Artem Shcherbakov, CEO of ROAR Games Talks Tenet of the Spark – Interview Series

ROAR Games, the studio behind the highly anticipated beat ‘em up brawler Tenet of the Spark, has been working tirelessly to conceive the roots of a narrative-driven experience that will reportedly mesh intricate hand-to-hand combat with deep ties to ancestral abilities and lore. Granted, it isn’t quite ready for public consumption just yet, but according to the devs, a “vertical slice” of the game has been built, and it is now working towards its Alpha phase. Color us intrigued!

To learn a bit more about Tenet of the Spark and its ongoing development, I decided to reach out to the folks over at ROAR Games, who kindly provided me with some information on the project.

Firstly, congratulations on the recent announcement of Tenet of the Spark! Before we delve into the details of the upcoming brawler IP, however, let’s shift our attention over to ROAR Games. Tell us, what brought the studio together, and what are you hoping to achieve?

Artem: ROAR Games has its roots in animation. Specifically, the animation studio ZHEESHEE. Working together there, our shared passion for vibrant, dynamic, and touching stories brought us together. There, we created our short animated film, The Spark, which became the foundational inspiration for our first title at the studio.

At ROAR Games, that artistic focus still holds strong. We aim to build a team of people who prioritize emotional connection above all else. This applies not only to the games we work on but also to our collaboration with each other, as we inspire one another every day to find deeper meanings in the world around us. We pay close attention to details and believe that the gaming experience can – or rather should – be every bit as cohesive and immersive as film; something you’ll want to revisit time and time again.

Moving back to Tenet of the Spark. Could you please tell us a bit more about it? How would you best describe its primary genre, and, if applicable, which game would you say it resonates with the most?

Artem: Tenet of the Spark is a narrative action game with a big focus on stylish hand-to-hand combat. It features a dynamic story with a unique twist: The ability to switch between the perspective of the protagonist and their ancestors in extreme moments, giving you access to new abilities. We’re huge fans of the visual styles of Spider Verse and Sifu, as well as strong, engaging narratives that blend exciting action with storytelling, like God of War and Final Fantasy 16. Of course we also love Hi-Fi rush and the Devil May Cry series for their deep but stylish combat systems.

Let’s talk about the story. Where will Tenet of the Spark take place? Also, what part will we be playing in this multi-era chain of events?

Artem: The story takes place in the present day, in an abstract fictional American city. We decided to blend elements of contemporary reality to better convey our narrative goals. While it’s not meant to correspond to any one real place, there’s a lot of familiar elements to our city design. You’ll notice architectural influences from Brooklyn, Detroit, and other places that have inspired us across film and other media.

We’re excited to hear more about the combat, too. From ancestral techniques to modern-day combos, Tenet of the Spark has quite the selection of weapons at its disposal. Could you please tell us more about these powers, as well as how they’ll play a part in Will’s journey?

Artem: I don’t want to reveal too many details just yet to avoid spoiling the experience for players, as a large part of the game’s story hinges around revealing these powers at sometimes-unexpected times, and uncovering the reason why you have these abilities in the first place. Is Will blessed by his ancestors, or is this some kind of curse? Will is trying to figure out the boundaries of this power and how it can aid him in the events unfolding around him, and we want to make that experience as unpredictable as possible for players.

Suffice it to say, a quick pro tip wouldn’t hurt at this point — despite being a little early to the global debut. Even still, we’d certainly appreciate a few pointers. Do you have any words of advice for those who are looking to pick up a copy of Tenet of the Spark?

Artem: Like you said, it’s still early days, and we’re still refining the experience here, but in the broadest terms, we want to give players the chance to come up with their own strategies.. Whether they prefer to rush in as a Viking, explore different ways to interact with the environment as an Aztec, or combine all styles for the best set of abilities, we want to give them that freedom. So I suppose our early tip would be experiment and express yourself. There’s often several valid solutions to a given problem.

Would you mind providing us with a deeper insight into the current situation regarding the game’s development? Are we edging a little closer to that all-important launch window, or are we still a fair ways from seeing Tenet of the Spark hit the shelves?

Artem: There’s still a long way to go! We’ve completed the vertical slice of the game and are now in full production. This phase involves working on the alpha version, where we focus on gameplay progression, additional mechanics, character development, archetypes, level design, visuals, and animation. While anything can happen, we’re presently aiming for a release by the end of 2026 and actively communicating with publishers to find partners who share our values and are willing to lend their expertise to help us.

It seems only right that we should have all of the tools and information readily available as we gradually progress towards the launch window. On that note, please could you tell us where we might be able to gather a few more details on Tenet of the Spark? Any social feeds, streams, or upcoming demonstrations, maybe?

Artem: You can find the game on Steam here:  https://store.steampowered.com/app/2565010/Tenet_of_the_Spark/

Follow us on Twitter for general updates here: https://twitter.com/tenetofthespark

Make sure you never miss a trailer of developer vlog on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/@tenetofthespark/

And become part of our community in our Discord channel here: https://discord.gg/JsWsebmr

Is there anything you would like to add before we go ahead and wrap things up?

Artem: We believe that we’re putting together something truly special here, and none of this would have been possible without the support of our audience. Every bit of feedback (ideally positive) from those watching our trailers, developer videos or gameplay showcases means a lot. We believe that the story of Tenet of the Spark has become possible thanks to the players’ attention. That’s why we would be thrilled to receive any suggestions, ideas, or recommendations that players think could enhance their experience. Everyone’s invited to join our Discord and share their thoughts!

Thanks for your time, Artem! Best of luck to you and the team at ROAR Games!

For more information on ROAR Games’ Tenet of the Spark, be sure to visit the team over on their official social handle here. You can also wishlist the game on Steam for additional coverage here.