One of the more interesting titles revealed during the Xbox Games Showcase in June was Towerborne. It is developed by Stoic (The Banner Saga) and seems to be inspired, at least to some extent, by Castle Crashers with co-op for up to four people.
Xbox Wire has published an interview with Arnie Jorgensen, co-founder and creative director of the studio, and with Isaac Torres, lead combat designer, in which they share some new details about the game. Among other things, the first one reveals that they wanted it to be very easy to play, without sacrificing depth or button mashing:
“The game is easy to pick up and play, and even better with friends. Anyone can pick up a controller and have fun mashing buttons and collecting loot to upgrade your character. Combat is dynamic and accessible to a wide range of people. As you play further and delve into specific weapon combos and abilities, you realize that the combat is much deeper than you first thought.You see the head of a boss enemy peeking out of the clouds on the map of the world and you have a new goal to aim for, but to defeat it you may have to strengthen your Warclub and level up some equipment… the game pulls you in and it’s not a stress simulator, it’s just having a good time.”
In terms of inspiration, it seems Stoic wasn’t just looking at Castle Crashers, as Torres explains:
“A lot of the combat team is made up of designers and animators who have worked on action games, beat ’em ups, and fighting games where this kind of feel is a priority. We also have designers who have worked on a wide variety of genres, like RPG and MMO. It’s this kind of diversity in the team that has allowed us to draw inspiration from lots of games while also creating our own identity.”
The interview also talks about the large world map that is used to explore the game. Jorgensen says the idea is for it to be full of fun things to do:
“The map is your way of exploring the world of Towerborne. You will fight from the safety of the Belfry, hex by hex in the wilderness to encounter discoveries, stories, groups of enemies, boss quests and much more. You will find chests with precious items , you’ll search for Umbra spirits and unlock paths to more dangerous areas through Danger License missions. The map is designed to be a candy store full of tasty treats for you to enjoy.”
Towerborne launches next year for PC and Xbox Series. It will also be included in Game Pass from day 1. Check out ten new screenshots from Gamescom below.
