GreedFall Developer Blog - Combat

Sebastien Di Ruzza, the lead game designer at Spiders, brings us the latest developer blog for his studio's upcoming action-RPG GreedFall. You should definitely check it out if you'd like to know more about the game's combat system, itemization, and companions. Have a look:

Hi everyone,

Welcome back to our devblog series dedicated to GreedFall – the one-of-a-kind RPG developed by Spiders and coming to Playstation 4, Xbox One, and PC on September 10.

We’re taking a look at this new world, specifically created for GreedFall, with Sebastien Di Ruzza, Lead Game Designer at Spiders.

Develop your own fighting style

Forging your destiny and being free to progress through the world in your own way is crucial in GreedFall. You can resolve situations in many ways and combat isn’t always the best solution. Fights are sometimes entirely avoidable by using talents. If your playstyle is aggressive and you tend to prefer combat to other options, it can directly affect your relationships with other factions.

The skill tree is divided into three main parts: the warrior tree allows you to use all one-handed and two-handed melee weapons while also raising your resistance to physical damage. You are never locked into a path once you invest in it, and you are free to switch from one discipline to the other as you wish. Eager to focus on fire weapons, grenades or creating traps and blade coatings? The technical tree is the right one for you! Fantasy aficionados will enjoy the magic tree, granting access to spells (such as healing, or Stasis, a spell that briefly locks enemies in time) and magical rings for ranged combat.

The skill tree is open, meaning that it enables you to truly choose what to kind of combat you want to specialize in. If you are fond of both weapons and magic, you can decide what to upgrade in your skill tree and end up with a protagonist able to juggle between magical rings and melee weapons. Alternatively, you can choose to specialize in only one type of weapon or even focus on the sciences to get better at brews, potions, explosives, and traps.

Prepare and craft your gear for combat

During combat, you will have access to two sets of weapons which you can freely switch between. A wide range of equipment and weapons will be available, and through crafting, you will be able to further customize and enhance your gear to not only change their looks but also their stats.

Attributes raise passive stats and enable you to use better equipment and more powerful weapons. This enables you to re-specialize several times in order to mix up fighting styles and try different approaches to combat in the same playthrough. GreedFall encourages you to use your own personal approach to combat, thanks to customized equipment and the optional tactical pause.

Don’t forget your companions during combat

You can’t control your companions during combat in GreedFall but you will be able to compose a team to complement your own fighting style and approach in combat. Every companion brings something different to the table and has their own archetypal combat style, along with a unique opening move and special attack. Companions will also advise you when you’re in danger or running out of mana. As you level up, you’ll be able to switch out your companions’ weapons, allowing you to further tailor your team to your needs. Make sure to have healing potions handy in case one of them falls in combat!

Choosing your companions is a crucial part of the combat but also the story. Consider your companions’ loyalties and faction before charging them into battle, since they might not always agree with your actions. You will be able to anticipate events more and have more options to resolve conflicts if your team actively supports you.