ASKA, an open-world Viking colony management and survival game, is coming to Steam Early Access on June 20th. There’s a new deep dive trailer out today that demonstrates how you can go from the solo survivor of a shipwreck to a tribe leader.
You start off shipwrecked on a mysterious shore. Alone, your first tasks will be to survive, find food and water, make a simple camp. There are more dangers awaiting, and any survival game vet will know that the threats will escalate, so you must also be resourceful and keep crafting and learning. While you are alone, there's an opportunity to reunite your tribe and carve out a new home together. You have a tool called the Eye of Odin which is a beacon that will call out to other Vikings, as long as you keep it fueled with Jotunn blood.
The beacon will reach out, but you get to decide who you accept in your tribe. As your tribe grows, you'll have to keep building better shelters, make sure everything is guarded, and have enough resources and tools, but successful balance is important. You can play solo or with up to four players in multiplayer, so that also adds an additional layer of choices to make
In ASKA, one central feature is that NPCs have their own traits, strengths, and weaknesses. Getting it right means understanding not just your goals, but who you’re recruiting. In the trailer, we’re introduced to Bjorn, who works best during daylight hours and might be a good bet for farming crops, while Freya prefers to work at night and might make a suitable guard.
This is just the beginning, since there’s a roguelike element too. If you don't keep the right balance, keep your base safe, have the right members, and tame some of the beasts or slay others you find, you may die. If you fall, you'll have a choice of coming back with your tribe intact but in a weakened body, or to come back with full strength by sacrificing a member of your tribe.
ASKA will be releasing via Steam Early Access on June 20th. During Steam’s Open World Survival Craft Fest, from May 27 - June 3 and Steam Next Fest from June 10-17th, a five-hour playable demo (including multiplayer) will be available.
