Underworld Ascendant Released

If you're up for some immersive dungeon crawling, you may be interested in checking out Otherside Entertainment's Underworld Ascendant that's now live on Steam. You can pick the game up for $25.49 or your regional equivalent during the launch week and dive straight into a game inspired by such classics like Ultima Underworld, System Shock, and Thief. At the same time, you should probably be aware that currently the game lacks any proper reviews and its Steam user score is sitting at “mostly negative.”

You can find the official launch trailer here and also check out this “Accolades” trailer that quotes a number of favorable early previews:

Here's what you can expect:

From the creative minds behind the acclaimed Ultima Underworld®, System Shock and Thief series, in Underworld Ascendant®, Paul Neurath and Warren Spector's OtherSide Entertainment challenges you to think creatively in an interactive sandbox environment.

You are summoned by a mysterious figure to The Stygian Abyss, a dangerous and constantly evolving dungeon world imperiled by the looming threat of the beast Typhon. To save this world, and yours – you must overcome complex challenges, uncover lost secrets and gain favor with factions to maximize your knowledge and strength. Utilize your environment to stack the odds in your favor. Devise the ideal plan to overcome the challenges you face or dive in and think on your feet.

Each decision holds great opportunity and grave consequence. What you leave behind will be engraved on the lives of others. Assuming you survive…

KEY FEATURES:

A DEEPLY IMMERSIVE WORLD

Enter a fully-realized dungeon realm, from the village of Marcaul to the Vault of Nyx and seven other large-scale levels to explore, each comprising a labyrinthine assembly of rooms, passages, halls and ruins connecting massive cavern complexes. Interact with useful flora and physics-based traps. Encounter fantastic creatures like Lizard Men, opportunistic Outcasts, and fearsome Mind Cripplers – all with unique abilities that can be used to your advantage.

A HERO TO CALL YOUR OWN

Tailor your skillset by combining more than 75 skills from three different archetypes (Combat, Stealth, Magic) that you can mix and match to develop a unique hero who is truly your own. Craft over a hundred different types of spells using the runic spell crafting system. The game sets the challenge, the solution is up to you.

CONSTANTLY EVOLVING UNDERWORLD

Become embroiled in an epic plot, as rival factions vie for dominance in struggles that ebb and flow across the realm. The decisions you make have consequences on events and the world around you. Unique challenges, dynamic enemy spawning, variable Outcast-built structures and a degrading world state that varies enemy population provide a dynamic world to play through in many different ways.

EMERGENT QUESTS

Set out on more than 70 quests and numerous Side Bounties that reward you for avoiding detection, going unarmed and more, providing many opportunities to explore, replay and test unlimited strategies and playstyles.

UNIQUE REWARDS SYSTEM

Earn rewards and unlock skills through resourceful, unboxed gameplay and ingenious performance. Solve challenges in unique ways and push yourself to experiment.

And if you're looking for some launch info and the latest build notes, you can find them here.