Dungeons of Hinterberg delivers Zelda-like puzzle design alongside a sharp narrative about the wide-ranging impacts of the tourism industry.
Luisa is on the vacation of a lifetime. After walking away from a career in law, the red-haired hero of Dungeons of Hinterberg decides to solve her quarter-life crisis with a trip to the Alps. She settles into a mountainside town, a small village that’s become a hot travel destination after a series of magical dungeons appeared out of thin air one day. It’s on that trip that Luisa is determined to find herself, finding her true calling and rediscovering the magic in her life. Sound familiar?
You don’t have to look far to find media with this kind of premise — minus the dungeons, of course. There’s a long tradition of works that romanticize travel and its healing powers, from Under the Tuscan Sun to the appalling Sex and the City 2. But Dungeons of Hinterberg is different. This isn’t another simple story of a woman finding her second act in a foreign country; it’s a much-needed deconstruction of that narrative told in a way that could only be done in a video game.
Dungeons of Hinterberg is a razor-sharp debut from developer Microbird that tackles the complexities of the tourism industry from every angle. From its impact on politics to how it backs local businesses into a corner, the action-adventure game delivers a nuanced dissection of a quiet town turned global attraction. And like any good tourist trap, it hooks players in with wondrous entertainment, from ingeniously designed dungeon puzzles to magical powers that turn its natural landscapes into amusement parks. It may not be the slickest action game, but it contains one of 2024’s most vital stories.Tourist trap
Dungeons of Hinterberg takes place in a magical realist version of the Alps rooted in folklore. After 25 dungeons suddenly pop up around town, as well as regional magic spells that any visitor can harness, Hinterberg’s mayor seizes the opportunity and turns the town into a tourist destination. That draws the attention of Luisa and other “slayers” who travel from afar to complete each dungeon. It’s advertised as a once-in-a-lifetime experience that makes visitors feel like heroes as they solve puzzles, harness abilities, and slay monsters just like The Legend of Zelda’s Link.
In reality, the situation is much more complex. Dungeons of Hinterberg’s narrative success comes from how deftly it deals with that premise across a 20-hour runtime where not a second of dialogue is wasted. Right from its opening tutorial dungeon, it’s clear that something’s not quite right about the dream scenario. A rogue earthquake makes it clear that the magic may have brought some side effects with it. Local leaders work to underplay those problems all to protect the town’s bottom line. That sets the stage for an engrossing mystery that’s finely threaded throughout the adventure.
While the premise deals in supernatural problems, those are clever stand-ins for more grounded issues surrounding the tourism industry. Locals feel their quiet way of life changing as influencers flood into town for photo ops with gaudy new landmarks. Small businesses are driven out of town as foreign-backed megastores open. There’s even an environmental consequence of it all as sudden earthquakes and magical pollution rock the town with increasing frequency. Each twist brings a new layer to Hinterberg’s mounting problems.
Luisa finds herself at the center of that conflict, and her situation is just as complex. As a tourist, she’s part of the problem. As she eats breakfast at her quaint inn and spends her days traveling to dungeons clearly marked out for her in a cutesy stamp book, locals mourn as their old way of life slips away to commercialization. But Dungeons of Hinterberg isn’t out to scold people like Luisa; it’s entirely understanding of her perspective. She’s a woman in need of a life-affirming moment, and the town holds a special power. Is it fair to shut it all down when so much healing comes from it? Is she wrong for wanting that experience?
Those questions get even more tangled when it becomes clear that Hinterberg relies on tourism to survive.
