E3 2014: Styx combines stealth with goblins in marvelous ways [Preview]

[box_light]Left field
noun
Slang. a position or circumstance that is remote from an ordinary or general trend.[/box_light]

Left field is where Styx: Master of Shadows seems to have come out of. Going in to E3 I knew nothing about the game or the Of Orcs and Men property. Coming out of our preview demo at Focus Home Interactive’s booth, I suddenly feel like left field is much closer to home than before. Styx looks like it may be a fun, enjoyable late Summer experience.

Our demo is guided by Julien Desourteaux, Lead Designer. “Master of Shadows is very much a stealth action game,” Desourteaux says. “Styx is one of the most popular characters in Of Orcs and Men, and we wanted to show how things from his vantage point in his own game.” That vantage point — lower to the ground, moving through dark alleys, hiding evidence and objects — is what sets Styx apart from other stealth-themed games. Being in a sort of perpetual crouched position means that we need an alternate set of actions to complete missions.

Styx, whose animations have an ape-like quality, can climb up, swing across, and fit into places that characters in other stealth games can’t. The added bonus of being in a fantasy world gives the character a toolset that we don’t normally see. Thanks to a decently deep skill tree, Styx can learn several attacks, spells, and buffs. He can use amber (the “mana” of the world) to go invisible pickpocketing guards for items. He can use “Amber Vision” to see through walls and around corners.

He can create clones of himself, sending them to do small tasks like take damage for him or distract enemies. Desourteaux switches back and forth between the clone and Styx rather easily to accomplish tasks, though I always wonder what characters like Styx are doing alone when the player takes control of a clone or other NPCs. Do they stand alone, bored? Tap their toes? Whistle? Run and hide? Are the vulnerable to attacks? Master of Shadows doesn’t answer this long-standing gaming query as Styx just kind of stands around, but that doesn’t hinder the game; it just keeps me wondering foreverrrrrrr.

Another big difference that the game has from its genre counterparts, albeit less mechanical than character height, is the inclusion of what the developers are calling “Life Actions”. These actions are meant to bring a level of realism to the NPCs and enemies. Characters don’t just walk back and forth on predefined paths, they also stop for bio breaks, to drink water, stretch, or eat. Styx can use this to his advantage as yet another way to make his way around the sprawling city. Using his ability to manufacture poison, for example, Desourteaux walks Styx over to a water trough, has him throw up into it, and then run and hide. As a pair of guards walk over to drink water, they’re soon poisoned by the brew and Styx is able to avoid drawing attention to himself.

Massive draw distance allows the large city that the game takes place in to look even bigger and more elaborate. The visuals are stunning, reminding me of Game of Thrones‘ Red Keep. Character designs employ great costumes and animations; Desourteaux takes us into a courtyard and shows us a lineup of many of the NPCs, guards and monsters in the game, fighting them one on one tournament style to explain their different fighting styles.

Styx looks like a potentially large game in scale, with plenty to do for those who like stealth combat and gameplay. For fans of the series’ world it should be a perfect addition. For those of us who are seeing it for the first time, it comes off like a great surprise.

Styx: Master of Shadows is tentatively scheduled to sneak in from left field into the third quarter of this year.