Open world survival simulators are a genre that has been very popular for many years. But since the beginning of this year, developers of such projects have been particularly active: over the past five months, many games on this topic have been released, of which we can recall several worthy ones: for example, we have already written about Enshrouded, Abiotic Factor and Nightingale .
Today I’ll tell you about Soulmask – another survival game, which, unlike most of its peers in the genre, already at the early access stage can boast of good optimization and a large amount of content.
The jungle is calling!
First distinguishing feature Soulmask, which catches your eye is, of course, the setting. For survivalists, it’s normal to start with primitive technologies of the Neolithic level: crafting the first objects from sticks and stones has long become a standard and is found even in science fiction games – take the same Icarus . But, as a rule, developers prefer a medieval setting interspersed with fantasy. Here we have the very Stone Age, and even in the rarely seen style of America of the pre-Columbian era: the most suitable example in spirit, not from among the games, would be a film Mel Gibson (Mel Gibson) "Apocalypto". However, I will hint that not everything is so simple.
A short introductory video reveals a simple backstory: our character is miraculously saved from the sacrificial altar and finds himself in the wild jungle, left to his own devices. Those familiar with survivalists will immediately understand what to do: we break branches, collect stones, craft primitive tools, catch game harmlessly wandering around the area, light a fire… Then the action moves along a typical rut for the genre: technologies become more and more complex, the number of available equipment and building elements grows with each unlocked technology, the first house appears, which gradually grows into an entire village. For those who don’t know what to do with themselves, there is a training mode: advice and tasks of the level “Collect such and such an object” that are constantly on the screen will tell you in which direction to continue development.
And there is room for development here. The map is not small and opens gradually, which further emphasizes its scale. There are several biomes – from sultry jungles to snow-capped mountain peaks. Each location has its own dangers, including a variety of predators, aggressive NPCs and other players (if you are on a PvP server). The developers advise beginners to try their hand at PvE mode or even solo. Good advice, considering the rather hardcore PvP settings on the official servers: the loss of equipment and loot when killed and the ability to rob any base while raid time is running creates a rather hostile atmosphere. However, this is in the spirit of the same "Apocalypto": the film tells about the captivity of an entire Mayan tribe by more advanced Indians for the sake of sacrifice.
There is something to do without confronting people. For example, a separate leveling branch is dedicated to hunting – thanks to a huge bestiary, you can immerse yourself in this activity in order to unlock bonuses for each hunter level or simply stroke your ego. Hints unobtrusively encourage you to study the map, which has plenty of other opponents. There are many places where you can find both treasures and their guards: ancient ruins, barbarian camps, fortresses, mines, animal dens await you… And if everything is clear with animals – killed, butchered for meat, collected the loot that they guarded – then with NPC people everything is much more interesting.
Tribal Chief
The fact is that thanks https://lasvegasenvivocasino.co.uk/games/ to the magic mask that our hero wears, you can capture any non-player character – to do this, just lower his health to the minimum values, and then press the capture ritual button. The exhausted victim will collapse to the ground, and all you have to do is feed him and carry him to a secluded place (for example, to your base). A few minutes of waiting – and you become not a lone survivor, but the head of a small settlement; Soulmask turns from an ordinary survival game into a strategy game with a third-person view.
Independently acting units are the norm for strategies. But changing the camera from isometric to an immersive third-person view changes things radically.
Using NPCs as residents of a settlement controlled by the player is not a new idea for the genre: many similar projects use bot allies in one way or another. But usually such mechanics only work for the surroundings – the residents create the crowd, and the player does the main work.
Here everything is “real”: subordinates work at machines, carry things from one storage facility to another, cut down trees and collect resources, guard other residents and buildings, keep the camp fire burning (the main building of your village, which prevents buildings from collapsing). Moreover, your presence is not required for their activity: it is enough to assign tasks to your subordinates and go about your business – go hunting or study the map. You can even leave the server altogether – they will work as long as the conditions necessary to complete the task are met.
The order designer could use some additional conveniences, but overall it copes with its function. Although it would be much simpler if the developers copied the system from strategies a la RimWorld – with the ability to prioritize work and create a schedule.
The simplest example of a work schedule for a tribesman: he must maintain the camp fire and carry boards from the storage room to the construction workshop.
And in general, the interface is annoying at times, especially during crafting: given the huge number of items and buildings available for creation, you have to constantly scroll through long lists, remembering the ingredients. But if you spend time and understand tribe management, you can completely shift all routine tasks onto the shoulders of the NPC.
From stone to iron
Your subordinates are not only labor force. You can take them with you or even move your soul into someone else’s body, completely taking control of the bot. If you get carried away with creating a tribe, then the process of selecting new slaves resembles the same hunt. Finding a victim with the necessary parameters is not an easy task, which is also constantly repeated: losing residents is a piece of cake. When you log into the server after a long absence, don’t be surprised if you find a “shortage” – wild animals and equally wild players (on PvP servers) will not fail to kill the bot that comes their way.
Thanks to the modular construction system, you can create a unique village for the entire tribe. However, for security reasons, on PvP servers it is better to make monotonous boxes, closed on all sides, until the tribe is pumped up to the fortress wall.
I don’t think it will be possible to do without the help of enslaved NPCs: it’s unlikely that such gameplay will allow you to feel comfortable even in PvE mode. Boss battles require allies, and the crafting process takes as long as possible.
But the craft itself pleases. If you look into the research window, your eyes will widen from the abundance of objects and buildings: the line of technologies begins with stone tools and ends with steel tools. However, it won’t be possible to get to the hardware right away – to develop you need to fight bosses and study the map.
The pumping system is no less diverse. In addition to the hunter level, there is a standard RPG system with improvement of basic skills, an extensive branch for the character’s craft and combat parameters, levels for each type of weapon and a separate mask development menu – an analogue of the class system, thanks to which your hero receives certain passive and active skills.
If we analyze the elements of the game separately, then Soulmask It’s unlikely to be praised for originality. But the developers didn’t just copy successful features spotted from competitors, they also made sure that the player would be comfortable and interesting, despite early access. I encountered almost no serious bugs, the graphics do not require top-end hardware, but adequately convey the beauty of the ancient world (the only let down was the rendering of objects at a distance), and the network code is stable. Perhaps the only significant drawback that I was able to notice is the sad implementation of melee combat, especially in PvP: jerky animations and not very responsive controls turn the fight into a chaotic fuss.
If you miss the original survivalists, but are afraid to taste all the “delights” of the beta versions, then Soulmask is definitely for you: in CampFire Studio We made such early access that we’re not ashamed of it.