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Dark Devotion

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Dark Devotion
Developer(s)Hibernian Workshop
Publisher(s)The Arcade Crew
Designer(s)Louis Denizet
Programmer(s)Louis Denizet
Artist(s)Alexandre Magnat
Writer(s)Arthur Dos Santos
Composer(s)Arthur Dos Santos
EngineClickteam Fusion 2.5
Platform(s)
Release
  • Windows
  • 25 April 2019
  • PlayStation 4,Switch
  • 24 October 2019
Genre(s)Action role-playing
Mode(s)Single-player

Dark Devotionis a 2019action role-playing gamedeveloped by Hibernian Workshop and published by The Arcade Crew. It was released forWindows,PlayStation 4,Nintendo Switch.Development started in 2015, with a successfulKickstartercampaign being launched two years later.

Dark Devotionfollows a Templar Knight initiate who is tasked by their god with exploring a fallen temple. She has to balance her faith and bravery while attempting to clear out the demons inside of it. It received mixed reviews form critics.

Gameplay

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The Templar dodges an enemy's attack, then attacks the enemy from behind.

Dark Devotionbegins with the Templar Knight entering a temple. She eventually ends up in the Filthblood Shelter. From there, the player can explore dungeons, upgrade their skills, and communicate withnon-player characters(NPCs). Shortcuts and portals can be unlocked, allowing faster movement through the game's worlds.[1]

The Templar is able to attack, dodge, parry, and block.[2]Stamina is depleted when the Templar rolls or dodges.[3]Attacking with a weapon also depletes stamina; the amount lost depends on the size of the weapon.[4]Players earn Faith when they kill enemies, allowing them to buy perks.[1][2]Faith is also used as a form ofmana.[2]Perks have five levels, but only one can be used in a level. The player can choose which perk they want to activate in the hub, and can switch them based on the situation or equipment loadout. Tablets can be found in the game's areas, which unlock permanentstatupgrades such as increased stamina or damage.[1]The Templar can become stronger by finding equipment. There are two slots for weapons, one slot for armor, and one for anamuletor an accessory.[1]Armor determines the number of hits the Templar can take before she loses health, and accessories determine the amount of health that the Templar has.[1]The Templar can receive Blessings and Diseases, which providebuffsanddebuffs.[2]

Certain types of armor such as heavy armor can provide extra protection at the expense of slower stamina regeneration. Others kinds of armor can provide less protection, but increase the Templar's chance of landing acritical hit.[4]The Templar can encounterbossesthrough exploration. Some bosses have to be defeated in order to progress in the game. Due to the interconnected nature of the four worlds, the player has access to several different paths.[1]This allows the player to skip certain areas or bosses.[1]

Teleportation Altars can be found around the game's map. Only one altar can be active at a time.[2]In Filthblood, the player can use a one-way portal to return to the last activated altar.[2]If the Templar dies, she loses her equipment, and willrespawnin the Filthblood Shelter with low health and armor.[1][2]Some weapons and armor, like ones dropped by bosses or received as a quest reward, are unlocked permanently. Players can choose to start with one of these from the game's hub. No accessories or runes are retained upon death.[1]In the shelter, the player can use theirexperience pointsfor upgrades, acceptside quests,and collect gear from ablacksmith.[2]The Filthblood Shelter also contains four doors that lead to each of the game's four worlds.[2]

Development and release

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Development ofDark Devotionstarted in 2015. The game had cleared theSteam Greenlightprocess, and the developers started aKickstartercampaign seeking €20,000 to fund the game's development.[5]The campaign ended on 17 October, with €31,796 raised.[5][6]Dark Devotionwas announced by The Arcade Crew on 3 April 2018, with a planned release that same year for PC and consoles.[7][8]A playabledemowas featured atPAXEast 2018.[9][10]The game's demo was featured again atE3 2018.[11]Dark Devotionwas delayed to Q1 2019 on 17 October 2018. A developer diary was also released that same day, discussing the game's universe, art, and scenario.[12]In January 2019, a trailer was released showing off the game's bosses.[13][14]

Sources of inspiration includeRomantic eraartists such asEugène Delacroixand 14th century Frenchgothic architecture.H. P. Lovecraft's stories and concepts about theantiherohelped the developers make improvements to thestory arcand character development ofDark Devotion.[15]

Dark Devotionreleased forWindowson 25 April 2019 and forPlayStation 4andNintendo Switchon 24 October 2019.[16][17]A physical release byLimited Run Gamesbegan production in late 2019.[18]

Reception

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Dark Devotionreceived "mixed or average" reviews according toreview aggregatorwebsiteMetacritic.[19][20][21]It received a score of 27/40 fromFamitsu,based on individual reviews of 7, 6, 7, and 7.[22]

