Styx: Shards of Darkness Previews and Interviews
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Given the fact that Focus Home and Cyanide's stealth-based RPG sequel was on tap at this year's E3 and the developers have been talking about it on occasion since then, it seems like a good time to round up the latest articles for Styx: Shards of Darkness.
First up is a preview on Entertainment Buddha:
Being a game focused on stealth, lighting and level design are key ingredients for making the experience enjoyable and believable. You can’t really stalk targets in brightly lit rooms, so the world of Shards of Darkness features a great use of lighting to create shadows for Styx to creep in to easily take out his targets. The world isn’t one big shadow though, as there are fires to add a orange hue to the environments and to create the shadows, so the colors aren’t all drab.
The textures in the environment are also top notch thanks to the talented artists working on the game and the abilities of the Unreal Engine 4. The wooden structures that Styx tip-toed through looked lifelike and almost as if they could give him splinters based on how precise they appeared. Styx’s green skin also appeared very detailed thanks to the quality texture work featured in the game. Of course his targets also looked pretty polished even though they’re just in the game for Styx to murder.
Another preview is on Entertainium:
The demo walked us through a quick mission through a secluded part of a seaside town. Styx’s job was to grab a few valuables and escape. A simple job for an accomplished thief. Our walkthrough of the demo didn’t show off much of the level due to time constraints, but it seemed to have plenty of pathways and methods to complete objectives. The approach the developer playing the game took us underneath most of the buildings, allowing him to move unseen.
He used a few new tricks to get around. Most notable is using clones to teleport. In the previous game, Styx could vomit up clones of himself to distract guards, operate levers, and safely scout ahead. Their use was limited, though, because once you were finished with them, your only option was to destroy them. Now they can be used to access otherwise inaccessible areas, such as high ledges for a quick escape, which the developer demonstrated.
Then we hit up a text interview on Gaming Bolt:
What can you tell us about the RPG elements in this iteration?
With the RPG mechanics, we still have the skill tree. We have cloning, crafting, assassination, detection, and five or six branches. It’s up to the player to choose what play style you want to have. So by choosing a branch you set up the character. And as well we have some new powers you will have later in the game, because you will have a new material that can give you special abilities.
Before switching over to a video interview hosted by the Unreal Engine team themselves:
