Maru Nihoniho

I am the founder of Metia Interactive and lead a team of developers that include artists and
programmers. As well as designing and developing my own games I also produce 3rd party
games both commercial and non-commercial titles across multiple platforms including
PlayStation, Apple iOS, PC, Mac and other technologies such as virtual reality.

As a games designer and producer my focus is on indigenous storytelling as culture-based
games are hugely influential and are a powerful outlet for engagement and learning. I have
published several Maori games, Sparx, to teach rangatahi how to manage depression, Maori Pa
Wars, a strategic tower defence game, Takaro to teach rangatahi about coding concepts and
Guardian Maia, interactive fiction that follows the journey of a Maori woman through a
dystopian New Zealand.

My goal is to deliver games that are meaningful, that feature strong cultural themes with
unique stories to tell. I aim to tell these stories with an authentic indigenous voice.