When the creators of Ori and the Blind Forest release a new game in Early Access, you have to open your eyes with interest to see what they have to offer. Ori and the Blind Forest and the sequel Will of the Wisps are very, very beautiful metroidvania games, and I love their beautiful graphics and personality – something that is sorely lacking in the gaming industry today. Almost only indie developers want to be different and create games with heart, rather than just focusing on the bottom line. Moon Studios, as the developer is known, has now released an early access version of its game No Rest for the Wicked on Steam, and the studio is experimenting with a completely new genre. So I ventured into the plague-ridden world to see what it would do.
Of course, it’s important to remember that this is just the beginning of No Rest for the Wicked, and we’ll be keeping an eye on how the studio updates the game. There have been three minor updates full of fixes.
The king is dead! His son Magnus now runs the country, but he feels that his father was limited and he wanted to do things differently. The only problem was that the plague had struck again, and the young king was determined to do something about it. So, your character is sent to Isla Sacre, a disputed island where different forces are fighting for power.
Here’s a hint:
You play a so-called Cerim, who can be compared to a medieval plague doctor. You play as a doctor sent to the Isla Sacre to eradicate a plague, but the people are not happy to see you, which you will believe a lot when you find yourself on the ship. However, the journey does not end as expected as the ship is attacked by monsters and after learning how to control and play your role, the ship runs aground on a coast Isla Sacre and you wake up on the beach. You must then fight your way to the capital of the dangerous island, Sacrement. The only problem is that the island has been overrun by a plague of pre-humans turned into monsters. Of course, this is difficult. The story in No Rest for the Wicked is bold and the atmosphere tense and uncomfortable. Fortunately, many of the characters you meet are a bit quirky, and they balance out the oppressive atmosphere, which I appreciated. Balance is important to me so that the game doesn’t get too boring or crazy, and No Rest for the Wicked achieves that.
Also, it’s worth mentioning that the cutscenes are pretty awesome. They are full of personality and have a magical visual design. The figures you see look like they were taken out of a medieval painting. I’ve never seen the style used by No Rest for the Wicked, but man, it’s cool. As a history buff, it’s especially cool to see a picture you’ve studied for so many years come to life in this way.
Here’s a hint:
The tone of No Rest for the Wicked is heavily inspired by FromSoftware’s Soulsborne series, and I got the same vibe from the game as the Dark Souls games. That loneliness and invisible decay that most games in the series have. So, if you are a fan, you will find yourself in No Rest for the Wicked. However, those who think that FromSoft is a little too vague and allegorical in its stories will understand that there are characters, there is dialogue, there is interaction.
No Rest for the Wicked is an isometric Souls game with a lot of added flavor. So you can see everything from above at an isometric angle, just like in the Diablo series. When you launch the game, the developers put a warning in your mind that you should play with a controller instead of a mouse and keyboard, because the game is designed to use this control scheme. However, it is also possible to use a mouse and keyboard, but it can be a bit confusing because some sequences require very precise control that the keyboard cannot provide. Yes, I know, it’s usually the other way around. It works well, although some parts of the game have controls that satiate you in the background before leaping into thin air and into the abyss. So, Moon Studios still has some startup issues to sort out. This is a common phenomenon in games. It has great potential, but that potential will only become apparent if the game stands in the oven longer.
The main gameplay of No Rest for the Wicked is about fighting against the many monsters that caused the plague. This is where No Rest for the Wicked stands out from other isometric RPGs in the same style, as the combat is very similar to Dark Souls. Not only will you kill hundreds of monsters like Diablo, but every opponent you face is deadly and you must learn their attack patterns to defeat them. If you don’t, you’ll get your ass kicked, just like in Dark Souls, and you’ll be sent back to where you last saved your game. However, unlike Dark Souls, monsters that you defeat will not return when you start again. This was a huge problem for me, and it hit me hard when I got caught by the first boss in the game. Normally I would bleed a lot and get stronger, but it’s hard when the monsters don’t come back. I think this is something that is going to change because it is an unusual game design in my opinion.
The character system itself is also the same as Dark Souls, as you level up you have to put points in strength, stamina, health, etc., and the weapons you find can only be used if your right skills are high. enough. How you put your points in also affects how you play the game. I chose a normal dagger because it doesn’t require as much stamina to block enemy attacks, it allows you to track and it’s usually easier to maneuver. With heavier armor, it takes more stamina to move, but you do more damage. To a Dark Souls veteran, this all sounds very familiar. It works well, but I can’t imagine how to use heavier weapons because when you’re out of stamina, you can’t do it with nothing. I think this is one of the areas that needed more testing from Moon Studios while the game was in Early Access. The same goes for monsters, which are very unfair in some cases.
My other complaint is that your character moves very slowly and you have to hold down a button to run. This can make your character feel very heavy and clunky, and the precise controls the game requires can be very inconsistent in quality. These are things that can be changed and may be changed as Moon Studios receives feedback about the game. I hope so, because No Rest for the Wicked is a diamond in the rough that just needs a little polishing on some rough edges to give it the spark it deserves. So watch out for No Rest for the Wicked. There is something special here that could revive the action RPG genre. I enjoyed every moment, frustration and all, because this is good and challenging entertainment in No Rest for the Wicked.
