In an industry often criticized for its historical lack of diversity, the story of Muriel Tramis stands as a masterclass in breaking barriers. Long before "narrative-driven games" were a buzzword, Tramis was in Paris, weaving complex tales of Caribbean history, eroticism, and social justice into the digital fabric of the 1980s and 90s.
As the first Black woman video game designer, her influence isn't just a footnote—it’s the foundation for how we tell stories through a screen.
Early Life: From Martinique to Paris
Born in Fort-de-France, Martinique, Tramis grew up in a culture rich with oral tradition and colonial complexity. She moved to Paris to pursue a career in engineering, specializing in computer science.
Before she ever touched a game engine, she worked at Aérospatiale, a major French aerospace manufacturer. There, she optimized maintenance procedures for aircraft and missiles. This background in rigorous logic and systems engineering would eventually become her "secret weapon" when she pivoted to the creative arts.
"I wanted to tell stories, but I also loved the logic of machines. Video games were the only place where those two worlds met." — Muriel Tramis (summarized from various interviews)
The Coktel Vision Years: Narrative Revolution
In 1986, Tramis joined Coktel Vision, a French development studio. This partnership birthed some of the most avant-garde and intellectually daring games of the era.
1. Mewilo (1987)
Tramis’s debut was a point-and-click adventure set in Martinique just before the 1902 eruption of Mount Pelée. Co-written with famous novelist Patrick Chamoiseau, Mewilo was revolutionary. It didn't just provide puzzles; it explored the ghosts of slavery and the tensions of colonial society.
2. Freedom: Rebels in the Darkness (1988)
Perhaps her most provocative work, Freedom puts the player in the shoes of an enslaved person on a sugar plantation. The goal? To escape.
The Contribution: It was one of the first games to tackle the horrors of the slave trade with tactical depth and historical gravity.
The Mechanics: Players had to manage "morale" and "physical strength," blending RPG elements with a harrowing survival narrative.
3. The Gobliiins Trilogy & Lost in Time
Tramis proved her versatility by pivoting to surreal, humorous puzzles (Gobliiins) and mind-bending time-travel adventures (Lost in Time). Her work helped define the "French Touch" in gaming—a style characterized by high-art aesthetics and unconventional logic.
Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Awards and Impact
In 2018, the French government recognized her immense impact by awarding her the Légion d’Honneur (Legion of Honor), France's highest merit. She was the first woman in the video game industry to receive this distinction.
Key Contributions:
Cultural Representation: She proved that games could be a medium for post-colonial literature.
The "Edu-tainment" Pioneer: Through Coktel Vision’s Adibou series, she helped design educational software that taught millions of children how to interact with computers.
Diversity in Design: She shattered the image of the "lone male programmer," bringing an intersectional Caribbean perspective to a Eurocentric industry.
Where She is Now
Today, Tramis remains a consultant and a champion for diversity. She frequently speaks on the importance of including minority voices in AI and game development to prevent the "biases of the past" from being coded into the future.
Her life is a reminder that being "the first" is rarely about the title—it's about the courage to bring your whole history, culture, and identity to the table.
Guide to Her Most Significant Titles
To truly appreciate Muriel Tramis's depth, you have to look at how she balanced "serious" historical narratives with whimsical puzzles and even avant-garde eroticism. She wasn't just a designer; she was a pioneer of the "French Touch"—a style that prioritized atmosphere and story over traditional "win/loss" mechanics.
Here is a researched guide to her most significant titles, categorized by how they shaped her legendary career.
1. The Post-Colonial Trilogy
These are her most deeply personal works, often co-written with the renowned Martinican author Patrick Chamoiseau.
Méwilo (1987): Her debut. A supernatural mystery set in 1902 Martinique. You play as a parapsychologist investigating a haunting, which serves as a gateway to discussing the island’s history of slavery.
Freedom: Rebels in the Darkness (1988): A groundbreaking tactical-adventure game. You play as a maroon (an escaped enslaved person) organizing a revolt on a sugar plantation. It was one of the first games to use "morale" and "loyalty" as core gameplay mechanics.
Lost in Time (1993): An interactive movie/adventure game. It follows Doralice, a woman who discovers she is a descendant of a 19th-century noblewoman and travels through time to uncover a family secret involving a Caribbean shipwreck.
2. The "Gobliiins" Series (Co-created with Pierre Gilhodes)
While her other games were heavy, these were pure, surreal joy. They are legendary for their "multi-character" puzzles—each goblin has one specific skill (strength, magic, or gathering), and you must coordinate them to progress.
