Hi,
We're a small Kenyan game studio. Well, "studio" is a generous word. It's only a few of us with laptops, a dream, and a dangerously high caffeine intake. Our website is on Netlify. Our email is @gmail. We're figuring this out as we go.
But we're building something we truly believe in.
Before Uhuru: an RTS-FPS hybrid set during Kenya's struggle for independence.
You probably have some serious questions. Let's dive in.
Why We're Making This
We grew up hearing stories. Our grandparents told us about the forests of Aberdare, the oathing ceremonies, the night raids, and the price that was paid so that we could hold our heads high in our own country.
Well, at least some of us.
Most of our generation, and probably the ones coming after us, only learned or will learn about colonialism from school. A chapter in a textbook. A few paragraphs about the Mau Mau. A date to memorize: December 12, 1963.
And that's it.
The education system gave us the what but never the who, the how, or the why. We learned that independence happened. We never learned what it cost.
This is the problem we're trying to solve with Before Uhuru.
So let's look at the global gaming landscape. We see a massive void. There are hundreds of games about World War II, about the American Revolution, about Vietnam. Entire franchises are built on European and American history. But where is Africa? Where is the story of the Mau Mau? Where is the story of the people who bled so that Uhuru could be a reality?
We decided to fill that void.
Before Uhuru is our attempt to document, honor, and share the journey of our people toward self-determination. It is not a lecture. It is not propaganda. It is a game; one that we believe will entertain, challenge, and educate players around the world. No cap.
What We're Building
Before Uhuru is a hybrid RTS-FPS. Here's what that means in practice:
- As a Commander (RTS mode): You oversee the broader campaign. You manage resources, build hidden camps, recruit fighters, and plan attacks on colonial outposts. You watch from above, coordinating squads across the Rift Valley, Mount Kenya, and the coast of Mombasa.
- As a Fighter (FPS mode): At any moment, you can drop into the body of a single soldier. You feel the weight of a captured Lee-Enfield. You navigate dense bamboo forests. You pull the trigger yourself. Every shot matters, because ammunition is scarce and your life is fragile.
This duality: macro strategy and micro intensity, mirrors the reality of the struggle. Our fighters weren't just soldiers; they were commanders, scouts, medics, and saboteurs. We want you to experience that versatility.
The Moral Line
Let's address the elephant in the room.
Someone: "Isn't this game anti-British propaganda?"
Us: No. It is pro-independence.
The campaign of Before Uhuru follows the journey toward Kenya's independence. In that story, the colonizers are the obstacle. The rebels are the heroes. That isn't propaganda that is history. It is no different than a WWII game casting the Allies as the heroes and the Axis as the enemy. Nobody calls Medal of Honor "anti-German." We are simply telling our story from our perspective.
However, we are not singling out the British. Before Uhuru is the first chapter of a larger franchise about decolonization around the world. Future chapters will explore but not limited to:
- The American Revolution
- Before Uhuru: Uganda's, Tanzania's independence
- Vietnam's liberation from French rule
- Algeria's war of independence
- India's struggle against British rule
This franchise is not a vendetta against any one nation. It is a study of empire itself and the universal human desire to be free.
Complexity, Not Sanitization
On the other hand, we are not making a fairy tale. We understand our history is complicated.
The Mau Mau Uprising was brutal. There were internal ethnic tensions. There were collaborators. There were oaths, violence, and difficult moral choices. We do not shy away from any of this.
Our game includes multiple playable Kenyan factions: Kikuyu, Luo, Maasai, and Swahili coastal communities among others, each with their own goals and grievances. The path to Uhuru was not a united march; it was a fragile coalition held together by a shared dream. We want players to understand that.
We also acknowledge controversial historical figures. For example Wangu wa Makeri, the female Kikuyu headman during the colonial period. She was a tax collector who worked with the British. She was a product of her time, and her story is complex. We will not erase her. We will present her as history remembers her: a woman navigating an impossible system.
We trust our players to handle complexity. We will not insult them with base heroes and cartoon villains.
Why the Hybrid Genre Fits This Story
We chose the RTS-FPS hybrid for a reason.
The struggle for independence was not a conventional war. It was asymmetric. The British had artillery, machine guns, and supply lines. We had the terrain, the will, and the element of surprise.
- In RTS mode, you feel the weight of command. You face impossible odds. You make do with captured weapons and makeshift camps. You learn to use the geography, the escarpments, the forests, the savannah as your shield.
- In FPS mode, you feel the fragility of resistance. One bullet can end you. Every shot must count. You are not a super-soldier; you are a human being fighting for something bigger than yourself.
Authenticity
We are not outsiders telling a story we read in a book. We are a community preserving the memory of our ancestors.
We will be working closely with:
- The Kenya National Archives
- Historians from the University of Nairobi
- Elders from communities affected by the Emergency
- Cultural advisors representing the diverse ethnic groups of Kenya and many others.
Every weapon, every uniform, every location, and every mission is researched to the best of our ability. We will include deep codex entries for players who want to learn more. We will provide historical context and trigger warnings where appropriate.
The Roadmap: Kenya First, Then the World
We are starting with Kenya because it is our home. It is the story we know best. But we envision Before Uhuru as a 10-year franchise that explores the global struggle against colonialism.
After that, we turn our attention to the world. The American Revolution. The Algerian War. The Vietnam War. India's independence.
Each game will share the same core mechanics but adapt to the unique geography, technology, and politics of that conflict. We want players to understand that colonialism was not a singular event; it was a global system. And its end was a global struggle.
Dear The Public
We know this game will face scrutiny. We know some people will misunderstand our intentions. We accept that.
That will not stop us.
- We will tell our story honestly. We will not sanitize, but we will not sensationalize.
- We will respect the victims of colonial brutality. This game is made in their memory, not at their expense.
- We will treat all cultures with dignity. Our portrayal of European colonizers is critical, but not caricatured. Our portrayal of Kenyan communities is respectful, but not romanticized.
- We will welcome feedback. This is a living project, and we are listening.
Are You in Love? Join Us
If you are Kenyan, this is your story. We invite you to play it, to share your family's memories, and to help us make it as accurate and meaningful as possible.
If you are not Kenyan, we invite you to learn. We are proud of our history, and we want to share it with the world.
Before Uhuru is a reclamation of our past and a bridge to our future.
We hope you'll walk it with us.