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If rich lore, grand high-fantasy, and backstories akin to that of the Game of Thrones series get you going when it comes to action RPGs, No Rest for the Wicked is sure to fill that void after your 20th Baldur's Gate 3 playthrough is done. With it, the devs at Moon Studios—the same developer that brought us Ori and the Blind Forest and its sequel, Ori and the Will of the Wisps—have set forth on their goal of creating an epic action RPG to rival the likes of Diablo and Path of Exile.
Set 841 years after an event only alluded to as The Embrace, a young prince is poised to take the throne after his father's passing. Rumours spread that an ancient plague called The Pestilence is returning, a horrific plague that threatens to bring the heir's legacy to an end. Players take up arms as part of an ancient sect known as the Cerim, and board a ship to investigate the rumours of the Pestilence.
Of course, nothing goes to plan.
Attacked by rebels known as the Risen, you're left stranded and unarmed as your journey across Isola Sacra begins. It's fair to expect an impassioned struggle to survive as you rise to heroic heights, with heaps of political intrigue, to boot. Where our wayfaring heroes might end up, is a mystery, so far, though the video below goes into some more detail around the game's lore as it is.
Your journey takes place in a gorgeous painterly world, with day-night cycles and dynamic weather. Every inch of Isola Sacra has been meticulously hand-painted, and painstakingly designed over several years. With no procedurally generated environments, the game's artists have been able to craft a unique, truly interactive world and play around with verticality more than randomised dungeons would allow for. Basically, you can do much more parkour than is possible in your average ARPG or CRPG. The devs have also promised "plenty of hidden secrets and loot to find" as you make your way across this gorgeous world.
That loot isn't just going to stop at more impressive weapons and armour, either. No Rest for the Wicked is built around a soft class system. That means unlike a lot of RPGs today you're not locked into a class that keeps you from trying out other kinds of weapons and skills. Instead, you're encouraged to mix and match items found as you play. That way, you can switch play style as you see fit in a fleeting fancy, or depending on the kind of challenge you're about to face.
Similarly to dungeon crawlers such as Dark Cloud (one of my personal favourites), you'll invest resources gathered on your adventures to rebuild and improve the town of Sacrament throughout the game. Acting as your hubworld and base of operations, the aim for Moon Studios has been to make the act of rebuilding the town of Sacrament "as satisfying and rewarding as investing resources into your character."
So, if a soft class system, glorious painterly aesthetics, and pouring your hard work into repairing a bustling town in between skirmishes sounds like your kind of thing, you can Wishlist No Rest for the Wicked on Steam. Coming April 18, 2024 this is certainly one RPG to look out for this year. And in case you're not convinced, here's what we thought of the game after playing the 90 minute preview.
