If you’ve played a lot of dungeons and dragons, you almost certainly sat through the game in uneasy situations. I amped around the table in the dark room. You don’t know if that one friend of your group has mastered the role-playing side of TTRPGS, or if their home is always this creepy. Studio Vezelle’s new Roguelike Inkshed It captures this completely. It is the most approximate tabletop strategy game that has been rolled up over and over again in Puzzle House, and is soaked by the same level of atmosphere that the encryption was very appealing. In fact, in a similar way, your success here is measured by progress both on and off the board.
The Inkshade Cold opens in a dark room. A gorgeous wooden plank sits in front of you, a voice beckoning you from behind. “We play the game.” You are the captain, the numbers explain, and you have one purpose: sail your airship deep by. Unfortunately, there is currently a shortage of both the ship in question and the means to identify the destination. Getting it means engaging in a strategy game waiting. A series of battles and events are connected via the now familiar branch path of the best roguelikes. But it’s just a moment when the first attempt fails.
So we start the loop. Between runs, you can step up from the table and explore the surrounding rooms. At first, you will find more works. Each has different abilities and can heal during battle, but when they die they disappear forever. The small wooden figure has a wonderful sense of touch, with soft “ticks, tucks” being driven, which is complemented by your dim DMs introducing the encounter with a short, whimsical explanation. It’s almost enough to place shadowy nightmares that circulate around you from your heart.
Gaining new titles of Tabletop RPGs at the core of Inkshade is as easy as winning battles and defeating enemies who have recruited to your side, but you will uncover them by wandering around you and solving puzzles in the “real world.” Upgrade units are made through currencies that allow you to spend a variety of potential classes as you wish. If you choose to strengthen their health, movement, strength, range, and more, you can push it even further in subsequent campaigns.
Just like the confusion of the encryption, the Blue Prince, or my friend’s DND basement, there is, of course, more than the initial look suggests. The entities acting as your dungeon master seem to be happy that you can wander at least in the first place, but they will gently move you away from messing around with certain ornaments by sliding the remarks at hand.
I don’t know how deep Inkshade’s Rabbit Hole will be, but there’s a lot of love and attention dripping from every part of the presentation. There are also steam sales to celebrate the game’s launch, so you can grab a little less than the already very reasonable asking price.
“We hope you enjoy playing the game,” developer Vezelle wrote. “Inkshade started out as a bit of a personal project, but the reason that’s happening on Steam today is because we want to try and have a cool experience for others.”
Inkshade is currently on Steam, priced at $19.99/£16.75, with a 10% launch discount meaning you will pay $17.99/£15.07 if purchased by Thursday, August 21st. If you are ready to sail deep by, get it here.
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