The game’s soundtrack produced by Sebastian Valbuena will also be launching on Steam, Spotify, and Bandcamp on the same day.
that feel when despelote arrives on the Nintendo Switch family of systems before the end of the year
Pictured: Julián Cordero (despelote), Gabe Cuzzillo (despelote, Baby Steps), Kenny Sun (Ball x Pit, Gabe's Roomate, not a developer on despelote)
Reviewer's Note: despelote will take about 2 hours to finish
despelote is one of the year’s best reviewed games with an 89 on Metacritic, and was nominated at The Game Awards 2025 for Best Debut Indie Game and Games For Impact. It also received a Best Indie nomination at the Golden Joysticks, and received four nominations at the 2025 IGF Awards, winning for Excellence in Audio. Additionally, it was a part of the 2023 Tribeca Festival selection and received a Special Jury Mention at the festival, a Special Mention at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, and a finalist for Best Game from Latin America at the 2024 gamescom LATAM Big Festival.
About despelote
despelote is a soccer game about people. Get immersed in the streets and parks of Quito through the eyes and ears of eight year old Julián. Dribble, pass and shoot your soccer ball around town, and see what happens when you kick it someone's way. Feel the city change as Ecuador comes closer than ever to qualifying for the World Cup.
Features:
- A bittersweet and sometimes dreamy semi-autobiographical tale of youth.
- Explore a dense town space at your leisure, full of activities, interactions, and mischief to get up to.
- A physics-based soccer ball that feels good to kick around in a first-person perspective.
- A vibrant world full of characters that have funny, and genuine conversations.
- Photos and audio recorded on location in Ecuador are used to create a strong sense of place.
For more information on despelote, visit http://despelotegame.com/.
Find the game on Steam, Xbox, PlayStation, Epic Games Store, and Nintendo Switch.
About the despelote team
Julián Cordero is a game designer born and raised in Quito, Ecuador and based in NYC. When he started playing with the idea of making a game about his experiences with soccer growing up, he approached Sebastián Valbuena, an animator and musician based in Quito. Together, they set out to make a game that captures the city’s culture and atmosphere as honestly as they could. The team has grown throughout the years, with Gabe Cuzzillo joining as a producer to help consolidate the project’s vision, and Ian Berman and Niall Tessier-Lavigne helping out with sound design and programming.
About Panic Inc.
Founded in 1999, Panic is an ancient startup in Portland, Oregon that loves to make nice things and bring people everyday joy. Originally — and still — a Mac app developer, Panic has also become a highly-focused video game publisher that helped release games like Thank Goodness You’re Here! and Untitled Goose Game into the world, with more on the horizon including Big Walk. And in the ultimate spirit of creating products that bring joy, Panic has also created its very own handheld video game system: Playdate.
Visit their website: https://panic.com/
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