Game: The Axis Unseen
Developer: Just Purkey Games
Lead Dev: Nate Purkeypile
Genre: Stealth, Survival, Horror, Action
Release Date: TBC
Links
Development Roadmap: https://twitter.com/NPurkeypile/status/1562066091064672259
Epic Games Store: https://store.epicgames.com/en-US/p/the-axis-unseen-439821
Sum It Up
Described as a “ranger fantasy… bow hunting FPS” as well as “Fantasy hunting sim” within one paragraph of each other in PC Gamer, to an “open world horror” under the category of ‘action’ game on Steam, speaks to the enigmatic and limited exposure that The Axis Unseen, an indie debut for developer Just Purkey Games, has so far received. As a game developed by one man, Nate Purkeypile, with a new studio, who has never developed a full title before, you might think that a lack of exposure is justified.
You might also be thinking, I’ve played Endnight Games’ The Forest (2018), I think I’m okay with bow-hunting, horror shenanigans! To this I would say, I can change your mind with a single tweet. Let me take you back to 27th August 2022. Purkeypile posted on his personal twitter page,
"I spent 14 years making games like Skyrim and Fallout. Now I'm making my own solo indie game! It's called The Axis Unseen. You hunt monsters from folklore and it has a Heavy Metal soundtrack! You can wishlist it on Steam!"
This was, consequently, the first time I had heard of The Axis Unseen and also when I fell in love with it! Jokes aside, just the words “hunt monsters from folklore” and “Heavy Metal Soundtrack” should be enough to get fans of N64 Classic Turok games salivating… that was more, hunting dinosaur/hybrid lizard-alien people, but you get the idea.
Pairing this undeniably cool concept with Purkeypile’s pedigree in development with Bethesda Studios, working on global phenomenon, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has helped to keep my interest piqued. This is alongside the endearing quality of Purkeypile’s efforts to build and promote the game single-handedly. He has released a development roadmap alongside some development diaries and podcast appearances which are littered across his twitter page and also his YouTube channel. Admittedly, his roadmap (much like all roadmaps) is a bit bare bones on dates, but development is hard enough with a full studio, never mind one man. But I appreciate his thoroughness and enthusiasm for the process.
The most recent gameplay trailer was released on 24th August 2022 and runs just over one minute long. In this we see the first person perspective of the play character, fighting various animalistic beasts and also wooden creatures that resemble the leshen from CD Projekt Red’s The Witcher 3 (2015) or perhaps the Nadaiga, tree guardians from Spiders’ Greedfall (2019). There are shots of various beautiful environments from snowy mountains to dense wooded areas and even bone strewn hellscapes that give off some fantasy flair.
Gameplay wise, the arrows have a fire elemental effect, with excellent particle physics as the flaming arrow strikes the deer like prey or wolf enemies, which explode prettily on impact. The visuals really are quite stunning for an indie title, a fact we will get more used to, due to the quality and accessibility of Unreals, Unreal Engine 5, an engine that Purkeypile is making full use of in this game. The gameplay is all punctuated with a throbbing, primal soundtrack!
Perhaps the most interesting feature hinted at by Purkeypile and spied briefly in the gameplay trailer, is hunting game-play mechanics which use the environment. As PC Gamer revealed, different terrains have different noise effects (think Looking Glass Studios, original Thief games in the early 00's). PC Gamer’s Ted Litchfield writes how,
“... surfaces transmit sound to greater or lesser degrees, affecting how fast you can traverse them without alerting foes. Dirt is quieter than stone, but you leave tracks for enemies to follow there while stone poses no such risk (unless you're tracking mud!)”
The mechanic allows the horror aspect of the game to shine as the enemies in the game can track your movements and this even includes the enemies being able to smell your character, based on an in-game wind feature, it would be presumed can be measured with a wind gauge.
My gut instinct says this is one to certainly keep an eye on. While the official page on Steam doesn’t say ‘survival horror’, on first glance you might think there are hints of Hinterland Studios’ The Long Dark (2014) or the previously mentioned survival, builder horror The Forest. Of course, rather than building and maintaining gear like in those games, The Axis Unseen looks more of a fast paced, combat focused game, with the potential for scavenging for arrows and sneakily avoiding enemies. I think the USP here seems to be realistic hunting mechanics with the use of senses to hunt prey, but the prey being able to hunt you, in the same way.
The development roadmap promises that the map will be up to five times larger than that of Skyrim. Large maps do not equal quality as they can result in empty stretches and bland environments. But hopefully, the realistic hunting mechanics as well as what appears to be the game map and HUD being incorporated into the in-game world, with menus accessed through your character leafing through a physical book, can help the moment to moment gameplay to remain engaging through fear and suspense. Imagine your character stalking through low grass. You have to keep constant vigilance for enemies with your eyes, the wind direction, the surface type you are walking on, as well as using objects to stay hidden and plan a path. Creating the feeling of a lone hunter, in a large and dangerous world, captures my excitement.
The release schedule for The Axis Unseen is vague, it has no official date on Steam, but the development roadmap says that the full world map is hoping to be completed by Halloween 2022. Keep checking Purkeypile’s social media platforms for more information or give The Axis Unseen a follow on Steam’s wishlist to keep abreast of the news.
Luke Cashmore
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