Arriving in 2026, the Stonemachia video game has already captured the attention of the public thanks to a social communication based on the memes to an Italian dark and dreamlike imagination full of appeal. You can try the demo on steam for free. The creator of the game, Ivan Maestri, tells Fanpage.it the stories behind the development of Stonemachia.
Interview with Ivan Maestri
Game Director of Stonemachia
“Bro because the flag of Sicily is attacking me?”. This question comes from a Reel of Stonemachia, a video game that transforms Italy into a surreal and bizarre universe: In the clip in question, the Trinacria, a symbol of the Sicilian region, is trying to hit a checkered pawn armed with their sword with its legs. It’s called Zefiro and is the protagonist of the game. He must overcome the dangers of Medhelan, a land afflicted by the plague of angels.
Behind this absurd imagination there is Ivan Maestricreator and game director of Stonemachia, as well as the founder of the study Crossfall Games. A team born in 2022, composed of people from different paths, all between 25 and 30 years old. Maestri told Fanpage.it as the project was born, the cultural references that cross him and why a video game developed by a handful of young people is making the world of Italy fall in love. Stonemachia is one of the games presented a Join the indiethe event organized by Intel and MSI and dedicated to the Indie scene.
How was Crossfall Games born?
Lele, the Creator who shows himself with his avatar: “I prefer like this, people listen to what I say”
At the beginning of Stonemachia there was no Crossfall Games: for a year and a half I was alone playing the game. I had to learn everything: modeling, animation, programming. In reality, most of those aspects still of I cover me. However, at some point, I realized that I was literally going crazy. So I decided to found this very small study.
How many people are you in the team today?
Seven. They are all people who help me on fronts: narrative, design, illustration, translations and even some extra model.
Do you work in a physical study?
No, we don’t work in the office. We are simply scattered throughout Italy: I and the illustrator are from Milan. Then there are two boys from Brescia, one from Bergamo, others from Reggio Emilia and Modena. We feel on a discord server. During these calls, we develop the game, and we also have fun.
First you said that working alone at the game you were going crazy.
After I started having a team, development became increasingly healthy, healthy, even richer in points of view. Stonemachia is a first work made by people whose most of them are in the very first experiences. I myself studied history, I have nothing to do with the world of information technology and video games, if not as a player. I learned everything from scratch, closing myself in the house. Together, then we discovered the strength to be independent.
Stonemachia | The full team.
So are you without publisher?
Stonemachia is a small project made by people who have many ideas. The money would not make us work better. Yes, in the first period we looked for financiers, but then we came to the conscious choice of being independent. I wait for us to point out on our social networks through the memes. We want to be Relationableclose to the people who follow us.
Let’s go back to the beginning: how was the idea of Stonemachia born?
During an extremely difficult period of my life. I had difficulty with the university, so much so that I abandoned it and attacked myself in Stonemachia, who became a real obsession. A manna from heaven, from a creative point of view.
Why?
All my fears, my problems, became monsters, settings, situations. For this reason the game is set in Italy.
Stonemachia | The game refers to the Fromsoftware school (Elden Ring, Dark Souls), both in the dark lathes, in the game mechanics.
An Italy told through the chess, in a sense. Where does this inspiration come from?
As a child I often played chess with my father, but I was a total slap. However, when we ended a game, I always ended to play with the pawns as if they were soldiers. Hence the idea of making them fight each other, even in a disconnected way to the game of chess. A way to break the game itself: one of the stonemachia issues is to destroy the previous rules, the status quo. Then there is also a less romantic motivation.
What would it be?
At the beginning of the development I realized that the most difficult thing to do was animate the character. The legs, in particular, were the most complex thing because they did not remain well anchored to the ground. A nightmare. So I said to myself: “Let’s do the chess”. The idea therefore was born from a difficulty that I exploited and made one of the strong points of the game.
Another is certainly Italy, cited through monuments, buildings and icons, even less known, of various regions. How is the response of the international public?
It is not a secret that Italy, the artistic side, is an internationally plus. I noticed it directly when our Discord was extravated by passionate non-Italian people. We have this section of photos of people who come to visit Italy on purpose for what he has seen in the demo and in the various Stonemachia tests. Yes, there is the Colosseum, there is the Torre di Pisa, but there are also much more hidden things. Paradoxically, we received the greatest criticism from the Italian public.
How come?
Because as soon as you do not include Region X, the person who says arrives: “Eh but there is no region”. Then there are those who, fortunately, are pleased to see their city, or also others that is not that of appropriateness. I rightly also understand whoever wants to see themselves represented. Who knows if in the future with a DLC and with more money available to travel we will be able to cover all of Italy. Also because, I represented what I know well, I don’t put a region just because yes. The secret is to visit a place and learn to know it thoroughly to grasp its essence inside the game.
What was the most difficult building or monument to be built in a video game version?
From Milanese, I have always had the dream of recreating the cathedral. It is one of the first places of reference that the player sees within Stonemachia. I have redone it four times, and it’s not fun, but the version that is now is now the best. It is extremely scenic. We do not aim to create perfectly identical buildings, but to grasp its aesthetic in an artistic way.
So how does the Milan Cathedral change?
In Stonemachia it is higher, more impressive, even more pointed, just to capture its essence as a cathedral – inside which a boss is clearly hidden. Another example is a Pisan Gothic map map, even if the city is not directly mentioned.
Stoneamchia | The Milan Cathedral in the Crossfall Games video game.
The tributes to Italian culture do not only stop at the monuments and the city, right?
Italian culture permeates the whole game. Even the most current one. For example, there is a topino called Topo Corsi, in homage to Lucio Corsi. In general there are elements of the game that if you are Italian you appreciate more. It may seem ugly to say, but we have created some scenes with what they amused to us, even if abroad are more difficult to understand.
How important are feedback for you?
We have always focused a lot on this factor. We immediately released a demo when there was availability, even at the cost of losing some point, but with the perspective of testing and improving the game.
Is the majority so far positive?
For some time now the game receives extremely positive feedback. We are recognized the difficulty that a small team like ours can have in creating a 3D game, but also solidity as a team. Despite the lack of budget, despite all the problems, we continually have the positive feedback of players who pushes us to move forward, having fun.
What do you hope for the future of gaming in Italy as a developer?
For us at Crossfall Games, making a game is a beautiful thing, among the most beautiful I have ever met in life, despite being the most tiring thing in the world. Perhaps the video game is the only medium that truly welcomes a quantity of aspects of art that frightens. This awareness has prompted us to want to do others. Stonemacchina is only the first step.
And what do you dream of after Stonemachia?
Meanwhile, the dream is remaining independent as possible, because we work very well in this way. We have many very very interesting ideas, perhaps even more than Stonemachia. It should be fine, we would also be willing to expand his universe, even if I am not a fan of direct sequels. My dream, however, is to continue doing this job for as long as possible of my life, even at the cost of making some sacrifice, because it is truly a beautiful profession.
