Even in darkness, look for the light – Pride '25

Andy Scarlett
Jun 1
4 min read

Every year at Flat Reality, we publish a lot of content in honor of Pride Month. For us, it's a great opportunity to remind people once again, but with greater visibility, what we do and what we want to convey. My name is Andy, and I'm the head of our game studio. I want to share something even more personal and candid with you, as I have done in my game stories, but now in text format.

I want this Pride Month to be not only an incredibly exciting celebration, but also a reminder of why it exists and “what we are proud of.”

How we do it at The Nick: Chapter 1

I myself come from a part of the world where the word “love” is often whispered. Where being yourself is a risk. Where teenagers fall in love while hiding, often even from themselves. Where history is always under a gray sky — whether it's full-scale war, conservatism, or banal silence in response to a cry.

I didn't create The Nick as a game. I created it as a cry, a confession. As an act of desperate desire to be understood. For me, it's not just a story with a queer character. It's about how horror can seem like the only language when there are no words to express pain. Despite the fact that this is an indie project, I wanted to reflect a lot of the real world in it.

The story as a whole turned out to be a mirror of me and my vision of the world. A huge abandoned mansion where normal life seems to have lost all meaning. There are no rules. There is no safety. There is no future. Only ghosts and the dead. But among all this — one (?) living soul. And it is she who brings to life everything that long seemed dead. It was important for me to show that even in a world where it seems that there is no place for us — we are here. We were here. We remain here. Queer people are not a metaphor or an “agenda.” We are part of this world. Even the darkest one. And sometimes we are its last spark of humanity.

In The Nick, there are characters who don't just “represent.” They survive. They live. They love, they fear, they make mistakes. And in their mistakes — there is me. In their fears — there is mine. And in their love — mine. Am I saying that they are all good? No. Everyone has their own opinion about the actions of each character. But they are honest and sincere with you as players, and they are alive. They were literally created from the reality in which we find ourselves.

I don't want to talk about which of them are queer and how, because it's not a checkbox on a DEI chart. It's not an “agenda.” It's the truth. It lives in the details and dialogues. In the silence. In the fact that we wrote some scenes with trembling fingers. Because the truth is always fragile. But if you protect it, it becomes light.

I want the industry to hear these stories too. Not stories of brave heroes, but stories of survival. We are not an American studio with hundreds of people and bold marketing decisions. We are from Eastern Europe. From grayness, pain, tension, from “don't stick your neck out.” But in all this, we found a voice. And in that voice are queer people. Not because it's “necessary.” But because otherwise it would be a lie.

In The Nick, the presence of LGBTQIA+ is an integral part of the story and gameplay. And without it, the game simply could not exist.

Announcement: RAIN HEART in development

Along with actively working on the sequel to The Nick, our studio has been working on a new pixel art RPG game for a long time.

I have hardly spoken about this project publicly. Perhaps because RAIN HEART is a game that contains too much of the real me. And when I realized that, it scared me. But now, during Pride Month, I want to talk about it for the first time.

It will be a story. The story of a boy named Alex, who grew up in a small, cramped, isolated town. Where houses are peeling away from time. Where the air is constantly heavy and anxious. Where even the light seems foreign. It will be his journey — from birth to adulthood. A journey through fear, silence, shame, and loneliness. Through attempts to be heard. Through walls that others build around you. And those that you begin to build yourself.

RAIN HEART is a horror story, yes. But it's not about monsters. It's about people. About the shadows left by the words of others. About pain that is not visible from the outside. About how easy it is to get bogged down in silence. About how difficult it is to constantly stand up for the right not to hide your body.

For some of you, it will be just a game. But for me, it's an attempt to relive my life. This time — honestly, after some time, when I have gathered strength and can look at everything again.

I won't explain what it's about. But maybe you'll feel it for yourselves. Especially if you were once afraid to be yourselves. If you once hid behind other people's masks for fear of being left alone and defenseless. If you once believed that even in the coldest heart there can still be room for warmth.

My team and I will tell you more about the project later. Right now, I just wanted to share this raw emotion. Alex is one of my favorite lyrical heroes in all my stories, including games. I watched his journey with awe while creating this story, and I can truly take inspiration from him. You'll see for yourselves very soon.