There are a number of great video game titles releasing throughout the year, but very few of those titles visually captured my attention from the start. Sundered, a video game in development by Thunder Lotus Games, creators of Jotun, is certainly one of those titles.
We recently got the chance to try out an early pre-alpha build of the game and while we won’t go very in-depth on the title as its still being developed with only sections of content were available for preview, we will go over our initial impressions. To make it short and sweet, Sundered is one horrifying fight for survival and sanity that we can’t wait to fully embark.
The video game, as mentioned, is in development by Thunder Lotus Games, in fact, the Kickstarter for the video game title is still running at the time of writing this impression and the developers didn’t have any trouble gathering the initial funds to complete their IP. Currently, with a goal of just under $19,000, Thunder Lotus Games has raised just shy of $60,000 with weeks still available for gamers to pledge.
Now the game is in the style of a metroidvania title with plenty of hack-and-slash action, exploration, and boss fights to make Sundered well worth sinking precious amounts of time in. One of the aspects that will likely catch the attention of gamers right off the bat is the beautiful hand-drawn art style. Everything, from the main protagonist, enemies, to the scenery is crafted and looks like an animated series, though certainly not one aimed at children.
We can’t really go too much off the story narrative as within the pre-alpha build supplied by the developers doesn’t really follow one. Instead, we started out in a central hub, one that you’ll be familiar with throughout the gameplay as each time you die, and yes, you will die a lot, you’ll end right back at this central hub.
Before you start your journey, exploring the world, finding new corridors, boss fights, and fending off swarms of enemies, you’ll have access to upgrades and perks. This will allow you to craft your hero into a variety of ways that effects both power and abilities, but the choices on upgrades will evidently play a larger role within the full video game build.
Once you’re satisfied with the purchases you’ve made, you’re free to explore the depth of this hellish world and farm for more in-game currency to once again, repeat the process of making further upgrades and unlocks. Speaking of enemies, there weren’t too many drastically different foes we had to slay down with our blade and equipped, though limited, plasma type gun. Again, being pre-alpha, that was to be expected. In fact, being pre-alpha, there was rather few glitches and issues besides some stuttering during movements.
Moving onto the audio side of things, the gameplay was subtle with their soundtrack, just loud enough to alert gamers that there is a dark ominous music playing in the background while the combat and enemy noises are firmly into the forefront. There is one specific moment that really chimes in and that’s a siren type alert, something that seems to be rather sporadic, this rustic chilling noise introduces a wave of enemies that charge directly towards your location, ultimately meaning that something is very much about to go down and that something is more than likely our protagonist.
There’s plenty to enjoy with Sundered and we’ve only got a slight tease of the upcoming full release slated at some point later this year for the PC and PlayStation 4 platforms. We highly suggest keeping an eye on the upcoming video game title and prepare to take on an exploration adventure into a dark unknown.
