Fatekeeper: Everything We Know

If you’ve been craving a game like Dark Messiah of Might and Magic, with a dash of Skyrim, you’re in luck. Dark Messiah came out in 2006, with no sequel, despite its unique and responsive melee-based combat. And so, fans will definitely be hyped up to get back into a similar vibe. Having been decades later, though, we could be looking at a modern version of blood and violence. 

Interestingly, the Force type of ability from Star Wars is shown in the trailer. You lift bulky enemies, tossing them left and right, and throwing them off a ledge, that’s bound to feel damn exhilarating every time. It’s clear from the trailer that Fatekeeper aims to be beefier in graphics and combat. But will its efforts be enough to stand on its own two feet? Here’s everything we know about Fatekeeper so far. 

What is Fatekeeper?

Fatekeeper is an upcoming first-person, role-playing game. It’ll be melee-based, using swords, spells and relics against enemies. The world will be immersive, featuring an aesthetic similar to Dark Messiah, although with a definitely fresh coat of paint. Fatekeeper looks damn fancy, which is to be expected when it’s running on the Unreal Engine 5.

You’ll navigate “ruins” that make up most of the environments, handcrafted to look surreal and pull you into a cataclysmic world. Also important is the freedom of choice during your adventure. Overall, you’ll be mastering the art of sorcery, facing off against formidable enemies, and exploring a breathtaking world.

Story

You’ll be embarking on Fatekeeper’s adventure solo via a single-player campaign. According to Steam, the story will take a focused narrative path. This suggests a more linear path to missions. However, the blurb suggests bits of exploration, too, with the open-endedness of environments still unclear. 

Still, you can look forward to venturing across diverse biomes, from ancient battlegrounds to massive caverns and lush forests. You’ll stumble into derelict sanctuaries looking like they’ve been ripped out of medieval times. And in each of these areas, you’ll discover hidden lore, valuable relics, and run into surprising encounters. 

Gameplay

The first item on the gameplay list is melee-based combat. Get ready to get up close and personal with enemies, which will be pretty in-your-face from a first-person perspective. This might not be what you’re used to in an RPG. However, the trailer sure does seem to nail sick sword slashes that actually cut through flesh. 

You can look forward to fighting an immense variety of enemies, each with distinct attack patterns, strengths, and weaknesses. The combat promises a good enough challenge to take the time to prepare a strong build and master the mechanics. The melee combat is described as “reactive” and “precise,” which applies to spellcasting, too. Can you come up with slick tactics in the moment that take full advantage of your chosen build?

You’ll need to spend some time crafting the perfect build, with Fatekeeper promising rich progression. You’ll have unique and varied build choices that dictate your character’s combat styles, attributes, spells, and more. You might focus on strength, for instance, precision, or sorcery, fitting your chosen path with your play style.

As for your armor, weapons, and artifacts, you’ll loot them from enemy drops or in the world during exploration. These will help you customize your loadout, with room for experimentation. Enemies will grow stronger as you progress, and your build and loadout will need to match up to their strengths.

Development

Fatekeeper is currently in development by Paraglacial, in collaboration with publisher THQ Nordic. You’ll probably have heard about the game from the recent THQ Nordic Showcase event. Given how brilliant the trailer was, it’s surprising that Fatekeeper isn’t more hyped. However, that will depend on how THQ Nordic markets the game moving forward. 

Interestingly, the developers have decided to launch Fatekeeper into Early Access this winter. This means you can be a part of the development process, playing the game early and giving your feedback on the changes and features you’d like added. 

Being an RPG, it might be tricky to predict how the game might evolve in Early Access. But Paraglacial, a subsidiary of THQ Nordic, have a renowned publisher backing them up. Moreover, the developers at Paraglacial come from Grimlore Games and have previously worked on SpellForce III.

Also, apparently, Fatekeeper’s goal is to be the spiritual successor to Hellraid. While still early in development, Fatekeeper seems to be on the right path. Fingers crossed, previous experience works out for all parties involved. 

Trailer

Fatekeeper’s official gameplay announcement trailer will give you goosebumps. Everything looks great, from the storytelling, grounded in an authentic foreign language, to the enemy design and animations. It’s a wonder this game is being developed by ten people, and at the announcement, it already looks ravishing hot. Enemy encounters will get bloody, for sure, perfectly fitting with the grimy aesthetic design. The melee attacks look weighty and even cut through flesh. One scene in particular looks pretty cool as your sword hacks into the head of a bulky enemy.

Combat appears to combine swordplay and spellcasting, alongside dodges and parries. Besides hacking and slashing your way through monsters who appear to have invaded the world, you explore dungeons and solve puzzles. There’s definitely Scrolls influence here, way more than Soulslikes, with a particular combat focus. Only wish we were getting this as a full game, but no rush to the developers. Do take your sweet time. 

Release Date, Platforms, & Editions

Fatekeeper will first be launching into Early Access this winter. And as Early Access games go, we can’t be sure when the final version might be ready. We can confirm the platforms, which will be solely Microsoft Windows via Steam. It’s likely, though, the final game will eventually make it to PlayStation, Xbox, and perhaps even Switch. And as for editions, it’s too early to tell. For now, lots of information remains under wraps. So, feel free to follow the official social handle where new updates are likely to be posted.