Microbirds might scarcely have chosen a greater place to debut their upcoming journey Dungeons of Hinterberg than gamescom this week; my time with the primary playable demo had me dreaming of crusing up the Rhine to cooler climes for some monster searching and chill Alpine vibes.
The sport is about in and across the eponymous Hinterburg, a tiny city nestled within the Austrian Alps, the place magic caves stuffed with monsters instantly appeared in the future, thrusting the city into the world of journey tourism. Thrill-seekers, together with the sport’s heroine, drift in from everywhere in the globe to show their mettle in battle- one thing in any other case frowned upon in well mannered society.
As Dungeons of Hinterberg’s first hands-on exhibiting to the world, we got a really feel for the loop that defines the sport: discover and journey – above and under floor – by day, socialize within the night, growing abilities and buying objects to assist the subsequent time you delve the deep underground.
As playable character Louisa, I set out first to discover a dungeon, studying a lot of what she will be able to do on the way- which is quite a bit! Whereas exploring, the demo showcased two essential abilities, every mapped to a shoulder button: a faucet of LB summons the Wrecking Ball, a large bomb which, when detonated, clears piles of rubble blocking your path. RB fires a ranged Ball and Chain, which may connect to blobby lots within the overworld and might manipulate sure environmental objects – e.g. knocking down a log to traverse a niche. These got here into play regularly, and had been even utilized in live performance for some puzzles.
Earlier than arriving on the dungeon entrance, I encountered my first enemies, creepy masked monsters who, in keeping with the builders, hint their inspiration again to real-life Alpine Mythology (assume Krampus-esque). Gentle and Heavy melee assaults cost up greater and badder magical assaults, comparable to a damaging leap with AOE results, or a hail of meteors which drains enemy well being bars in a rush.
Earlier than lengthy, Louisa arrived at one of many dungeons that make Hinterberg well-known, the place the puzzle fixing and battling ramp as much as extra intense ranges, in nearer quarters. After exploring, pillaging chests, fixing a variety of puzzles, dispatching extra armadillos and a bigger boss, it was time to return to Hinterberg to, y’know, chill for a bit.
Hanging out with NPCs isn’t only a break within the motion, it’s essential to your success – your character will study new, helpful abilities by upleveling their social hyperlinks. After chatting with a couple of locals, I dedicated to spending time with the cheerful worker of the native ice cream stand, Marina. This motion elevated Louisa’s dodge stamina, in order that she will be able to dodge extra typically – one thing you’ll undoubtedly wish to do. And that’s solely on the first of three stars earned with Marina, so I discovered myself curious what additional interactions will result in.
After that, Louisa went to sleep, resting up for the subsequent day’s adventures.
If this mixture of battling and socializing brings titles just like the Persona sequence to thoughts, know that there’s much less strain to maximise each second in Dungeons of Hinterberg. Certainly, your gamers can take a full-day break from adventuring in the event that they select to spend extra time with mates; Louisa’s on trip in spite of everything! I can see this tactic coming in helpful in case your character is having hassle progressing via a dungeon – meet a couple of extra folks, stage up a couple of extra abilities, then strive once more.
Developer Microbirds shared that there shall be roughly 25 dungeons to check in sport, and, as fantastically bucolic because the Doberkogel mountains space we explored at gamescom is, I’m excited to see the opposite three biomes. Chilly glaciers and wetter areas had been referenced.
With sunny vibes and the flexibleness to battle or simply hang around on the town to make mates, Dungeons of Hinterberg is shaping as much as be a trip for gamers, although don’t be shocked if you end up pricing out airfare to Austria while you’re executed. Dungeons of Hinterberg shall be launched in 2024 for Xbox Collection X|S, Home windows PC, Cloud, and shall be out there day one for Xbox Sport Move and PC Sport Move members.