Gobliiins (1991): Features three goblins (Asgard, Ignatus, and Oups).
Gobliins 2: The Prince Buffoon (1992): Features two main characters.
Goblins Quest 3 (1993): Focuses on a single character, Blount.
3. The Avant-Garde & Erotic Thrillers
Tramis was also a pioneer in adult-oriented gaming, using the brand name Tomahawk to separate these from Coktel Vision’s educational titles. She approached these with a "feminist gaze," subverting the typical male-centric tropes of the time.
Emmanuelle (1989): Based on the famous French character, it was an adventure game focused on sensuality and exploration.
Geisha (1990): A puzzle-adventure set in Japan, blending mystery with erotic imagery.
Fascination (1991): A high-stakes thriller where you play as a flight attendant carrying a mysterious suitcase. It’s notable for being a rare "noir" title with a female lead.
4. Educational & Mainstream Hits
Tramis was instrumental in the Adibou (AJ's World of Discovery) series, which became a staple in European classrooms in the 90s.
The Adi/Adibou Series: These games taught millions of kids math, reading, and logic. At its peak, this series held over 60% of the French "edutainment" market.
The Bizarre Adventures of Woodruff and the Schnibble (1994): A cult classic point-and-click adventure with a heavy social commentary on post-apocalyptic society and bureaucracy.
Urban Runner (1996): An ambitious interactive movie using live-action video (FMV). It was one of her most expensive projects and remains a fascinating relic of the "CD-ROM era."
How to play them today
Many of these titles are now considered Abandonware, but the gaming community has kept them alive:
ScummVM: Most of her Coktel Vision titles (especially Gobliiins and Lost in Time) are fully playable on modern PCs using the
ScummVM emulator Digital Remakes: Tramis recently expressed interest in a remake of Méwilo (titled Remembrance) to bring her Caribbean stories to a new generation.
_______________________________________________________________________
More information about "Freedom: Rebels in the Darkness" (1988)
It is shocking to me that I had never heard of Murial Tramis up until 3 or 4 days ago, but given this research "Freedom: Rebels in the Darkness" is the one will hunt down first. I was upset when Ubisoft cancelled a new "Assassin's Creed" game where you escape slavery and hunt down KKK enemies but it turns out that such a game has already been made. It appears that much of her work and products were released in Europe which also explains why she is new to me although she kicked the doors down for me and many others.
Muriel Tramis’s most politically charged work, Freedom: Rebels in the Darkness, remains a stark and ambitious piece of interactive history. It was remarkably ahead of its time, combining strategy, stealth, and side-scrolling combat to tell the story of an enslaved person organizing a revolt on an 18th-century Martinican plantation.
How to Play it Today
Because the game was released for retro systems like MS-DOS, Amiga, and Atari ST, it is no longer sold on modern storefronts like Steam. However, you can play it legally and for free via digital preservation sites:
Internet Archive (MS-DOS Version): You can play the game directly in your web browser using their integrated DOSBox emulator. This is the most stable and accessible way to experience it today.
DOS.Zone: Another browser-based option that offers a "save game" feature, allowing you to return to your progress later.
ScummVM: If you prefer to play offline, you can download the game files from an abandonware site and run them through ScummVM, which provides a polished experience on modern PC, Mac, and Linux systems.
Gameplay & Visuals
The gameplay is split into distinct phases that reflect the difficulty of the protagonist's mission:
Overhead Strategy: You navigate a map of the plantation, avoiding guard dogs and identifying key buildings.
Recruitment & Sabotage: You must interact with fellow enslaved people to build a "morale" and "loyalty" pool to start the rebellion.
You can also burn down storage huts or pick locks to gather supplies. The Combat: If you are caught by guards or decide to confront the masters, the view switches to a side-on fighting game style (reminiscent of early Street Fighter or Prince of Persia).
Gameplay Video
To see Muriel Tramis’s vision in action—specifically the unique interface and the transition from strategy to combat—you can watch this archival footage:
Amiga Longplay (Full Walkthrough):
Watch on YouTube Modern Critique & Gameplay:
Watch on YouTube
_______________________________________________________________________
Sources for Further Reading:
The Guardian: "Muriel Tramis: The pioneer who brought colonialism to video games."
CNC (Centre National du Cinéma et de l'image animée): Historical archives on Coktel Vision.
Rhizome: Digital preservation of Freedom: Rebels in the Darkness.
Would you like me to research a specific list of games she worked on to help you track down some of these retro classics?
No comments:
Post a Comment