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The Demos we tried on Steam Next Fest

The success of last year's Steam Game Festival led Steam to establish the event as a "celebration of demos". After a repeat in February this year, we have a summer version of the festival again. And this summer, well, we ignored the "holidays" and "beaches" and other such trappings, and instead locked ourselves inside and played demos for the games that made an impression on us as part of the revamped and updated Steam Next Fest.

DEATH TRASH

Death Trash Meat Machine

Costas Kallianiotis: We knew about the Cyberpunk aesthetic as well as its Steampunk counterpart, we got to know about Whalepunk along the way... Maybe it's time to learn about... Meatpunk. Because, seemingly at least, that seems to be exactly the prevailing aesthetic in Death Trash. In this fairly old-school isometric RPG, masses of meat have started popping up for some reason directly from the earth, providing cheap food for the groups of outcasts and exiles who have formed small communities outside the "centers of civilization" guarded by powerful droids. One such exile is the protagonist of the story whom we control in the game's 1-1/2 hour demo. In the Demo we experience the beginning of the adventure, familiarize ourselves with the handling and gameplay systems, and explore a small area of the (quite extensive, in the final version) World Map.

In general, Death Trash gives off strong post-apocalyptic vibes inspired by the early Fallout games, combined with a fairly old-fashioned fighting style reminiscent of 2017's Ruiner. There are also hints of distinct options in some quests, but predictably any long-term implications of these can't be made clear in the short demo. Quite "basic" also seems to be the writing section of the game, but this may be further clarified in the full release. Overall impressions of the small team's (4 people!) creation are highly positive, however, and for the most part justify the expectations the game has built up.

Death Trash is released in Early Access on August 5.

Pavlos Geranios: Without dizzying too much with extensive texts and smug tutorials Death Trash adopts an in-your-face attitude, characteristic of the Meatpunk genre. The handling is smooth and the approach to combat is methodically slow (don't expect a Children of Morta here). As unforgiving as its world, it requires study and surgical moves from the player as death lurks around every corner. The RPG elements it incorporates make it as complex as it needs to be. From nowhere to the wishlist!

THE FERMI PARADOX

Fermi Paradox choices

KC: This game came to my attention after the release of the news that Brian Mitsoda started working on it after the Bloodlines 2 fiasco, and the truth is that the concept is quite original. Broadly speaking, we control a... cosmic force (one might even call us God), which is called upon to steer the civilizations of the galaxy towards their destiny - whether that be prosperity or destruction.

During each game we collect a "resource", which we spend as random events concerning the civilizations of the galaxy occur. Depending on our decisions in these events, each civilization's 5 stats (corresponding to scientific knowledge, population growth, energy self-sufficiency, mortality and "democracy") fluctuate, leading in turn to other random events depending on the percentages (for example, if energy self-sufficiency goes to zero then a random event "Resource Wars" occurs). Usually the "beneficial" choices among the 3 available require spending resources, while in contrast the destructive ones offer a high percentage of resources. Therefore, it becomes a bit of a strategy issue whether to sacrifice civilizations to gain resources that will lead to prosperity for others.

In the short Demo we are set in a galaxy where only 2 civilizations coexist, while in the process a third one emerges after the evolutionary progression of organisms on another planet. Apart from managing their statistics, the main events taking place concern the field of space exploration, whether the civilizations will ever meet, and whether this meeting will be peaceful or extremely hostile. Interesting and well-written game in general, despite its obvious low-budget nature, and with particularly well-done aesthetics.

And Fermi Paradox is expected to be released in Early Access sometime next month.

BLACKSMITH LEGENDS

Blacksmith Legends quest

KC: Blacksmith Legends is a bit reminiscent of Crossroads Inn in terms of concept and, as you can imagine, it's a... Blacksmith Simulator. We control a Blacksmith who opens a blacksmith shop in a town, and is required to learn and keep recipes, complete quests and orders to increase his reputation and clientele, sell his products on the market, collect the necessary resources for his recipes, and pay the taxes to the Mayor.

The whole concept is enhanced by extra gameplay parameters such as the ability to influence the development of our city with our recipes, and the ability to recruit Heroes who explore the world, clear dungeons, and offer us common or rare resources. Several of the features of the full game, such as access to the global market or the ability to open extra shops in other cities, are expectedly locked in the demo.

It's a bit of a bummer that the game is created by non-native English speakers, as there are quite a few spelling mistakes in his writing and some slightly out-of-date and anachronistic idioms. Other than that, the concept is fairly simplistic but fun for someone looking for a medieval-low fantasy sim experience that strays from the norm, without the final product in its current state being dramatically impressive.

Either way, the release date for Blacksmith Legends is still in the vague "Coming Soon/TBA".

ROAD 96

Road 96 Scenery

KC: Road 96 is being launched as a "procedurally generated road trip", inspired by the films of Tarantino and the Cohen brothers, by developers who worked on games like Valiant Hearts and Memories Retold. And, gameplay-wise, it's just that: in each playthrough we control a different character during a road trip to the country's borders, and play through a different sequence of scenes, with each road trip potentially being completely different from the others. This "differentness" is reportedly influenced by our interactions with the environment, our interactions with the characters we encounter, and the given factor of randomness in the selection of subsequent scenes.

