White Knuckle

Release Date: April 17, 2025 Early Access

Arcade, FPP, roguelike, 3D platformers, indie games, action adventure, climbing, singleplayer

Want It!

A first-person game about climbing, featuring additional roguelike elements. In White Knuckle we climb an underground concrete shaft. We must avoid traps and obstacles, as well as fight enemies. It's also crucial to pay attention to the stamina so we won't lose grip at the worst possible moment.

Gameplay
Graphics

White Knuckle is a climbing-themed arcade game, enriched with mechanics borrowed from the roguelike genre. The game was developed by the American studio Dark Machine Games.

Gameplay

In White Knuckle we watch the action from a first-person perspective (FPP).

Megastructure

The game transports us to an underground megastructure, in the shape of a vertical shaft that is 10 kilometers deep. Its walls were lined with concrete, and the interior was littered with all sorts of traps and other dangers.

Climbing

During the game, we must constantly climb upwards, reaching ledges and catching metal handles, gaining momentum and jumping (thus covering large distances in the air), avoiding countless obstacles, and also eliminating enemies that stand in our way. The game has a dynamic nature, which forces us to demonstrate agility and perceptiveness.

Equipment and skills

We need to skillfully juggle various tools and resources in the game. We climb not only using our hands (the color of the hand reflects its fatigue - the more it turns red, the less strength it has left), but also anchors or even steel rods. Those last ones can be nailed to the walls and used to reach places located higher up. Items like hammers can be used as a weapon to defeat enemies encountered along the way.

The equipment has its weight, so the amount of items we collect affects the speed at which we get tired. We need to skillfully manage the equipment, deciding what to leave behind and what to take with us.

Character development and consequences of a fall

We find or purchase items in special vending machines. There are also perks unlocked along the way, which in various ways facilitate climbing. After death, however, we must start the climb from the beginning.