Red Rampant: Rewrite history in a video game set in the Scottish Wars of Independence

A recently launched Scottish video game asks the timeless question, ‘What would you do if you could rewrite history?’

Red Rampant, developed by Perth-based studio Eclectic Synthesis, takes place in the midst of the First War of Scottish Independence, just as Robert the Bruce battles for the Scottish crown.

But the result is far from guaranteed – the default outcome of the game’s narrative is the annihilation of the Scottish rebellion and the English victory.

And it is up to the player to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat and ensure the independence of the Kingdom of Scotland lives on.

“Something that has taken Jake and myself aback is just how much people have connected with the fact that Scotland is the setting of a video game,” Christopher Walker, one of the co-founders of Eclectic Synthesis, told STV News.

“Just hearing a collection of Scottish voices and hearing Scottish history being spoken about and being able to be lived—that’s what really resonated with the people who played the game so far.”

The Scottish setting was the prime focus for the creators, who felt the offering of video games set in the country was sorely lacking.

“I remember thinking a game about Robert the Bruce would be really cool and asking myself, why is there no game about that?,” says Jake McCullagh, the other co-founder of the Perth-based studio.

The game recently launched in early access on Steam. Eclectic Synthesis

“Knowing how popular Scottish cinema and TV like Braveheart is, when you go up on the street and say, ‘name a video game set in Scotland’, you’re getting 99 no’s and one yes.

“And this whole time, when we were making the game, we had just been expecting to be leapfrogged by a big studio.

“But it still hasn’t happened, and while I’m sure it will at some point, for now we are reaping all of these rewards for choosing to make a game set in Scotland.”

But players will not have to rely solely on their knowledge of history or be simply blown by the wind of fate.

The fantasy element and, at the same time, a key game mechanic is the use of a rewind drug—a potion that allows the protagonist to travel back in time.

This power of hindsight opens up new conversation options and ways to approach important decisions throughout the game; with each ‘rewind’, the protagonist gains knowledge that will allow him to change events in his favour and get past what initially seemed to be an impassable dead end.

“Having just lived through the trauma of a failed rebellion, people at the time would have no idea that the next one would be successful; they would think, ‘we’ve been beaten down, and it’s not our place or time to try and rise up again’.

“People have connected with the fact that Scotland is the setting of a video game.” Eclectic Synthesis

“And yet that whole conflict, that whole premise, is one of the reasons why the story feels so impossible itself, like the actual history books, the actual way it happened,” Jake explains.

“In our way of starting that story, there’s a lot of different ways that rebellion can go, and a perfect example of that would be the ambush of Glen Trool, where the English get ambushed by the Scots.

“In our original narrative, the way that it goes is that the Scots get ambushed by the English, and it’s up to the player to rewind, go back in time, and warn the Scots about that ambush, so it happens the other way around.

“The reason this impossible victory is possible is because of the influence of the player, and the player has to be smart to get through those puzzles—not just those massive national conflicts, but those intricate social dynamics that happen early on in the game as well.”

But the Red Rampant’s journey to its recent milestone was neither easy nor happened overnight.

It all started with a conversation between strangers at Glasgow Central on New Year’s Eve and an idea and desire to create a video game set in Scotland.

“It is still genuinely incredible to me that Jake and I have made a video game,” Chris says.

“We properly believed in it, and we wanted to get it to the point that it is now, and even if it doesn’t go anywhere beyond this, Jake and I can say that these conversations became a reality, and not many people can say that.”

The fantasy element and a key game mechanic is the use a potion that allows the protagonist to travel back in time. Eclectic Synthesis

The work on the game started in 2017, with the duo then forming Eclectic Synthesis in 2020.

Along the way, both had to work their ‘day jobs’, with Jake being a teacher and Chris working in film and TV.

“We’d finished those shifts and then had a team meeting with the coders and the designers to go through the work, see what problems were diagnosed, give solutions, and give new work for the next week, do pensions after that, and then go to bed,” explains Chris.

“It was really full on days because we just really believed in it.

“So that belief is really high, but the graft needs to go meet it.”

The idea of creating a game with no prior knowledge of the craft was daunting, but the duo was determined.

“It feels like I’m still talking about Robert the Bruce, but this whole game shouldn’t have been possible,” says Jake.

“I studied physics, he studied film and history; we kept getting told this isn’t possible, this is too ambitious.

“But every year, every milestone, the company and the game grew.

“We had a lot of great people helping us along the way, and we really appreciate the support because we would not have been able to do it without them,” he adds.

“But ultimately, we just kept trying, kept going, kept learning, and did not give up.”

The power of hindsight opens up new conversation options and ways to approach important decisions throughout the game. Eclectic Synthesis

The studio has worked with over 35 different team members to bring Red Rampant to life, including Strike Fight, historian Dr Fiona Watson, and Audio Outsource.

The team invested over £20,000 of their personal money in the game and secured another £53,000 in funding, having worked with multiple universities, including Abertay, Warwick, and De Montford, to bring the game to life.

While Eclectic Synthesis relish their recent achievement, their ambitions for Red Rampant are far from over, with a visual and animation overhaul and implementation of the combat system next on the agenda, and even plans to include Gaelic.

“I can confidently say we’re not stopping; we’re not slowing down.

“We are absolutely on our feet, energised, and ready to go with so much actionable content and so much support.”

And one of those ambitions even includes a famous Scottish comedian.

“We have this character, Frankie, this redheaded, wild-hearted man of the hills, and we dream of him being voiced by Frankie Boyle,” Jake adds.

“One day, we’ll pitch it to him, and hopefully he accepts.”