Relooted is a video game about reclaiming African artifacts from museums

Relooted, from African studio Nyamakop, casts players as Nomali who plans heists to reclaim real African artifacts held abroad; the game combines parkour-style 2D runs with short historical briefings and features missions that include the Benin Bronzes.

Relooted is a new game from Johannesburg-based studio Nyamakop that puts players in the role of Nomali, a young parkour-skilled woman returning to a near-future Johannesburg. The game's story frames missions as efforts to reclaim real African artifacts held in Western museums and private collections. The developers say every artifact shown is based on real items, and levels begin with brief history lessons about the pieces. UNESCO is reported to estimate that between 90 and 95 per cent of African artifacts are held outside the continent, largely in Western institutions. Key points: - Nyamakop, an African-based studio, developed Relooted and centers play on Nomali and a small crew tasked with returning artifacts to their historical owners. - The game presents real artifacts; one early mission involves reclaiming two Benin Bronzes from a collection linked to the Kingdom of Benin. - Gameplay combines 2D parkour-style runs with pre-level planning, route selection, and obstacles such as drones and security systems rather than hand-to-hand combat. - Team members provide gameplay abilities (for example, a younger brother character unlocks doors and an acrobat uses a zipline to move Nomali between levels). - Developers emphasized grounding the story in real places and histories and sought to avoid turning the project into a fantasy-only portrayal of Africa. Summary: Relooted pairs fast-paced heist mechanics with short historical segments to introduce players to stories behind African artifacts and the context of repatriation efforts. Undetermined at this time.