Styx: Master of Shadows Previews
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As summer all-too-abruptly begins winding down, it only seems appropriate to ring in the month of September with some recent eyes- and hands-on previews of Cyanide's Styx: Master of Shadows.
Hooked Gamers:
The powers available to Styx include invisibility, Ambervision, and cloning. Invisibility is quite self explanatory but the Ambervision is a clever form of orange night vision that also highlights interactive elements. Cloning has Styx vomit up a slimy controllable clone of himself which can get to places Styx can't or act as a distraction while Styx sneaks past a group of guards. In addition to this, the game features some RPG elements that will allow you to unlock skills, special moves, and new equipment.
Burning lanterns light up the scene in many locations. Styx can turn these off by hand, or throw balls of sand at them to suffocate the flame. This creates an interesting dynamic asthe stifling of the fire reduces the risk of being spotted, but putting out the fire puts you at risk if it is noticed by the guards. Although the game is very vertical - being set in a tower - the areas and challenges presented create a very open playspace that can be explored freely. The locations have multiple themes as you progress from the basic manufacturing floor to the administrative section higher up the tower. Keep your eyes open for secret pathways as hiding places are everywhere.
Although it seems as if the entirety of Styx takes place in the same location, that doesn't mean that the levels are lacking in size. In fact, the chapter on display had a massively sprawling layout that took the best part of half an hour to overcome when taking what seemed like one of the most direct routes, although there are plenty of alternative paths to take throughout each level, depending on your play-style. Luckily, our hero has a ridiculous number of tricks up his sleeve to accommodate any tactics you want to utilise.
For one, Styx can collect balls of sand and throw them at nearby torches in order to extinguish them; not only does it impact visibility, but guards will also attempt to re-light any unlit torches, allowing you a precious few seconds to either sneak by harmlessly or go in for the kill. The number of sand balls you can carry is limited and they can only be thrown a certain distance, but by exploring the environment the player can find opportunities to top up on their supply. Investigating the area is also a great way to discover not only new paths, but ways to hide in plain sight, as our hero can stuff himself in vases, boxes, and chests if he needs a quick hiding place. Taking temporary refuge in a nearby crate can also present the player with an opportunity to dispatch any patrolling guards by knocking them out and automatically pulling them in with you.
Once he has made a safe, dark passage for himself, Styx can pick off his enemies one by one with stealth attacks or sneak past them and leave them alone entirely. Of course, some times our goblin pal will have to rely on his special abilities and can create clones of himself that can fit through otherwise impenetrable fences or distract guards. There are a range of powers at Styx's disposal and the few we got a glimpse of could make Styx temporarily invisible and (amber vision), which helps Styx see the best paths through a room but these abilities cost Amber, a resource that is in short supply, and reduce a gauge the longer they are active.
One of the most interesting aspects of Styx is the freedom that it offers. Each level of the Tower of Akenash has multiple methods in which you can complete them which suit varying play styles. For example, Player 1 likes to kick ass and chew bubble gum. He/She decides she wants to kill off as many guards as she can, goes high and drops a chandelier on a group of 5 unsuspecting victims. Player 2 is a stealth purist. He/She can sneak around the level, crawling through holes, extinguishing torches and really becoming the master of shadows, leaving no guard on that level none the wiser that they were even there. Player 3 is a speed runner. They take to the rafters, running the fine line between being seen and staying hidden. The game play, vertiginous level design and upgrade system encourages this variety and will suit most gamers, however they choose to play.
And The Sixth Axis:
Creating a clone is just one of Styx's many Amber powered tricks, which range from your fairly basic augmented Amber Vision to highlight interactive objects like handholds or grates that you can sneak through, all the way to turning Styx completely invisible. You'll gain experience and upgrade your abilities as you go, but you'll also have to use them wisely so that you don't run through your limited supplies of Amber.
What I particularly enjoyed, though, was the way that levels felt almost like grand sandboxes for you to play in. The Tower of Akenash feels huge and the design often had multiple options for me to explore in order to get to where I needed to go. Though I only had a fairly brief hands on session, from what I've seen before both first hand and in a lengthy gameplay trailer, I know that there's an impressive sprawl to the locations, often letting you climb high above the ground and taking one of several routes.
