On March 1, 2024, Moon Studios showcased its upcoming top-down Action RPG, No Rest For The Wicked, which I’ve called a Soulslike title since it was announced during the Game Awards 2023 event. This showcase provided new information about the game, from the gameplay, weapon upgrade system, the cities you’ll frequent, roadmap, and much more.
Here’s a summary of everything we’ve learned from the No Rest For The Wicked showcase—except for the story bits, as we don’t want to spoil that.
Early Access Date Revealed
For starters, while we knew that No Rest For The Wicked would receive an early access release, we now know that this will take place on April 18, 2024, for the PC (Steam). So, if you can’t wait to get your play this eagerly awaited title, it won’t be much longer. If you’re inclined, you can go to the No Rest for Wicked Steam page and wishlist the game now.
Character Creation
While Moon Studios mentioned that No Rest For The Wicked has a soft class system, anyone who plays action RPGs or Soulslikes can see it for what it is. This system allows players to create any character and class they want instead of being forced to play a locked class. A good example is Diablo, where you pick a specific class, and that’s it. If you’ve played Dark Souls or Elden Ring, for example, you dictate what sort of class you ultimately become, and that’s what we’re seeing happen in No Rest For The Wicked.
Moon Studios is counting on total freedom in playing the game and the classes you create. And I love that we can do what we want instead of being stuck with a random class that cannot be tweaked or evolved.
This creation tool lets players choose from either a female or male character and customize their face, hair, eyes, nose, mouth, and jawbone.
No Rest For The Wicked Gameplay
Now, let’s talk about the gameplay. While it was assumed this action RPG would be more like Diablo or Path of Exile, we can see from the battles that they are more intimate, and thus, this is why I considered this to be a Souls-like title. Enemies aren’t easily dispatched; even a single enemy can end the game for you. The gameplay requires you to pay attention to the enemies and the surroundings.
The world is full of secrets, ready for players to find, and loot is randomized to allow everyone to find something special.
Moon Studios has also decided to forgo the point-and-click model; players can use the WASD keys or a controller instead. I agree with this decision 100%, and I wish more action RPGs would do the same.
World interaction is also important, and No Rest For The Wicked was designed so that if something looks accessible, it likely is. Some may be easy to access, while others may require ingenuity.
Speaking of world interaction, what wasn’t explained, at least not that I heard, is that each world seems to be procedurally generated. I’ve seen this watching several creators who had gotten press or media access to the game, where it would state something similar to “generating your world.” This doesn’t change how the world exists, like changing locations like Remant from the Ashes or Remnant 2, but it seems it will change item placement. I can’t confirm anything since I couldn’t access this build to try for myself. But I’ll revisit this when No Rest For The Wicked’s early access begins on April 18, 2024.
During the gameplay, we can also see that there’s a stamina bar besides a health bar. While it wasn’t mentioned during the showcase, we can see it during the video. During several attacks that the player dished out, I could see the amount of stamina decrease. I know there’s quite a bit of gamers who hate stamina bars, but sadly this mechanic has been married to action RPGs and I don’t see this going away, ever.
In terms of combat, Moon Studios has crafted an “Animation-driven Combat System,” meaning that every attack you do must be carefully considered, which means that reckless attacks and wasting stamina will put you in a bad place. The developers wanted to bring weighty, precision-driven combat into the top-down action RPG space and have drawn inspiration from various genres, from other action RPGs to fighting games. Players must pay attention to enemies and see the tell-tale attacks and be able to counter them. In addition, there are also parrying attacks, a staple in several Soulslike titles.
Weapons and Gear
Each weapon will be unique and possess a unique move set and RNG-based stats, which were implemented to give players multiple ways to play the game. There’s also a rarity system for the gear and weapons.
- White – Common, but can be customized and isn’t fodder to be discarded like in some other action RPGs.
- Blue – Rare and only offer positive enhancements.
- Purple – Offer very positive enchantments, but as a trade-off, they also feature a curse.
- Gold – Unique and specifically handcrafted by the developers and offer unique enchantments.
If you look at the picture below, you’ll see that the blue, purple, and gold weapons show a slot, which I’m assuming will either be for gems or further customization of the item. We’ll have to wait for more information on this since we don’t know how this all works yet.
Plenty of Bosses
One of the best things about action RPGs is the bosses, and No Rest For The Wicked looks like it won’t disappoint. While we’ve already seen a specific boss, Warrick The Torn, we can still see how engaging and brutal the fights will be. Taking them down will award players with items to help continue their journey.
Camps and Survival-like Elements
While No Rest For The Wicked will feature camps, it goes further than what we’re used to in most action RPGs. In the first camp, we come across the town of Sacrament, which has been ravished by war, yet still stands. It will be here that players will encounter several features that I haven’t seen in many action RPGs such as being able to own a house, and furnish it. That’s not all as certain quests are performed, you’ll have to rebuild the town, and it will open up features such as a blacksmith who can help you repair and upgrade your weapons. You can even go fishing.
Let’s Talk About the Endgame
Interestingly, Moon Studios dropped some hints about the No Rest For The Wicked End Game, especially given that that’s something you tend not to tell anyone about and let them see it for themselves. However, things are different, and the end game is something I’m curious about. Being called “ALIVE,” No Rest For The Wicked’s worth is alive and is constantly changing. This means the end game will evolve and change each time you access it.
During the showcase, we saw an end-game location called Mariner’s Keep, full of tougher enemies, and the thought of going back to a location you’ve beaten before and having it change excites me. In traditional action RPGs, once you’ve beaten the end-game location, your only option was to do a new game playthrough, which also meant traversing throughout the entire game again.
To this extent, I’m looking to see what Moon Studios has instead of people like me—people who live, eat, sleep, and dream of action RPGs.
There’s Even Multiplayer
Towards the end of the showcase, it was revealed that the game will also feature multiplayer aspects where other players can join you for your adventures, or against you in what looks like a coliseum. There wasn’t any mention of how exactly the multiplayer component will work, but hopefully, it allows for seamless drop in/jump out, similar to what Remnant from the Ashes/Remnant 2 offers.
Super Excited About What I’ve Seen
All in all, it seems like Moon Studios has been working on this epic experience for quite some time, and as mentioned, they want to, hopefully, change this genre. Now, I can say that the action RPG genre has been evolving for quite some time, and seeing what No Rest For The Wicked brings to the table is going to be fun. I like what the devs were talking about, especially the weapon system end-game. Yet, I’m hoping it’s not all talk, and they can do what they set out to do.
No Rest For The Wicked heads to early access for the PC (Steam) on April 18, 2024. Head to the No Rest For The Wicked Steam page and make sure your wishlist the game while you wait.
