Styx: Shards of Darkness - Styx: Master of Shadows sequel

[Bubbles]

https://www.styx-thegame.com




https://af.gog.com/game/styx_shards_of_darkness?as=1649904300

Spoiler

Hot off the presses:

CYANIDE AND FOCUS HOME INTERACTIVE UNVEIL NEW STEALTH GAME STYX: SHARDS OF DARKNESS
Styx sequel comes with more ambition, bigger budget, new engine, and more!

Following its positive reception from press and players, Focus Home Interactive and Cyanide Studios wanted to delve deeper into the world of Styx with more ambition! The centuries-old goblin assassin Styx returns in a new stealth game, Styx: Shards of Darkness, with a bigger budget, bigger ideas, and a new engine: Unreal 4. Revealed in the first official screenshot of the game, check out a nimble, more refined Styx, built from the ground-up. Master of Shadows was a valiant exploration into the world of the green goblin thief, but in Shards of Darkness, delve deeper into a more complex narrative and fully realized world.

Having been in development for 6 months, discover in this first screenshot the new Styx, putting his skills to good use within the heart of Körangar, one of the many extensive mission areas to explore and creep around in Styx: Shards of Darkness.

Following the fall of Akenash tower, an extraordinary matter has forced Styx out of hiding to infiltrate Körangar, the city of the Dark Elves. Supposedly impregnable, a diplomatic summit offers Styx a chance at slipping in unnoticed, as he learns that the event is nothing but a mere façade... Moreover, the Elves have joined forces with the Dwarves, and the only thing both races have in common is a mutual hatred of the Goblins...

Embark upon a stealthy adventure with new enemies, new environments, and a plethora of new mechanics aimed at refining the abilities and movement of Styx; grappling around corners, climbing ropes, and using his trusty knife as a zip-wire. Shards of Darkness aims to offer unparalleled freedom of movement, along with refined stealth and assassination mechanics, expanding and improving on the strengths of Styx: Master of Shadows - which is coincidentally the Midweek Madness deal on Steam, until Friday 16, with an exceptional 66% discount off the price! A great opportunity to discover the origins of Styx.

Styx: Shards of Darkness comes to PS4, Xbox One, and PC next year.

 

[Roguey]

Upgrade to the engine they used is a "new engine."

I was concerned there for a second, I thought they were throwing out everything and starting over.

 

[Crooked Bee]

I didn't think Styx did well enough to justify a sequel. Glad I was wrong.

 

[MicoSelva]

Cool. Goblins need more love, especially Styx.

 

[Neanderthal]

Yeah, liked this and I kind of liked Orcs and Men though it were a bit flaky, the level reuse was a bit shit but its pretty good base to build on. Styx were a good protag.

 

[tyrannosaurus rex]

I opened the page on steam but almost fell asleep reading it. What makes this game good?

 

[pippin]

Upgrade to the engine they used is a "new engine."

Hey it worked for Bethesda.
I take it the first game is good? Never played it. Is it possible to ghost through it?

 

[Roguey]

Hey it worked for Bethesda.

I take it the first game is good? Never played it. Is it possible to ghost through it?

It uses a scoring system to award additional xp you can use to unlock abilities and "no kills" and "no alarms triggered" are two of the conditions (though assassinating people specifically marked for death in optional objectives doesn't count as a kill, additionally using a clone to cause a ruckus doesn't count as raising an alarm). There are three mandatory fights.

I liked it well enough http://www.rpgcodex.net/forums/inde...en-stealth-spinoff.89335/page-10#post-4156025

 

[Excidium II]

Styx was p. banal. Got bored and uninstalled after around 4 stages.

This sounds like more shovelware.

 

[Roguey]

Feel free to call it banal but there's nothing shovelware-y about the level design or the stealth mechanics.

 

[Infinitron]

It turns out that non-linear 3D games are Roguey's true forte. Maybe you should review one some time.

