“We’re trying to make people more connected and build a relationship with the game they play. » This is how Antabon Freddy Some, CEO of Baobab Games, describes the thinking behind his game “Dion”. Baobab is about creating a new reality, even if the imagination is similar to archetypal Africa.
“We are creating the ‘Black Panther’ of the industry,” says Antabon Freddy Some. His goal is to create excitement in his fictional universe and add a certain “glamour” to African culture through his survival game. There is a desire to bring this culture, which is poorly represented in the video game industry, to an audience that would benefit from learning more.
Scheduled for release in 2024 for PC platforms, this video game is a multiplayer survival game set in an area reminiscent of Africa. “Dion” develops in a fantastic world inspired by West African empires and has a strong influence of Malian culture. The player is invited to become a hunter, organize raids and discover technologies that will advance his progress, while improving his abilities using magical artifacts that grant him unknown powers. There are already several examples of survival video games on the market, such as the Viking “Valheim”, the Canadian “The Long Dark”, the British independent game “Rust” or the timeless “Minecraft”, but very few of them They are also fundamentally inspired by African culture and at the same time have just as much versatility. In fact, Baobab Games strives to innovate in the game mechanics of “Dion”. According to the creator, players can use character transformations, solve puzzles, compete against other players, and use combat to advance in the game. There is a desire to make this game unique and original. “We are also trying to work with influencers to push the concept a little further. »
It wasn’t just yesterday that Antabon Freddy Some, a somewhat reserved entrepreneur, became interested in video games. From a young age, he enjoyed creating his own codes to program games and was inspired by his favorites. In particular, to give a concrete reality to his games, he has taken the path of entrepreneurship to be able to make a career out of it. Although he began working completely independently on his game development in 2019, in the summer of 2022 he decided to take the exploratory entrepreneurial path at the Polytechnique de Montral. 12 projects received “Propolys” funding. These $5,000 scholarships are awarded thanks to the Internship and Employment Service and the Entrepreneurship Support Office. Polytechnique Montral’s entrepreneurial internship program is orchestrating this project. Antabon Freddy Some therefore received this scholarship and support as a young entrepreneur as a software engineer.
When talking about what he likes most and least about his job, Antabon Freddy Some simply answers, “Companies.” In an interview at MIGS 2023, he indicated that by far his favorite part is developing a game, the original expression he can give it and developing his creative ideas. Antabon Freddy Some is clearly driven by passion for his projects and wants to see this passion in his colleagues too: “We try to bring people together around a project that they love. » As far as running the company itself, that means a lot of time and energy that he would devote to other priorities.
Furthermore, when asked what he would do differently if it were done again, he responds very humbly on this topic. “I would take more time to perfect things. » Not long ago he was looking for a new person to run Baobab Games. Despite everything, Antabon Freddy Some appreciates the diverse networking opportunities that his job offers him. “We meet people, we create opportunities. » He therefore shares the feeling of wanting to share the work with a team that is interested in the same topics as him, without having a rigid guideline. “We enable people to do what they love. This means we are really open to creativity. » When he talks about his projects, which become reality thanks to his colleagues, you can even feel a touch of pride: “It’s really nice when the project comes to life and everyone in the company is happy.” »