In the demo we have access to only 4 of the scenes that will be in the final product. However, even this "free sample" makes the creators' intentions more than clear, and the result can only be described as seductive. It is also worth noting that, although the game is set in a "fictional" 1996 and in an equally fictional country, the scenario is quite political and connections can easily be made to our reality (authoritarian government, highly polarized upcoming election, division of the people, police violence, corruption, terrorism, refugees, etc.). My only objection to the game, which will probably need access to the final product to be fully clarified, concerns the possibility that it... TellTales more than allowed and that the developments in each scene are more linear than one would assume. That is, despite the apparent freedom of movement, the outcome of each individual scene is one and predetermined, regardless of our character's attributes and decisions during that scene.

Road 96 is expected to be released sometime this summer.

SACRED FIRE

Sacred Fire Choices

KC: Sacred Fire was highlighted to us by press releases back in MAKRINO 2017, the year in which it completed a successful Kickstarter Campaign. However, we had to wait until this year to finally see a sample of its gameplay.

The game is subtitled a "Psychological RPG", and this odd description seems to be borne out by the gameplay elements themselves. Controlling a Pictish warrior (or warrioress - the scenario changes more or less depending on the gender of the protagonist) during the years of Roman presence in Britain and Hadrian's Wall, the action in the game is largely promoted as a typical "Choose Your Own Adventure" adventure. The telling difference is indeed the "psychological" factor: the player's actions and choices, combined with the environmental conditions at the time, and the given factor of luck via dice rolls, influence various "psychological" stats such as Fear, Anger, Self-Control, etc., and these stats play a crucial role in the choices offered during the playthrough.

The end result is very tempting, and the prospects of the game are excellent for fans of choice-based/story-driven games and historical RPGs. Of course, as with Road 96, it remains to be seen whether the choices offered in the final game will actually play a heavy role or if they will affect purely secondary elements and the experience will be hopelessly linear.

Sacred Fire will be released sometime in 2021.

WARTALES

Wartales Map

PG: While scanning the strategy titles at this year's Steam Next Fest out of curiosity, the above title came up in my recommendations. Already from its description it was foreshadowed that we were dealing with a revamped Battle Brothers 3D aesthetic. And Wartales is exactly that! Already from the technical tome, which still needs optimization, the demo manages to convey all the gritty atmosphere that the title exudes. Right from the start, at the beginning of the map navigation one feels like living in an inhospitable medieval landscape where the slightest mistake can be fatal.

Beyond the technical aspect - simple music, photorealistic rendering of the mundane - Wartales stands out for its relatively simple systems and turn-based combat. Each member of your adventuring party has a different role which is further specialised in level 3 by selecting one of the three classes which brings about its own skillset. Moving the game to a 3D map brings about some extra features such as having viewcones of enemies, meaning we can ambush them giving them advantages in battle. Some additional details (e.g. the campsite, the assignment of professions - blacksmith, herbalist etc. - to the members of the troupe) add the necessary depth and promise to claim many of your hours!

Wartales is already in Early Access with all systems locked. Release is expected in 2021 after they enrich the content.

KC: Combining the spirit of Battle Brothers with the open-world nature of Mount and Blade, with the ability to turn our mercenary band of mercenaries towards the path of illegality if we want (with the corresponding gameplay implications). Wartales came seemingly out of nowhere, but became wishlisted with lightning speed after briefly engaging with its demo.

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Κώστας Καλλιανιώτης

Archaeologist/Historian, RPG Player, Motörhead fan, Consumer of Mutton.

17 Comments

  1. Νομίζω πως το Death Trash θα μας ενώσει όλους τους γκρινιάρηδες παππούδες φέτος (Eat Organs To Replenish Health-Crunch,Chomp.)

    To Sacred Fire με χάλασε, το UI ήταν οριακά κολλημένο με σάλιο πρωτοετούς φοιτητή και έδειχνε να υπάρχει αβυσσαλέο κενό μεταξύ σύλληψης και εκτέλεσης.

    Τα Road 96, Lake, White Shadows και το southern meta-gothic Norco αναμένονται πολύ δυνατές αφηγήσεις.

  2. Στο Sacred Fire συμφωνώ πως ίσως πρέπει να βρουν τρόπο να οπτικοποιήσουν καλύτερα τις πληροφορίες, ειδικά στον τρόπο που πετάγονται αριστερά και δεξιά κάτι νούμερα με ρυθμό πολυβόλου σε κάθε κλικ που γίνεται. Αλλά παράλληλα μου άρεσε ο αυτισμός της αφήγησης, [I]”μυρίζεις τα πουρνάρια και χαίρεσαι που είσαι στη φύση +[/I][B]10 ΑΥΤΟΕΛΕΓΧΟΣ +6 ΑΥΤΟΕΚΤΙΜΗΣΗ -5 ΝΕΥΡΑ[/B][I]”[/I]

  3. Αυτό σαν κόνσεπτ μέτρησε, αλλά η ό,τι-να-ναι γραμματοσειρά σε συνδυασμό με το πώς όλα πραγματικά ξεφύτρωναν απ’ ολούθε, δεν με κράτησε, έδειχνε υπερβολικά ‘άψητο’ για τα γούστα μου.

