next year.
You can support Dark Queen of Samobor on Kickstarter, and also add it to your wishlist on Steam.
