Dark Medieval Times Demo

Castlevania is still a source of inspiration for modern developers, especially in terms of gameplay and level design. However, new ideas always weigh more in the eyes of gamers, because learning new things is always more fun than dealing with the same mechanics over and over again. Having a solid foundation is always a good idea, on the other, especially in the platformer genre.

Dark Medieval Times is a 2D platformer inspired by classics like Castlevania, while also borrowing a few elements from the popular Dark Souls series in terms of combat mechanics. The game features fast-paced mechanics, decent pixel artwork and quite a bit of exploration, not to mention the interconnected levels that make the world feel a lot more intriguing and homogenous.   To begin with, the story revolves around a mysterious fog that spreads through the land of Alusia, which makes everyone insane, that is unless it kills them first. Thankfully, the main character does not need to worry about this, given the fact that he is already dead. Hence, he embarks on a journey in order to find the source of the fog and put an end to all the destruction it causes.

The game feels like a hack & slash RPG at times, especially since your character can collect hundreds of items along the way and equip them in order to obtain bonuses. Special abilities can be improved as well, not to mention the visceral combat system that has you performing daring combos using specific button sequences. This is still an alpha version of the demo, on the other hand, so there are plenty of rough edges that need attention.   Speaking of which, the game can be enjoyed with a keyboard if push comes to shove, but a gamepad is strongly recommended to get the most out of it. Hence, some of the quick combos or tough platforming sequences might be too annoying to go through with a keyboard. Lastly, the graphics are not bad either, but the underground levels can get a tad repetitive after a while.

All things considered, Dark Medieval Times is definitely on the right path in terms of gameplay mechanics, world design and combat, but it still needs work in other aspects. Hence, it’s worth keeping an eye on it as the developers keep improving the game in later versions.