As a seasoned gamer with over two decades under my belt, I’ve seen the evolution of gaming from 8-bit pixel art to hyper-realistic graphics. I’ve played everything from text-based adventure games to VR experiences, and I must say, Towerborne has piqued my interest. The side-scrolling hack-and-slash gameplay reminds me of the good old days when I was a teenager, spending countless hours playing Castle Crashers with friends.
At Gamescom, Xbox has unveiled or exhibited some of its forthcoming games during the celebrations. Among these are notable titles like “Avowed” by Obsidian, “Indiana Jones and the Great Circle” by Machine Games, “Call of Duty: Black Ops 6” from Activision, as well as additional content for Bethesda’s “Starfield” and Blizzard’s “Diablo IV”. However, among these big-name games, there was also a smaller Xbox game that appeared at the event – Towerborne. This is an upcoming side-scrolling action game developed by Stoic, who are known for creating “The Banner Saga”.
Last year when Towerborne was unveiled, I found myself captivated by its potential. It seemed like it could offer a fun cooperative play similar to Castle Crashers or the popular TMNT side-scrollers; something casual and straightforward to dive into with companions. The initial reveal mentioned that the game would feature “seasonal” content, but at the time, we weren’t exactly sure what shape this content would take.
At Gamescom, Stoic unveiled their plans for releasing the game, which commences with an Early Access phase on Steam starting from September 10th. Moreover, it was disclosed that the game will be free-to-play once it exits Early Access. If you’re keen on trying the Early Access version, it seems like purchasing a Founders’ Pack might be necessary (further details can be found on the game’s Steam page). It’s somewhat surprising to learn about the game’s launch strategy, considering both its pricing model and content, as this information was divulged in such a manner. To be honest, it leaves me wondering about how the game will be managed during and post-launch.
In the demonstration, the combat play was roughly as anticipated. During the Xbox sneak peek in Los Angeles, we tried out just one level of the game, and there were four weapon options to select: a sword-and-shield, gauntlets, a war club, or dual daggers.
In Towerborne, your weapon selection is what determines your effective ‘class’, which are called Aces. Sword-&-shield is the tank of the group, coming with an inherent armor gauge that prevents HP damage as long as some of the armor gauge is filled. Gauntlets is a much more nimble but more vulnerable Ace, dealing a higher level of DPS overall but cannot take as many hits. The War-club Ace dishes out damage with slow but powerful attacks, all while maintaining a ‘superarmor’ stance that prevents attack animations of getting interrupted – at least not as easily. In the limited demo time, I did not have a chance to check out the Dual Daggers Ace.
In this game, each character, or Ace, can engage in battle with up to two active abilities that function on a pip system (pips increase as damage is dealt), plus an additional skill linked to a chosen companion akin to a Navi. Although the game offers many skills and diverse companions, the demo I played only displayed combat scenarios, leaving me unable to comment on aspects like skill selection, character customization, equipment, the Belfry hub, or level progression. As a result, it’s challenging to evaluate the character development possibilities or the overall layout of the game at this stage.
As a dedicated fan, I found myself squaring off against a colossal pangolin, nicknamed Pangojira, in an exhilarating finale. His main strategy was launching powerful swipes with his claws and unleashing area-of-effect jump-pound attacks. Throughout the fight, he even summoned pesky minion pangolins to distract me. The experience was familiar, reminiscent of other multiplayer brawlers I’ve engaged in, as I teamed up with a partner to decipher attack patterns and synchronize our efforts to vanquish the boss and his posse of henchmen.
During my playtest, the team at Stoic underscored their commitment to incorporating player feedback as the game transitions into Early Access, a practice they’ve demonstrated in a detailed blog post on Xbox Wire recently. I was informed that they aim to be swift in implementing changes, sometimes even within a few weeks instead of months. Moreover, it was made clear that the free-to-play model will only involve cosmetic items such as outfits and emotes, with no impact on game balance or difficulty.
Although I acknowledge the significance of feedback in shaping developers’ work and its necessity, a small voice within me worries that Stoic’s specific game plans might not be as solidified as desired. It seemed to me that the discussion leaned more towards considering feedback rather than articulating Stoic’s unique vision for the game itself.
In the game demo I tried, there seemed to be an issue regarding the functionality of equipment. Upon completing a level, it appeared that my character was wearing maximum level 30 gear in all armor slots. Curious about how this equipment system functioned since I couldn’t test it during the demo, I asked a developer. They informed me that the gear system shown in the demo had been significantly changed to a loot-based one, using Diablo as an example. Although the final gear system remains to be seen, having a demo just weeks before early access launch featuring an outdated gear system makes me question the development of character progression.
After its release, the game is designed to offer fresh levels and Ace weapons periodically. While specifics aren’t fully disclosed, it has potential for free-to-play fun with continuous content updates, making for enjoyable quick co-op sessions with friends. However, due to some unclear aspects regarding its monetization and structure, I find myself cautiously anticipating what Towerborne eventually becomes.
As a fervent fan, I eagerly anticipate Towerborne, yet I harbor reservations about its free-to-play aspects and live-service model. With an Early Access launch just around the corner next month, we’re on the brink of witnessing the initial responses (and potential tweaks) to this promising new intellectual property.
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2024-08-25 05:26