Abstract
Learn in regards to the builders’ design targets and inspirations.New concentrating on help and a brand new compass UI.Fight and financial system stability updates for console, refine construct experimentation and move.
If you happen to’ve ever bounced off a soulslike as a result of it felt punishing, obscure, or overly cryptic, Sands of Aura has a distinct type of problem in thoughts.
Launching in the present day on Xbox Collection X|S, Sands of Aura is a darkish fantasy motion RPG constructed round quick, reactive fight, significant exploration, and a world formed by loss. Gamers will discover themselves in a realm the place the ocean is gone, and an unlimited sandsea stretches between the final remaining islands. It attracts inspiration from CRPG’s whereas inserting story, characters, and buildcrafting extra instantly on the heart of the expertise.
And for the console launch, the staff has taken the chance to refine the expertise with new techniques designed particularly round how Xbox gamers discover, struggle, and experiment with builds.
A Soulslike That’s About Extra Than Punishment
“Soulslike” has come to imply many issues to gamers. For some gamers, it’s shorthand for punishing issue, gritty worlds, and the ever-present “git gud” mentality.
However after I spoke with the staff behind Sands of Aura, they described a distinct basis: traditional CRPG design, significant quests, and development that rewards real engagement.
“We grew up on CRPGs stuffed with wealthy, significant quests and character exploration that reward real engagement,” says John Sadler, programmer at Chashu Leisure. “Video games the place progress demanded actual effort and ability.”
That philosophy is mirrored all through Sands of Aura. The builders needed gamers to know the characters, perceive the world, and really feel that the story is current and never hidden behind obscure lore fragments.
Additionally they leaned closely into buildcrafting and experimentation.
“We needed to offer gamers huge flexibility to create wildly completely different, deeply customizable builds that synergize in sudden and typically absurdly highly effective methods,” Sadler says. “We weren’t afraid to allow you to break the sport in enjoyable, inventive instructions.”
That flexibility is a serious a part of what makes the sport really feel private. You’re not simply surviving the world, you’re shaping the way you survive it.
Quick, Reactive Fight with Room to Experiment
Within the opening hour, Sands of Aura is designed to show its fight rhythm rapidly: a quick, reactive loop constructed round attacking, dodging, blocking, parrying, and weaving in spellblade skills to create openings and capitalize on them.
As you acquire confidence in these fundamentals, the sport begins to floor the depth of its gear techniques. Weapons, armor, and talismans aren’t simply stat adjustments; they meaningfully alter the way you strategy fights and how much fighter you change into.
“The objective is for gamers to really feel the tempo of fight early, whereas realizing there are a whole lot of viable builds and playstyles ready to be explored,” Sadler says.
New Concentrating on Help Constructed for Controller Circulate
One of the significant enhancements for Xbox gamers is a brand new concentrating on help system designed round a easy objective: interpret intent reasonably than demand good precision.
“In fast-paced fight, we discovered that gamers typically missed assaults whereas quickly switching targets and activating skills,” Sadler says. “This new system makes use of the participant’s normal aiming course to intelligently information actions towards essentially the most acceptable goal inside that house.”
The result’s quicker, extra dependable ability execution that retains fight fluid and responsive with out eradicating participant management.
It’s the type of enchancment you won’t consciously discover at first. However when you’re deep right into a struggle, it’s the distinction between feeling such as you’re wrestling the controls and feeling such as you’re absolutely within the move.
A Sandsea World Designed for Scale and Discovery
Exploration in Sands of Aura is cut up between two distinct areas: the islands, the place the principle story and motion unfold, and the sandsea, which provides you room to breathe, replicate, and chart your personal course.
As a substitute of utilizing a conventional overworld map the place you merely choose the subsequent location, the staff needed journey itself to create a way of distance and scale.
“We might have gone with a conventional overworld map for selecting the subsequent island,” Sadler says. “As a substitute, we prioritized making the world really feel huge, deep, and stuffed with actual distance.”
Crusing throughout the sandsea builds that sense of scale and creates alternatives for hidden discoveries. Distant islands and secrets and techniques are simpler to hide when the world is one thing you bodily cross reasonably than merely click on by. As a substitute of performing as a transition between locations, the sandsea turns into a part of the journey itself, opening the world as much as gamers who discover thoughtfully and take note of what’s on the horizon.
