I stand in a dilapidated tower, looking at a narrow wooden plank that doubles as a bridge. On the other side stands a menacing knight wielding a massive ax, who paces back and forth, looking for signs of intrusion. I pause, breathe, and set forth, garnering the knight's attention and beginning a heated battle with agile dodges, precisely-timed attacks, and the knowledge that one swing of that ax could send me to the afterlife.
The rise of From Software has generated dozens of experiences like this, but now we're speaking of No Rest For The Wicked. This is the latest from Moon Studios, the minds behind the Ori franchise, and it's an isometric action-rpg with a feeling that, on the surface, is miles away from that cute little guardian and his woodland friends. We recently had the chance to go hands-on with the game, and we came away impressed with what Moon has in store…even if we know it's going to be brutal.
No Rest For The Wicked tells the tale of Isola Sacra, an island region marred by a curse-like plague known as the Pestilence. You play as a Cerim, a knight fighting the plague for the neighboring kingdom's holy order, at the behest of the newly crowned king Magnus and his church's leader, Madrigal Selene. Sailing from the kingdom to Isola Sacra, your shipwrecks, and you wash up on shore with little more than the shirt on your back.
As you might guess, the plague-stricken land of Isola Sacra does not feature the same whimsy and color as Moon's previous games. This is a world of disease and rot, inquisition and domination, and a place where scavenging and resourceful planning will be paramount. Case in point, our demo began with us waking up on the beach just after the shipwreck, without a single item in our inventory, and the storm that shipwrecked us still raging overhead. Off to a fine start!
Eventually, we find ourselves a sword. It's a meager offering, but it will have to do: Remember that giant knight we described in the first graf? He's only the second human enemy we encountered. Our only preparation for this battle was the few human-sized crabs we fought on the beach as we harvested mushrooms and stamina potions and a single bandit who served as the sneaking tutorial. Needless to say, the ax-man stomped us into dust. Thankfully, the save point wasn't too far away, and we could jump back into battle.
Combat in No Rest, as we've described before, borrows heavily from that one action RPG franchise you're always hearing about, but admittedly, it fits not only within the tone of this game but as a natural extension of Moon Studios's expertise. Precise timing, patience, and calculated action played a major role in making both Ori games incredible experiences; of course, those games called for precision while bouncing around the colorful Metroidvania worlds.
Here, Moon's asking us for similar precision in fighting a tough knight with a (literal) ax to grind. The end result may be different, but the means are surprisingly similar, and we're certainly on board for where Moon is taking this; as we said, that was only the second human encounter, so you can imagine how the demo's boss battle played out.
When we're not getting our heads bashed in by brutes, exploring the desolate world of Isola Sacra is plenty rewarding. The flora and fauna we mentioned earlier are plentiful, and finding a campfire allows us to cook meals, which will instantly regain lost health. Chests are abundant as well, with some of them yielding powerful rewards: The sword we used to finally take down the ax-man was in a chest off of the beaten path, with the game rewarding our curiosity with the tool needed to get past our largest obstacle at that moment. This, again, hearkens back to Moon's origins, as it encourages exploration for hidden pathways and the potentially game-changing prizes held within.
On the surface, Moon Studios looks like they're going completely out of their known element with No Rest For The Wicked. However, as we dug into the game and what it's trying to do, a lot of Ori's influences can still be felt here, between the required precision and penchant for exploration. While it might not be as cute, No Rest For The Wicked aims to be just as challenging – and rewarding – as its studio's previous projects, and at the moment, it's well on its wicked way.
