Relooted is a heist game set near the end of the 21st century where players plan and execute the theft of African artifacts from Western museums. You play as Nomali, whose troublesome little brother drags her into the world of artifact liberation after diplomacy falls apart. A Transatlantic Returns Treaty once promised the repatriation of these objects through proper channels, but an amendment changed the terms so that only publicly displayed artifacts would be returned. Museums responded by quietly removing artifacts from public display, and so a stealthier form of diplomacy became necessary.
The crew Nomali assembles is made up of everyday citizens with normal careers from different countries across Africa. Recruits range from the classic hacker to your prim and proper grandma, each bringing unique abilities to the operation. There are 70 artifacts to reclaim, all of which exist in real life and hold cultural, historical and spiritual significance to the people they were taken from. The game's hideout is based in South Africa, with parts of Johannesburg imagined in the future through an Africanfuturist setting.
Each heist unfolds in two distinct phases. First comes the planning, where players case the joint by checking the getaway route, solving puzzles and obstacles, and finding spots to position the right teammates. Once the groundwork is laid and the artifact sits waiting, taking it from its resting spot starts a countdown timer. This is where Nomali's flow based parkour abilities take over, turning the escape into something that should feel like the montage part of a heist movie. Slack on the planning phase though and the escape will punish you for it.
Every heist asks players to think before they move, recruit the right people for the job, then perform under pressure when the clock starts ticking.