Today at Gamescom's Opening Night Live, Nexon revealed a new cinematic and gameplay trailer for The First Berserker: Khazan, an action RPG with soulslike combat set in the universe of the Dungeon & Fighter series.
The First Berserker: Khazan is a revenge story. Originally a raid enemy in Dungeon Fighter Online, Khazan is reimagined in The First Berserker as a sort of anime Conan. Barbarian-turned-general of the Pell Los empire and slayer of the dragon Hismar, Khazan begins The First Berserker having been betrayed by imperial conspirators after committing the cardinal sin of being too cool and popular. Framed for treason by a jealous emperor, Khazan was banished to the snowy hinterlands. Unfortunately for the Pell Los emperor, snowy hinterlands are the exact kind of place where your vengeful enemies can forge themselves into unkillable videogame protagonists.
Somewhere along the line in his revenge quest, Khazan apparently forges some kind of terrible pact with a "Blade Phantom," which—judging purely from visuals—seems to let him empower his weaponry with his own blood. Or something? Either way, it's a useful skill if you've got a score to settle against an entire empire, and thanks to The First Berserker's really cool, high-detail cel-shaded style, it looks sick.
Developer Neople has really nailed the combat body language for the fantasy berserker. Khazan moves and fights like a human battering ram, stringing together simple, impactful movements with direct brute force. It makes for a fun visual pairing with The First Berserker's seemingly soulslike combat, the pace of which has an almost Bloodborne-style of head-on aggression.
Gamescom is also where The First Berserker: Khazan has its first playable demo. The rest of us will have to wait a couple more months for a chance to try it for ourselves: There'll be a closed technical beta test for The First Berserker: Khazan in October.
The First Berserker: Khazan is set to release sometime in 2025.