Rich Edmonds fromWindows Centralfavorably comparedDark Devotionto theDark Soulsseries. He called the visuals "stunning" and the gameplay "incredible". However, Edmonds felt that the music was repetitive and thought that the options were lackluster.[3]Phillip Tinner fromScreen RantdescribedDark Devotionas an "impressive indie". He believed that the game had issues, but felt that the minor ones could be forgiven due to the size of Hibernian Workshop.[2]

RPG Site's Bryan Vitale calledDark Devotion"beautiful", felt that it sampled too many ideas to make a "cohesive" experience. He believed that the nature of the game's progression hindered the quest design and exploration incentives.[4]

Charalampos Papadimitriou fromRPGamercomplemented the game's combat mechanics and rogue-lite elements. He praised the game's "immersive" story and world. He felt that some of the systems could have been more developed, and felt that the limited abilities and inventory could restrict a player's options.[1]

Nominations

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List of awards and nominations
Year Ceremony Category Result Ref.
2018 BitSummit 2018 Vermillion Gate Award Nominated [23]
Visual Excellence Award Nominated

References

[edit]
Notes
  1. ^Score based on 19 reviews.
  2. ^Score based on 7 reviews.
  3. ^Score based on 4 reviews.
References
  1. ^abcdefghijkPapadimitriou, Charalampos (13 May 2019)."Dark Devotion Review".RPGamer.Retrieved26 May2022.
  2. ^abcdefghijkTinner, Phillip (4 May 2019)."Dark Devotion Review: An Excellent Blend of Imitation and Innovation".Screen Rant.Retrieved26 May2022.
  3. ^abcEdmonds, Rich (14 May 2019)."Dark Devotion PC review: An intense RPG that's not for out-of-shape adventurers".Windows Central.Retrieved26 May2022.
  4. ^abcdVitale, Bryan (1 May 2019)."Dark Devotion Review".RPG Site.Retrieved26 May2022.
  5. ^abMacgregor, Jody (27 September 2017)."Dark Devotion is a 2D indie RPG as dark as its name suggests".PC Gamer.Retrieved8 June2022.
  6. ^Wales, Matt (9 January 2019)."Dark Devotion is a brooding, action-heavy rogue-like side-scroller due" early "this year".Eurogamer.Retrieved8 June2022.
  7. ^Romano, Sal (3 April 2018)."2D side-scrolling action RPG Dark Devotion announced for consoles and PC".Gematsu.Retrieved8 June2022.
  8. ^Vitale, Adam (3 April 2018)."Indie sidescroller Dark Devotion releasing for PC and Console in 2018".RPG Site.Retrieved8 June2022.
  9. ^Sheehan, Gavin (12 April 2018)."Feeling the Weight of the World in Dark Devotion".Bleeding Cool.Retrieved8 June2022.
  10. ^Sheridan, Connor; Prell, Sam (10 April 2018)."The best games of PAX East 2018".GamesRadar+.Retrieved8 June2022.
  11. ^Papadimitriou, Charalampos (15 June 2018)."Dark Devotion E3 Impression".RPGamer.Retrieved8 June2022.
  12. ^Romano, Sal (17 October 2018)."Dark Devotion delayed to Q1 2019".Gematsu.Retrieved8 June2022.
  13. ^Saed, Sherif (9 January 2019)."Dark Devotion is a sidescrolling Soulslike, coming to PC, Switch, PS4 this year".VG247.Retrieved8 June2022.
  14. ^Webster, Zack (9 January 2019)."Dark Devotion Shows Off Its Bosses".RPGamer.Retrieved9 June2022.
  15. ^Vitale, Adam (12 December 2018)."Dark Devotion developer diaries introduce the world and combat | RPG Site".RPG Site.Retrieved9 June2022.
  16. ^Romano, Sal (17 April 2019)."Dark Devotion launches April 25 for PC, later for PS4 and Switch".Gematsu.Retrieved8 June2022.
  17. ^Romano, Sal (9 October 2019)."Dark Devotion for PS4 and Switch launches October 24".Gematsu.Retrieved8 June2022.
  18. ^Fuller, Alex (10 June 2019)."Limited Run Games Announces More RPG Releases".RPGamer.Retrieved8 June2022.
  19. ^ab"Dark Devotion for PC Reviews".Metacritic.Retrieved26 May2022.
  20. ^ab"Dark Devotion for PlayStation 4 Reviews".Metacritic.Retrieved26 May2022.
  21. ^ab"Dark Devotion for Switch Reviews".Metacritic.Retrieved26 May2022.
  22. ^abRomano, Sal (13 November 2019)."Famitsu Review Scores: Issue 1615".Gematsu.Retrieved8 June2022.
  23. ^Sheehan, Gavin (12 May 2018)."BitSummit Vol. 6 Announces the 2018 Award Nominees".Bleeding Cool.Retrieved26 May2022.
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