The story of All Will Rise opens with a symbolic triumph. Lawyer Kuyili convinces a court that a river flowing through the fictionalised Indian city of Muziris should be granted the same rights as a person. Her argument draws on legal precedent—after all, corporations can be treated as people in court. Yet, just as the victory begins to resonate, disaster strikes. An oil spill pollutes the river, ignites, and spreads toxic smoke across communities, forcing Kuyili and her team to investigate the forces behind the catastrophe.
A Deck-Building Game About Arguments
At its heart, All Will Rise is not about battles or gunfire, but words. Designed as a deck-building game, players collect “argument cards” by sending Kuyili and her colleagues to different members of the community. These cards form the backbone of conversations—claims can stir emotions, challenge corruption, or fall flat depending on the evidence gathered. Unlike the dramatic courtroom cries of Ace Attorney, persuasion here is grounded in nuance, credibility, and collaboration.
Conversations, Exhaustion, and the Energy of Activism
Dialogue in the game isn’t just strategic—it’s emotional. Characters expend energy with every exchange, mirroring the real-life toll of activism and the weight of staying informed. Narrative director Meghna Jayanth frames it as both painful and empowering: “Looking at the state of the world, we experience the same pain as everyone else. But every time we meet, we feel stronger, happier. Don’t stay alone—organise, collaborate.”
This ethos shapes the game’s design. Conversations are portrayed less as confrontations and more as partnerships—what the developers describe as finding a gesprekspartner, a “conversational partner” who makes dialogue meaningful.
Verbal sparring … All Will Rise. Photograph: Speculative Agency
Stories Across Borders
Though the first chapter is set in India, All Will Rise aims to tell stories from across the globe. Future cases may highlight environmental struggles in Puerto Rico, the Netherlands, and even Nigeria, exploring themes from biodiversity loss to deep-sea mining. The developers insist that grounding these stories in the countries they themselves come from is key to authenticity.
Moving Beyond Doom and Oversimplification
Speculative Agency, the studio behind the project, believes most climate-themed games fall into two oversimplified categories: “toxic wasteland” scenarios where hope is absent, or “green god games” where players act as all-powerful beings who can magically solve crises. Instead, All Will Rise seeks to capture the messy, communal process of activism—where no single hero saves the world, but collective voices can.
‘Inappropriately joyful’ … All Will Rise. Photograph: Speculative Agency
Joy and Rage as Fuel for Change
Despite tackling heavy topics, the team describes the game as “inappropriately joyful.” Jayanth argues that joy, alongside rage, is essential fuel for transformation: “If we look at the world right now, it might seem inappropriate to feel joy. But joy powers transformation. Hope is the only useful political response.”
A Call to Action
More than a game, All Will Rise is positioned as a tool to inspire real-world activism. The developers hope players will leave the experience not just entertained but motivated to take part in community action—whether through protests, organising, or quieter forms of resistance.
Speculative Agency plans to launch a Kickstarter campaign to support development, with release confirmed for PC but no set date yet. What is clear, however, is the ambition: to prove that games can be more than escapism—they can be a training ground for hope.