Lucky you! You’ve got a look at two World of Darkness games in one today (that’s the Vampire: The Masquerade universe, for those asking). First is one we already knew about, Hunter: The Reckoning – Deathwish (is it also a World of Darkness requirement for the secondary subtitle to always be followed by a hyphen?), which received less of a gameplay deep dive and more of a light splash. The second is the reveal of Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Rageborn (see what I mean?), a metroidvania where, as the name suggests, you’re a werewolf!
First, that look at Deathwish. Most of what was shown were teensy glances at gameplay. A spot of first-person shooting, a character creator which looks very Dark Soulsian in its customisability (but with the notable ability to set various attributes and skills based on the original TTRPG’s ruleset), a smidge of doing some detective work by hunting for clues. Nothing that really makes it clear how things feel moment to moment, all in. You can apparently play in various ways, be it stealthily or all guns blazing, and some other characters can join you to help out – or to begin a romance! Ooh la la!
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Then, there’s Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Rageborn. This one comes from Session: Skate Sim studio crea-ture Studios, so a little bit of a departure genre wise. Based on the fifth edition version of the Werewolf: The Apocalypse TTRPG, you play as Taylor, a man who turns into a werewolf after witnessing his eco-activist friend get gunned down.
There are three forms he can take. You’ve got his regular human form, called Homid, which can use ranged weapons, firearms, and crossbows, as well as a kyoketsu shoge (turns out Werewolf: The Apocalypse is a bit weeby). After that there’s his regular wolf form, Lupus, good for exploring, stealth, and jumping across big gaps. And then lastly there’s Crinow, the “ultimate war form,” where you’ll find your more classic werewolf look. This one’s all about smashing and bashing and pulling off combos.
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Not as many details on the metroidvania side of things, though as the game’s Steam page explains, “The wilds of Alaska are vast, layered, and deeply interconnected, with paths that only reveal themselves as you evolve. Grow into your power as a Garou, shift between forms, earn new Gifts, and unlock traversal and combat abilities that let you revisit, re-explore, and push deeper into previously unreachable areas.”
Small looks, but looks were had nonetheless! Hunter: The Reckoning – Deathwish is available to wishlist on Steam now, as is Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Rageborn.