  4. Θα ασκήσω σκληρό μπούλινγκ ελληνικής γλώσσας στον Ελλιόν – το “ανέπλιστα” υποδηλώνει ότι η τυχόν πραγμάτωση του υπό εξέταση ενδεχόμενου, είναι θετική έκβαση.

  5. Διαφωνώ. Η λέξη έχει ουδέτερη χροιά, και όχι μόνον θετική.

    Επίσης, έγραψες “ανέπλιστα”, επομένως το point σου είναι εκ των πραγμάτων ηττημένο με βάση τις αρχές της memeολογίας.

    [IMG width=”703px”]https://www.meme-arsenal.com/memes/1af3a943370ea138ec52673c265d6707.jpg[/IMG]

  6. It burns! The self-own burns!

    Τι να σου πω, τα λεξικά πάντως και του Τριανταφυλλίδη και του Μπαμπινιώτη διαφωνούν με τη διαφωνία σου, με τον Μπαμπινιώτη να έχει και ολόκληρη επεξήγηση για τις διαφορές του “ανέλπιστος”, του “ανέλπιδος” και του “παρ’ ελπίδα”, γιατί χρησιμοποιούνται συχνά λάνθασμένα. Τα κοιτούσα χτες ακριβώς επειδή το ήθελα για το review του Backbone.

    Το “ανεπλιστός” δεν το αναφέρει ο κομπογιαννίτης βέβαια, οπότε τι ξέρει κι αυτός;

  7. Υπάρχει ανέλπιστη διαφωνία ανάμεσα στους λεξικολόγους πάνω σε αυτό το φλέγον ζήτημα. Το Λεξικό της Κοινής Νεοελληνικής πχ το αναφέρει ως ουδέτερο.

    [URL unfurl=”true”]https://www.greek-language.gr/greekLang/modern_greek/tools/lexica/triantafyllides/search.html?lq=%CE%B1%CE%BD%CE%AD%CE%BB%CF%80%CE%B9%CF%83%CF%84%CE%BF%CF%82&dq=[/URL]

  8. Αν μου βρεις και το ανέπλιστος, θα δεχτώ ότι είναι πιο έγκυρη πηγή από τον γεροξεκούτη ναουμ.

  9. Kάντε έντιτ το άρθρο και βάλτε μέσα το Γκρηκ και προαιρετικά τον Αλεξκίνταρο. Περιμένω..

  10. [QUOTE=”soad667, post: 573728, member: 102682″]
    Kάντε έντιτ το άρθρο και βάλτε μέσα το Γκρηκ. [B]Περιμένω[/B]..
    [/QUOTE]
    [S]#KentrikiSelida #TinAuto [/S]Ή εναλλακτικά μπορείς να διαβάσεις το [URL=’https://ragequit.gr/specials/item/steam-game-festival-demos/’]περσινό άρθρο[/URL].
    #GatesKaiEmvolia #PronooumeGiaEsas #Panikos

  11. Όταν διάβασα εγώ το περσινό άρθρό δεν το είχατε γράψει ακόμα. #truestory

    Από που νομίζεις έμαθα για το Γκρηκ;

  12. [QUOTE=”soad667, post: 573728, member: 102682″]
    Kάντε έντιτ το άρθρο και βάλτε μέσα το Γκρηκ και προαιρετικά τον Αλεξκίνταρο. Περιμένω..
    [/QUOTE]

    Για τον Αλεξκίνταρο θα έχουμε review την Τρίτη οπότε περιττεύει νομίζω.

  13. Να ασκήσω κι εγώ τρελό μπούλινγκ στον [USER=102598]@Admiral[/USER] που έγραψε τις αράδες του για το UNmetal, χωρίς όμως να αναφέρει το UNepic και χωρίς να συμπεριλάβει το ριβιού του North πάνω σε αυτό.

  14. [QUOTE=”Bathory, post: 573732, member: 102742″]
    Να ασκήσω κι εγώ τρελό μπούλινγκ στον [USER=102598]@Admiral[/USER] που έγραψε τις αράδες του για το UNmetal, χωρίς όμως να αναφέρει το UNepic και χωρίς να συμπεριλάβει το ριβιού του North πάνω σε αυτό.
    [/QUOTE]

    Απολογούμαι ταπεινά διότι δεν θυμόμουν ότι υπήρχε αντίστοιχο παιχνίδι!

  15. Ωραία παρουσίαση και ενδιαφέροντα παιχνιδάκια.. Fermi Paradox, Blacksmith Tales, Wartales, Death Trash τα έβαλα υπό παρακολούθηση!

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