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Heart of the unliving5/1/2023 These points are fortifications that often stop you from becoming a undead Zerg rush extravaganza, denying your horde. “All right boys, y’all need to bull rush the villagers and stab them with your pitchforks and I’ll go raid their fridge” Although you might think the only strategy is snowball and steamroll, there are several points in the game that you need to stop and think rather than bull-rushing it. You’ve got a couple of skeletons just to make sure you get your bearings and learn the controls. Having multiple trial-and-error runs might diminish The Unliving‘s stronger aspects. My big concern is that the hyper-randomization of roguelikes could create fatigue and frustration in a game that already has a solid core gameplay experience. I do have concerns about the rogue-like elements raised from information in a developer interview. After reaching a certain point of the beta level, you can exchange your gold for some power and also buy health and mana. My experience of The Unliving‘s rogue-lite elements for the most part was in choosing skills. It’s pretty important to have army organization in a game where you’re organizing an army. I can forgive this since it is a beta, but hopefully the developers have some solution to this problem. There’s no way to command your fighters and brutes to take the front and protect your archers in the back. One mechanical limitation is the fact that the game does not give you any formation commands and organizing commands for your undead army. It’s a bit tricky to get the timing right, but it’s very fun. For instance, I discovered that you can hurl nearby minions and also detonate them upon your enemies. Some aspects were a little less intuitive until I started experimenting. The gist of the game is to your make and gather your horde, guide it, and Zerg rush it (most of the time), from point A to B. The middle mouse tells the horde to hold position. Left click fires your primary spell to damage enemies and barricades and right click instructs movement for your horde. The R key also functions as your interact button, opening chests, initiating resurrections, and interacting with the shop. You also have a dodge button (spacebar) that allows you to evade projectiles in a satisfying way. The keyboard controls your movement with the WASD keys and your skills with the QERF keys. The game is sort of like a Twin-Stick Shooter mixed with an ARPG, making it mechanically unique. Mechanics: When I’m Necromacin’, Everyone’s Dancin’ Additionally, the game could benefit from sound effects for when skills come off of cooldown. I’ll give it a pass since it’s still in the beta phase. While there are quality sound effects and responses, I found myself wanting a few more grunts and growls on certain minions that you control. The sound design of the current build is gothic and promising, but nothing particularly noteworthy. Sound: Get Out There and Shred! It’s a zombie footloose! Slight adjustments to the hue of certain icons can fix this. One critique though: the UI needs a bit of tinkering since there are elements in the HUD that are a bit bland, giving some options a sort of “greyed-out” appearance. I gotta give props to the developers and their artists who brought to life a fantastic design language that is vivid and gloomy readable and functional. They’re easy to identify, but not distracting. They also fit seamlessly, contrasting with the nighttime color palette without detracting from the game’s overall look and feel. On the opposite side, you have the design of the human enemies. Speaking of the necromancer, I dig the character design - he kinda has the look of one of the ghoul members of the band Ghost B.C. It’s all tied together well with little details, like the ornate bone-motif armor of the main character necromancer. The sea of greens and purples give the feeling of something unnatural and undead while also complementing the nighttime shades of the environment. The color palette, character designs, pixelated sprites, and digital art all work together wondrously. Art Presentation: Delicious the Riches, they Glisten Ahead From the tabletop to ARPG games, there are many titles that explore the archetype, but few that make playing a necromancer and controlling their minions focused and direct. The concept of The Unliving is strong and simple, hyper-focusing on the single fantasy archetype that other people like myself are dying to play: the necromancer. Recently, I was lucky enough to acquire a beta copy of a game that I really wanted to play. Raise the undead, use numerous spells, and explore a mystical world, all realized with darkly extravagant pixel-art. The Unliving is a dynamic rogue-lite action RPG with strategic elements.
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