 

[Excidium II]

Feel free to call it banal but there's nothing shovelware-y about the level design or the stealth mechanics.

lol it has all the hints of shovelware beginning with the use of the same second-rate IP for a completely different game. The level design and stealth mechanics do reek strongly of shovelware, as in they did their research and implemented what the game "needs" but the level design is too straightforward and enemy behavior too simplistic with rather predictable patrol routes. When I played the game it degenerated p. fast into the common stealth game pit of slowly clearing the entire map and piling up the bodies somewhere.

And I don't think I used a single special ability that wasn't to get past a forced level gimmick.

 

[Roguey]

The level design and stealth mechanics do reek strongly of shovelware, as in they did their research and implemented what the game "needs" but the level design is too straightforward and enemy behavior too simplistic with rather predictable patrol routes.

It has better level design than Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Dishonored (which had level design I liked). As for AI,

When I played the game it degenerated p. fast into the common stealth game pit of slowly clearing the entire map and piling up the bodies somewhere.

Yeah, that's the stealth genre. If that doesn't appeal to you, you might as well say "I don't like stealth games" rather than "stealth games are shovelware."

Additionally, any given player is free to challenge themselves by not killing anyone. You even get acknowledgment and a reward for it so it's not even LARPing.

 

[Excidium II]

No way Styx has better level design than DXHR and Dishonored. At most they're equivalent in structure but those two have it so much better in everything else.

Yeah, that's the stealth genre. If that doesn't appeal to you, you might as well say "I don't like stealth games" rather than "stealth games are shovelware."

The difference is that it's boring as fuck in Styx because it's a low budget shovelware with nothing else to carry it. it doesn't have interesting locations, atmosphere or cool art direction.

It does a good job of showing how stagnated stealth gameplay is, since you're forced to focus entirely on it.

 

[a Goat]

little bit of offtop

How can people put DX:HR on a pedestal in any way?

I've thrown it out after first hour, it's shit.

 

[Ninja Destroyer]

Good news, I hope they will have enough money and not re-use the same levels over and over. Skill unlocking could be dropped for me, just give more optional items to find/buy like in Thief and I would be satisified.

 

[toro]

little bit of offtop

How can people put DX:HR on a pedestal in any way?

I've thrown it out after first hour, it's shit.

Styx is the same.

 

[tormund]

just give more optional items to find/buy like in Thief and I would be satisified.

Same here. As far as level design and lightning based stealth go, Styx was already the closest thing to a new commercial Thief game.

 

[Roguey]

No way Styx has better level design than DXHR and Dishonored. At most they're equivalent in structure but those two have it so much better in everything else.

It has bigger, vaster levels with more ways through them. The former is very likely because of the XBONE and PS4 memory increase alongside no significant increase in graphics quality.

The difference is that it's boring as fuck in Styx because it's a low budget shovelware with nothing else to carry it. it doesn't have interesting locations, atmosphere or cool art direction.

Can't agree at all about that.

It does a good job of showing how stagnated stealth gameplay is, since you're forced to focus entirely on it.

Play enough games and you'll find everything stagnant.

 

[Excidium II]

It's the Wasteland 2 of stealth games, no wonder you like it.

 

[Roguey]

It's the Wasteland 2 of stealth games, no wonder you like it.

Somewhat accurate, I don't mind playing low-budget competently-executed-but-not-particularly-innovative games. Calling them shovelware is absurd. When I think shovelware, I see incompetently executed design and bugs. Burger King's Sneak King, Velvet Assassin, and DARK are shovelware. Styx is much higher in quality than all three.

 

[Excidium II]

Ok, euroware is perhaps more fair description.

 

[GrainWetski]

It does a good job of showing how stagnated stealth gameplay is, since you're forced to focus entirely on it.

Also known as a stealth game. What did you expect? One of those horrible action abominations like the aforementioned Human Revolution that is shit at everything?

 

[Excidium II]

Also known as a stealth game. What did you expect? One of those horrible action abominations like the aforementioned Human Revolution that is shit at everything?

No I'm talking about the details of the game, that you end up having good time to appreciate in stealth games due to all the time spent crouching on corners or moving at a snail's place.

 

[GrainWetski]

I bought the new FIFA, and man is it disappointing and archaic. Here I was expecting to play some Hacky Sack, Handegg and Hockey, but it focused entirely on Football.

Get with the times, man. Triple H is here to stay!