Village Gamer

Snowed In Studios is pleased to announce that its 2D Action RPG title WindForge officially launched today on Steam, Desura, GOG, the Humble Store, and on the game’s official site. The developers are celebrating the game’s release with a launch week sale of 10% off the $14.99 regular price will take effect on all channels. Explore hostile skies in an ever-changing Steampunk world, where everything you see can be created or destroyed, making it a game without barriers that rewards creative problem solving and improvisation.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRgPl2zy36A]

The Cavechild took Windforge for a spin over this past weekend, and I believe that his favourite part of the game is the fact that everything is, indeed, destructible. As with most games of this genre you begin with character creation, a basic weapon/tool and a basic ship. You can very quickly get to mining raw materials, which you then craft into items that you need. Crafting is probably the most important skill you will need as you move forward in the game, although you can also visit shops and buy things that you need from the resident merchants.There are a large number of NPC types to interact with, such as the aforementioned merchants, as well as those who give you quests.

The animation is very detailed, and it’s obvious that a lot of attention went into the world’s design, but missions could be a bit more detailed and state more plainly as to what needs to be done and where – they were a bit vague for his liking. The pace of the game is quite slow, but it’s great for people who like to take their time in a game, especially when they have the freedom to explore the world, hunting for items and wandering through secret caves and across floating islands.

The Cavechild’s favourite weapon was the Grappling Hook, which he said is a blast to use. It can usually get you where you need to go, and out of places you when you need a quick exit. The difficulty in Windforge ramps up rather quickly, and you pretty well have to be an expert taskmaster to keep a weapon on the enemies, craft new items for your ship and pilot it at the same time. He advises players to assemble their crew as soon as they are able – a co-op feature could make this game more enjoyable for less-experienced players.

Also of note is that there are not many options in the graphics menu and the audio could stand a little bit of an improvement (the Cavechild is in school to become an Audio Engineer, so he is often critical of audio and music). He said that the user interface is quite simplistic and self-explanatory. He did enjoy the time he spent in the game, and said that it is off to a great start – there is lots of room for expansion and additions, and it will be interesting to see where the developers take it.

Features

• Epic story line and quests that drive gameplay without constricting freedom
• The first game to include minable sky whales, and meat blocks
• Large completely destructible procedural world with multiple environments
• Contra-style action mixed with the creative fun of Terraria
• Build and fly fully-functional airships
• Over 1200 craftable items and counting
• Easy-to-control, skill-based combat with 360-degree aiming

In development since 2012, this project has been funded by the studio, the financial support from the Ontario Media Development Corporation’s Digital Media Fund, and a successful Kickstarter campaign. WindForge received the green light from the Steam Community on January 7, 2014.