Do you ever get stressed out while you are playing video games? What is one video game title or franchise that has stressed you out the most? For me, the one franchise, outside of League of Legends, that has stressed me out the most is the Souls franchise. Yes, you did read that correctly, FromSoftWares beloved Souls franchise stresses me out to no end. Although I may enjoy Dark Souls, I will still get anxiety while playing the game. Damn those ledges. At PAX East 2020, we met with tinyBuild Games to preview Hellpoint, a game that combines the atmosphere of Dead Space with the mechanics and playstyle of the Souls games.
With COVID-19 weighing heavily on the gaming community’s mind, TinyBuild looked to alleviate the stress of its appointments by offering a free massage during its previews. Prior to our appointment, all I was told is that Hellpoint is a Darksouls in space and left to wonder. Hellpoint is exactly that at least from what we could see. The massage that was provided definitely helped to relieve the stress of an open-world RPG. So what stuck out to us about this game in particular?
HellPoint Gameplay
Going in, I knew that I would be in an uphill battle. Similar to the souls game, the player must find their own way. As a husk, you are tasked with slaying those that get in your way. Combat in the game felt smoother and less intense in comparison to its Darksouls Predecessor. The roll mechanic gave us a timely opportunity to dodge attacks. From our preview, we were able to try out varying weapons each with their own unique principles. Because this is a souls-like game, I did die quite a few times; however, each death was a learning experience.
If you have ever played a Souls or Bourne game, you are already ahead of the curb with Hellpoint‘s controls. The camera’s rotation is smoother than that of Dark Souls with the roll being more effective. In combat, the player is able to cancel attacks rather than being stuck with the combat animation. Jump is pushing in the controller’s left stick, like Souls. The music in combat is not as intense in comparison to Souls where you don’t feel like you are going to get your ass destroyed.
The weapons in Hellpoint look like scientific adaptations of medieval weapons. During our playthrough, we used two weapons predominately. The first being a long sword-like weapon that could be dual-wielded. The second weapon was similar to that of a great club. When we swung this great club we were able to change its direction rather than having it crash to the ground. This could have been due to being early in the game and not being over-encumbered.
Hellpoint Textures & CO-Op
Unlike other souls like games, Hellpoint can be played with local or online co-op. Regrettably, we did not try out this co-op feature because we wanted to explore the environment. The environment was rich, offering a variety of paths and hidden treasures. Combat felt a little bit strained fighting in a tight environment. Hopefully, when the game releases, we will have the ability to remedy our mistakes. The game’s level design was breathtaking and surprised us with what it had to offer. I was not expecting a breathtaking world coming in and the little bit I was able to see blew me away.
I hope that once the game releases others are able to witness its beauty and well-roundedness. The Audio for the game was immersive and made you feel like you were in a closed environment.
Features
- Surprise your opponent by forging your very own supernatural skill using our revolutionary power crafting system
- Find your own balance of risks and rewards by performing strange rituals that affects the power and resilience of the enemies
- Plan and commit to your own network of quantic fast travel checkpoints but think carefully as quantity is limited per playthrough
- The path you take inside the open-world level design determines which enemies take control of various parts of the station, or which cosmic gods will accept to challenge you
- A special take on the new game plus design leaves you wondering if you truly discovered the real secret of Hellpoint
Platforms
Hellpoint launches on Xbox One, PC, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, MAC, and Steam on April 16th, 2020. I wish I could remember everything I loved about this game to share it with the rest of you. The fact that an indie could rival if not surpass a AAA title is a beautiful thing. Because of having such a good time with it, we awarded Hellpoint a Writer’s Choice Award
