Most exciting things confirmed for Action RPG

PlayStation's first State of Play of the year was stacked with new releases and updates from some of the biggest upcoming games in the industry. There were big announcements that God of War Trilogy Remakeupdates on Death Stranding 2 for PC, and lots of reveals for exciting titles in a range of genres, with one of the most interesting Crimson Moon. An action-adventure RPG set in a world of angels and gods, the game wants to give a cruel and brutal spin to the space with a brand new environment and a lot of creative mechanics and gameplay ideas.

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Crimson Moon is a brutal new Co-Op Action RPG, and it's coming to PS5

Crimson Moon is a brutal co-op action RPG that brings intense fantasy and soul-like vibes and is set for release on PS5.

The first trailer already has gamers all over the world begging for more, and while many details are still unknown at this point, a few things have already been nailed down that are interesting enough to get people hyped. From the combat to the world itself, there is already so much to see and admire Crimson Moon long before the game even drops.

Fit the 9 games into the grid.

The story

A story of angels and demons

Reclaim a city from evil.
Push back the enemy with each victory.

Story and narrative design are important aspects of any RPG, and for Crimson Moonthe world appears to be a major focus of the game and the action that takes place in it. Players take on the role of Nephilim, a human-angel hybrid tasked with taking back the corrupt city of Gildenarch from the evil forces infecting the streets.

The demonic forces of the Infernal Legion once pushed humanity to the brink of extinction, but the angelic race managed to push them back and banish evil back into the darkness from whence it came. Now presented with a new challenge, players will have to take back the city one area at a time, fighting everything that stands in their way on the way to victory.

Combat

Influences from all over the gaming world

Brutal melee encounters.
Transformations that change the tide of a fight.

Fight in Crimson Moon has already become one of the biggest draws for RPGs. It's visceral in all the best ways, and players have access to a range of abilities and tools like parries and transformations that give them a lot of control over how encounters play out during a run.

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These games all delivered spectacularly on the action and RPG fronts, and they also feature incredible open-world environments.

The developers describe it as a game of improvisation and expression, heavily rewarding players for showing off and landing skilled combos time and time again. In terms of comparisons, the game draws similarities to soulslikes and even hack-and-slash games, but with its own identity that keeps the action and intensity just as high.

The enemies

From zombies to giants

Unique attacks and enemy executions.
Composition changes between assignments.

Enemies are an integral part of how players engage with an RPG. Without something interesting to fight, the game can become quite boring. IN Crimson Moonthere's a huge list of enemy types already on display, from vampires to undead ghouls, each with their own distinct attacks and patterns that players need to learn and master over time.

Additionally, fights come in all shapes and sizes, with larger waves of smaller enemies and much larger opponents commanding respect and requiring much more effort from the player. The variety is pretty impressive right off the bat, and players should be happy with the number of targets to hit and bodies to decimate.

Co-Op

Escalates the action

Dynamic difficulty scale.
Different mission settings depending on the number of players.

The trailer for Crimson Moon was impressive enough, but when a second player joined the fray, things really started to look epic. New players can jump into the fray alone or with a friend, and the game respects the added power by scaling the difficulty and increasing the intensity to ensure things don't get too easy.

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Enemy composition is also said to change in co-op, which could mean a solo player will experience a completely different challenge in a single mission than a duo fighting alongside each other. These co-op changes make it sound pretty fun to play both solo and with friends, and should also increase its replay value, thanks to the different feel that comes from each co-op mission.

Mission-based gameplay

Reclaim the land, one step at a time

Different locations and settings.
New stages are unlocked, with a final battle at the end of each.

The action-adventure genre is a diverse space that covers a variety of games, and Crimson Moon want to branch out even further with their own style of play. Instead of exploring a huge open world, players will instead play through a series of missions across the city, each offering new challenges, enemies and rewards.

Individual victories represent the city slowly being reclaimed, and as players fight harder, they will eventually face a final confrontation against the vampire lord Solomon Moore to determine who will come out on top. Despite the mission-based loop, runs are said to be replayable and deeply satisfying, ensuring there are always more ways to play and more goals to conquer.

Upgrade Hub

Preparing for the next run

Permanent gear upgrades and unlocks.
Build customization.

After completing a break-in Crimson Moonplayers are free to return to the church, a hub filled with upgrades, NPCs, and the mission selection area that lets them decide where to attack next. The main loop revolves around putting together a build and forging new gear to stand a better chance against tougher enemies, giving it an almost roguelite feel that should add plenty of variety to an already expansive game.

Progression extends to various combat abilities and techniques that can give players even more advantages mid-battle, and successful matches also come with additional unlocks like modifiers and skills that bring a whole other level of replayability that should keep players entertained for dozens of hours on end.