When we got a peek of Styx: Shards of Darkness back at E3, the development team and Focus Home Interactive said we only needed to wait until sometime in 2016 for the game to come out. Alas, this sequel to Cyanide’s 2014 stealth game Styx: Master of Shadows needs a bit more time to refine itself, sending the release date back to next year. But we’re not left empty-handed, as a new gameplay trailer has crawled out into the light of day for us to view.
It runs in Unreal Engine 4, and this 1080p 60FPS trailer really helps show off the push to next generation the title is going for. Styx must recover a stolen scepter from Korranger, and he has to dodge the humans, elves, and dwarven forces patrolling the area to do so. Noise is a huge factor, and landing on soft surfaces (carpets for example) after you fall helps dampen the sound of the blow. When a nearby Elf guard walks near the edge of a cliff, our protagonist robs their pockets and pushes the person over the edge. Moving onward to another guard group, Styx poisons their drinking supply and waits it out in a nearby ornate container for the victims to have a glass of death. After they indulge and keel over, Styx cleans up the mess by throwing the bodies over the edge of the abyss. Crafting is an important component to the game now, and collecting ingredients scattered around the level can allow the player to craft potions, traps, lockpicks, and other useful items to have for the mission. Showing off how to take the environment to our advantage, the demonstrator has Styx booby-trap a nearby alarm, and proceeds to create a fuss in order to draw a guard’s attention. When the unsuspecting gentleman tries to signal for help, the alarm system falls down and crushes the guard instead. Onward, closer to the front door of Korranger’s summit we see the amount of adversaries is insurmountable. The demonstrator uses this opportunity to show Styx’s magic abilities that he has able, opting for a quick invisibility cloak to allow safe passage through the fray. Climbing up a cliff and through an open window, Styx manages to infiltrate the heavily protected building. With the interior being dark, he’s at more of a navigational advantage than he was outdoors previously.
And there’s still more to the video. Styx was just getting started. If you want to see how environment interaction, timing, and clever use of your powers and items will be the keys to success in the game, watch the whole thing to find out.
Styx: Shards of Darkness comes out for PC, PS4, and Xbox One in 2017. To learn more about the game, check out the website, Twitter, and Facebook for it.
