At Daedalic Days, the German developer and publisher presented six projects that deserve your attention. We present them to you.
Traditionally, the Hamburg-based publisher and developer presents its upcoming titles at the Daedalic Days. We were able to get an idea of the current range on site. All of the games presented are scheduled for release in the course of the year and do not yet have an exact date – but are already worth a look!
Table of Contents
Magin: The Rat Project
Shortly after we launched the preview of Magin: The Rat Project Stories, we hear a familiar voice. Doug Cockle, who gives voice to the main character Geralt in the English version of The Witcher, voices a supporting character in the first project by Polish developers Rat Project. The collaboration came about by chance, Daedalic tells us.
The distinctive voice contributes to the atmosphere of Magin: The Rat Project Stories. With the main character Elester, we wander through a medieval town that is part of a dark fantasy world. Elester is a kind of mercenary, but his magical abilities – called Essence – are controversial in society. This provides material for potential conflict.
These conflicts are carried out by Elester with the help of a pack of cards in turn battles. What we really like is that we get new cards through story progress and based on our decisions. This allows Essence to manifest itself in light and dark abilities.
For example, if we choose the dark option in a conversation, we subsequently receive a card with the corresponding abilities. Here a tactical component is added. For the cards have a front and a back, each of which we have to imprint with an ability.
After each decision, we can choose from three random options for the sides. An unbalanced deck can quickly affect the game. We had to notice this when the first major battle already led to multiple failures.
The production of Magin: The Rat Project Stories could quickly convince us with its atmospherically drawn world and the well-written dialogues set to music. We hope for a little more polish and detail in the fights, which seem static. However, the developers want to expand the animations, promises Daedalic.
Capes
Did we hear Xcom? The comparison is obvious with Capes. In the turn-based strategy game, we take control of a group of superheroes.
Before each battle, we have to assemble a suitable regiment of heroes. As the developer Spitfire Interactive revealed to us, the key to success is the right composition. There are tanks, heroes who deal out a lot of damage or who intervene in a more supportive way.
Character Facet, for example, feels right at home in the middle of the fray and can take a good beating or strengthen the defence of his allies. Rebound teleports himself and other heroes across the playing field, attacks quickly and disappears again.
In our test run, the different roles complemented each other well and each hero feels noticeably different. This could provide a lot of variety in the finished game and invite experimentation.
Wild Woods
Couch co-op games can”t get enough? If you think so, Wildwoods will make you happy. Up to four cat fighters defend a wooden cart pulled through a forest. At night, the furry group must keep the torch fire alive. To do this, they have to collect wood.
Which works well in Wild Woods: We get the controller in our hands and know directly what to do. Getting started is easy and the game doesn”t waste any time.
Wielding swords, we fend off the hordes of enemies that come out of the bushes of the forest and want to stop the wagon.
The boss fights and a shop where we can improve the wagon provide variety. The game is rarely challenging. The game is very accessible and fun right from the start.
Reveil
With Reveil, the developer Pixelsplit from Frankfurt has a horror game on offer that relies primarily on physical puzzles and interactions. We were impressed by the elaborate visuals and the atmospheric setting.
The protagonist finds himself at an old fair and is looking for his daughter. We soon end up in an eerie funhouse, where mirror mazes and optical illusions make the search difficult. The attention to detail quickly drew us into the world.
As the developers tell us, they researched how old attractions and arcade machines worked in order to transfer them authentically into the game.
We can interact with many things. However, it was still difficult to see what the game was asking of us and we were still dependent on the help of the developers during the test run. We hope that Pixelsplit will be able to help us a bit more in the finished game, without affecting the atmosphere of Reveil.
Wanderful
Whoever is in the mood for relaxation again after all the horror can look forward to Wanderful. So far, we have only been able to try out a very early and short alpha version of the new title by Hamburg developers Tiny Roar.
However, Wanderful definitely shows potential to excite fans of titles like Dorfromantik. We move a small wanderer who carries various building objects with him. Each of these objects reveals a part of the map that we explore.
The goal is to get to the fields where more objects are waiting. Little by little, we uncover the map. However, if at some point we have nothing more to build and there is no new object within reach, the game starts all over again.
So far we have only been able to explore a small part of Wanderful and a visually rather boring level. But the developers promise many more biomes. Among them, for example, a living creature on which we can travel with our Wanderful.
Potion Tycoon
A building game with a scurry factor is Potion Tycoon. Our job is to supply heroes and adventurers with potions. From the recipe to the bottle design, everything is in our hands.
In fact, Potion Tycoon is quite complex and in the beginning we struggled to figure out exactly where the mistakes were in our production process. With a little more time, this certainly works better, but Potion Tycoon could communicate even better with us to ensure less frustration at the beginning. Beyond that, Potion Tycoon is lovingly designed, offers a lot of humour and room for creativity.
Is there something for you at this year”s Daedalic Days? Is one of the bustling and relaxed building games perhaps your thing? Or are you looking forward to the atmospheric horror game Reveil? And are you actually looking forward to Gollum? Feel free to write us your opinion in the comments!
