Eternights: Dating in the Apocalypse: Hands-On Demo at Summer Game Fest
The combo of action RPG and dating simulator might not seem intuitive, but trying out the Eternights demo at Summer Game Fest might have shown otherwise.
Eternights, the upcoming game from developer Studio Sai was at Summer Game Fest and I got a chance to try it out. Check out the latest trailer here. The game is part action RPG part dating game, which is an unusual combo, but ends up working well for the game and the story. Eternights starts out simple enough with two friends setting up their dating profiles and then takes a sharp left turn as people begin transforming into monsters and attacking each other.
The story does not shy away from the tension, drama, and even bloody violence of this now-apocalyptic world. During the demo, the protagonist will likely die a bloody death several times if you had as much trouble as I did. One of the first encounters with a monster you have no means to fight it and must run, but it is not a slow monster, so a few non-optimal moves and it’s curtains. But it is the intense and deadly action parts of the game that make the “dating” half of the game a nice breath of fresh air. Taking a moment to process and check in on your teammates not only feels important but also lets the player recharge between fights.
Aside from that, the combat in Eternights is simple but engaging, plus it seems like there is room to add more to it. The protagonist has a skill tree that can slowly be unlocked as the game progresses, as well as a few different kinds of special attack options, though only one came up in the demo. Other characters also have various abilities, such as Yuna, one of the other main characters from the demo, who has the ability to heal.
The dialogue branches are nice but didn’t give the impression that there was much room for error in the demo. Chances are that will change as the player gets further into the game and more characters are introduced. Eternights has a great sense of humor about itself, happy to point out the ridiculousness of its characters and give the player the opportunity to be funny too. Though, much like in real life, constantly cracking jokes may not be the best way to win over any hearts.
Source: Eternights, developed by Studio Sai.
The demo is unfortunately short, and therefore only showcases one romantic option in Yuna, the pop star. Thankfully, there will be more options in the full game, including Yohan, a male character that the player will be able to romance as well. It is refreshing to see a game like this branch out towards non-traditional romance options, even if the majority of options are still overwhelmingly traditional. But since this is a short demo, there is still a lot of story left to unfold.
Eternights also features several different art styles. The actual gameplay itself has a unique style with generally dark colors and soft lighting, while there was also a fully 2D animated cut scene reminiscent of some anime. Finally, there was also another art style later on as one of the characters divulged a part of their backstory. If these various art styles continue to show up through the rest of the full game, it will be a unique visual experience to say the least.
Thanks to Studio Sai and Summer Game Fest for the opportunity to try out this game! The demo for Eternights is available on Steam. It isn’t very long, but fans will only have to wait a few more months for the whole game. Eternights releases on September 21st for PC, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5.
