With games becoming an ever-increasingly important part of our society, it’s no surprise that we have seen a simultaneous explosion in the number of sci-fi souls-like offerings. Dolmen is one such game which looks to build on its predecessors with mindblowing graphics and all new mechanics for players to explore.
The “project relic” is a new sci-fi souls-like that is on the agenda. The game will be available for PC, PS4 and Xbox One.
PREVIEW – Dolmen, like many other comparable games, is a real action RPG inspired by the famous Dark Souls series. The Lovecraftian influence, on the other hand, adds a more fascinating flavor to the typical sci-fi/horror genre while also providing us with a new setting and sceneries than normal.
When we experienced the game on PC in a preview beta test, we were reminded of Dark Souls, Dead Space, and The Surge. Given the success of From Software, Visceral Games, and Deck13, we can only hope that Massive Work Studio’s game will live up to the hype and provide a genuinely immersive experience. After seeing a teaser trailer for the game, we’ve decided to share our impressions with you.
The mine’s monsters are on the loose.
After a quick introduction to the plot of the Dolmen game, our protagonist is whisked to Revion Prime, a mining station that has been under siege by enigmatic monsters. The station’s deteriorated status is immediately apparent upon first glance. Although the monsters and setting are evocative to Dead Space, the track design is more souls-inspired. As a result, the first projected horror mood is really less apparent, and the Dead Space analogy quickly fades.
Fans of the genre will quickly feel at ease after a brief introduction, since the fundamental game principles are quite similar to those of classic souls-like games. We’ve been handed an energy meter, which is the only tiny variation. We may utilize it to heal ourselves, employ ranged weapons, or trigger a transitory state that enables us to infuse elemental energy into our strikes. These abilities will let you to injure or weaken adversaries with secondary effects such as slowing or poisoning them.
There’s still a lot of welding to be done…
So far, the unprofessional gaming experience has been a hurdle, but I believe that if the Dolmen game is further developed, it has the potential to be an excellent one since the game concepts are well thought out. The variety of weapons and specializations we were able to test out demonstrates that weaponry and specializations provide a diverse and interesting playstyle. The combination of melee and distance fighting is effective. You don’t spam ranged attacks because of the levels and energy meter. However, there are a few small and big issues.
During battles, for example, several animations feel stiff and uncomfortable. Potions are also inconvenient to use since they take too long and are complicated to utilize, which is particularly troublesome if you need to heal yourself quickly. Finally, the visual depiction of shield usage is delayed, which is counterintuitive. To put it another way, the player’s defensive choices have a few flaws that would be excellent to solve.
What about vision, narrative, and pathfinding?
Let’s take a peek at the Dolmen game’s aesthetics. The game’s sci-fi inspiration is undeniable based on what we’ve seen so far, but it’s difficult to see Dolmen as truly unique. The animals in the two “zones” didn’t exactly wow with their creative doodles, and although the pictures aren’t bad, they aren’t really appealing.
In terms of the plot, the beta in Dolmen didn’t provide us much information. The protagonist of the game is a space explorer, but we also meet several other people that I won’t reveal just yet. A figure was also present aboard the protagonist’s ship, which acts as the game’s core center. Let’s hope the storyline is more forceful than what we’ve seen thus far, since these few transitions and exchanges haven’t shown much.
In terms of maps, the beta only allowed us to play a short portion of Discover a Dolmen, which comprised of three separate segments of the game. The first map is labyrinthine and confined, but the second map is open and has somewhat different gameplay mechanics. However, making a good judgment after just three hours of play is tough, but this little section of the game will eventually be changed into a much wider cosmos in the whole game.
Finally, we can’t overlook the HUD’s blandness and lack of character, as well as the existence of a few glitches and design errors. It remains to be seen if the developers will solve these flaws, since there is still time for a comprehensive revamp before the release date. For example, the inventory and crafting interfaces, which are still cumbersome, should be entirely overhauled.
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Dolmen is a sci-fi souls-like that has been in the planning stages for a while. It’s coming out on the agenda soon and it looks to be another massive work studio.
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