There is a new sign of life from Witchfire. In a huge Q&A the developers inform about release, gameplay, co-op and more.
More than two years have passed since there was last a relevant sign of life from Witchfire. Back then, the developers of The Astronauts (The Vanishing of Ethan Carter) showed fresh gameplay of the fast-paced shooter before the radio silence set in.
Now there’s new information: In an astonishingly comprehensive and at the same time extremely funny Q&A, Witchfire was shown in its current state – and it should whet the appetite of shooter fans for more.
Before reading the numerous new details, however, you should first get into the right mood with the trailer that was released back in 2017. Despite its age, it still gives a good impression of how fast-paced Witchfire is supposed to be.
Shooter with Roguelite elements
Until now, Witchfire presented itself as a purebred first-person shooter. This is still the case, but as the Q&A reveals, the game will also have some Roguelite elements. However, this does not mean procedurally generated levels or permadeath. Rather, one refers to the way in which the player’s punishment for dying will turn out.
Those who fear losing all the progress they have earned in the event of defeat can breathe a sigh of relief. For the developers emphasise the -lite in Roguelite and assure you that you will not have to expect any draconian measures. In all likelihood, you will be able to keep the upgrades you have unlocked. Concrete details about the effects of your character’s death, however, are not given.
More info from the new Q&A
Let’s get to the more info that can be found in the (new blog entry). Numerous fans have asked questions, some of which have been answered very entertainingly by the developers. Since there is a lot of news, we list them for you in the following:
General
- Release and Early Access: An Early Access phase is scheduled to start in the fourth quarter of 2022. The final release has not yet been fixed, but should accordingly not take place until 2023 at the earliest. The decision for an early access phase makes sense, since the focus in Witchfire is on the fluid Roguelite gameplay loop. This makes it all the more important to gather feedback from players who have already played titles like Hades or Dead Cells.
- NFTs and Metaverse: The two most controversial topics in the games industry are also discussed. They emphasise in no uncertain terms that Witchfire will have nothing to do with NFTs or the Metaverse
Gameplay
- Koop: Now some bad news for some people. There will most likely be no co-op mode in Witchfire. The effort for this is currently too great, but they are keeping a foot in the door by writing with a view to a post-launch time: Never say never!
- Inventory: If you like to accumulate all kinds of junk and can’t part with anything, you can rejoice. Your inventory will not be limited – with exceptions such as the equipment you’ve created.
- Weapons and upgrades: It is not yet known how many weapons you will be able to use against the monsters. According to the developers, there should definitely be more than five. To ensure long-lasting shooting fun, you can also equip your guns with upgrades. The same goes for your spells.
- Play with the elements: Players should be able to experiment with the various forces of nature as part of the spells. Water + electricity? A deadly combination. And what do you do when an opponent is frozen to ice? Shoot them with a heavy gun, of course.
- How much lard is behind the facade? Anyone looking at the footage and video footage so far might come to the conclusion that Witchfire is going to be a brains-out-and-continuous-shooting game. But despite the fast-paced shooter gameplay, you should also expect an immersive lore and a believable world that should draw you deeper into the action beyond the gunplay.
- Dark Souls or Doom? When it comes to difficulty, interested parties should rather think of one of the popular Soulsborne games. Skill alone should not guarantee success, you also have to act with brains in order to progress.
- Playtime: A user would like to know whether the game has a length of at least 500 hours. If not, he would not buy it. The developers’ answer: Every game offers a playing time of 500 hours if it has a pause button. With this, of course, both sides are alluding to the discussion recently sparked by Dyling Light 2 about a sprawling scope
Technique
- No online compulsion: Witchfire will be playable completely offline. Well worth a mention in this day and age
- Unreal Engine 5, Raytracing and DLSS: Since Witchfire is based on Unreal Engine 4, it would be relatively easy to implement Nvidia’s DLSS and RTX features. At present, however, this is not the case. There are also no plans to switch to the Unreal Engine 5, which is more modern on paper.
- 21:9 support: Owners of an Ultrawide monitor can expect full support with the HUD and other screen elements.
Are you up for Witchfire and its fast-paced gameplay? Or are you still sceptical whether there is enough game depth behind the pretty facade to keep you glued to the screen for a long time? Feel free to write us your opinion in the comments!