A Compass UI That Helps Exploration With no Minimap
The console model additionally provides one other main quality-of-life enchancment: a compass UI on islands.
As a result of Sands of Aura makes use of an elevated, three-quarter perspective, spatial consciousness and distant landmarks can typically be more durable to learn at a look.
“The compass helps gamers keep orientation as they transfer by dense or unfamiliar areas with out counting on a full minimap,” Sadler says. “Our objective was to encourage thorough exploration of every island whereas decreasing the friction of feeling misplaced or disoriented.”
The objective isn’t to take away the sensation of discovery. It’s to assist gamers keep centered on what issues: uncovering secrets and techniques, discovering new routes, and staying prepared for no matter is ready across the subsequent nook.
Steadiness Updates That Make Builds Extra Enjoyable to Commit To
Lastly, the console model features a vast set of stability adjustments aimed toward probably the most necessary elements of the sport: construct experimentation.
The builders made adjustments to scale back friction between committing to a construct and permitting you to experiment with completely different weapons, armor, and talismans. Enemies and executives have been additionally tuned to assist that experimentation, with adjusted well being swimming pools and injury output.
“We’ve made lots of adjustments to scale back friction between committing to a construct and permitting gamers to experiment,” Sadler says. “There ought to now be a bit extra back-and-forth play, like a dance between boss and participant.”
That shift additionally helps scale back the sensation {that a} single mistake ends the struggle immediately.
“No extra feeling of ‘one fallacious transfer and also you’re useless,’” Sadler says. “We needed the sport to really feel enjoyable and difficult, not irritating and grindy.”
The place to Start Your Journey
If you happen to’re on the lookout for a darkish fantasy motion RPG that blends soulslike-inspired fight with story-driven exploration and deep buildcrafting, Sands of Aura affords a singular journey, now refined for Xbox gamers with console-focused enhancements.
Sands of Aura launches in the present day on Xbox Collection X|S.
Sands of Aura
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A ruinous cataclysm unleashed by a tormented god descended the world of Talamhel into perpetual night time. The hourglass of time was shattered and its essence poured throughout the land, creating an countless sea of sand. The once-flourishing world of Talamhel turned a putrid lesion of its former glory and those that known as it residence at the moment are husks of corruption–violent, timeless, unyielding troopers of demise.
However Talamhel isn’t misplaced–not but. For generations, the righteous few have endured. You’re a type of few. On the eve of your induction into the Order of Remnant Knights, the final protectors of man, Talamhel is once-again wracked by calamity. The corruptive nature of the Evening Plague has mutated, and the realm of man wants the Remnant Knights greater than ever.
Observe down the emergent evil and destroy it. Defend the realm of man.
From the helm of your nimble grainwake, carve throughout the perilous sandseas to confront the supply of this newfound terror, however don’t count on a guiding gentle or a pink X on a map. You’ll chart your personal course ahead–behold the open seas, and select the heading you finest see match.
However familiarity is a far-flung idea aboard the grainwake–the shifting sands are all the time altering, revealing secrets and techniques, risks, and paths unseen. Issues will not be as they appear…
-Talamhel is an open world, free to discover and uncover as you please.
-Each island is a singular, colourful encounter of fight, lore, and plunder.
-With tiered ranges of issue, areas supply challenges that may reward those that overcome.
-With a trusted (undead) companion rested within the crow’s nest, you’ll by no means sail the seas alone.
The corruption that plagues Talamhel has created a horde comprised of each man and different Talamhelic natives: The venerable Ferrum and the insectoid, hive-minded Hashara. As soon as warring nations have change into an abominable military of timeless malice.
From doomsday cultists to fallen kings, the foes that guard the solutions you search are decided to see your finish. Put together for an unrelenting, unforgiving fight expertise to not be taken flippantly. Swing true, pricey knight, swing true.
With a whole lot of weapon elements to be reclaimed from the crumbled stays of civilization, there are literally thousands of distinctive weapons to be cast. Discover the hilt that matches good.
-Cleave by the corruption with 7 distinct preventing kinds.
-Bolster your self with dozens of armor units, every with their very own distinctive defenses.
-Mix and modify your devastation with magical augments, creating a customized construct.
