If you’ve been following Doom: The Dark Ages at all, you probably know that this FPS prequel will have players plowing through the hordes of Hell behind a giant shield equipped with an enemy-shredding spinning blade. And while all the excitement surrounding this deathbringer seems justified, the hyped weapon might have some of its glory stolen by the Knightlings’ Magnustego Buckler, a defensive gadget with some cool tricks of its own.
But we are jumping to conclusions a little too quickly.
The Knightling is an upcoming fantasy action-adventure game that focuses on fast-paced combat and creative platforming gameplay. And it has nothing whatsoever to do with Doom: The Dark Ages. Well, except for the shield we mentioned earlier. The story-driven, semi-open world game puts players in the boots of the titular Squire, a young, eager apprentice who longs for the adventures normally undertaken by his master, the strong, stately Sir Lionstone.
The comparatively puny protagonist doesn’t have much in common with his mentor with the long mane, but he does have access to his powerful shield. And that brings us back to the Magnustego. This device full of potential, which is also affectionately called Magnus or Maggie, was recently tested in our hands-on demo with The Knightling.
As our preview begins, our masked hero raises his oversized, ornate shield aloft before looking out over the sprawling lands that surround him. Dubbed the Outskirts, the medieval-inspired fantasy setting offers a colorful, cozy look that’s more akin to the inviting outdoor environments of Breath of the Wild than, say, the grim, foreboding lands that litter a Dark Souls game map.
Characterized by lush, rolling hills, vibrant, plant-filled valleys, stunning cliff faces, and majestic waterfalls flowing into crystal-clear lakes and rivers, this enchanting universe offers plenty of eye-pleasing attractions. A closer look at moving objects – like spinning windmill blades casting shadows on the ground – also reveals some impressive lighting effects.
But World’s most impressive visual achievement is that it organically blends its natural beauty with a platforming paradise just waiting to be played in. At first glance, The Knightling’s sprawling landscapes resemble the high fantasy-inspired environments you’d explore in numerous open-world action RPGs. But its focus on fast-paced platforming and spirited traversal hides a visceral secret: your defense device doubles as a makeshift mode of transportation, letting you quickly zip through the outskirts and beyond.
Shield gliding isn’t exactly a novel gameplay mechanic, but The Knightling manages to evolve and improve on it, not only making it the primary means of transportation but also designing the world to encourage its use. So all that pretty scenery glimpsed at the start of the demo also serves as a sort of playground. Sloping roofs are actually steep ramps, winding wall surfaces serve as pathways, and shallow, meandering streams are essentially rails waiting to be ridden at top speed. Of course, you can also traverse more obvious hills, paths, and other natural formations while controlling your new friend Magnus.
Using this unique mode of transport for short trips is fun, but it’s really fun to use it to travel longer distances by chaining together the various interactions. And that’s not even taking into account the additional tricks that require dexterity, like double jumps or the ability to get even more air by bouncing off giant mushroom caps.
Although we like to think of the outskirts as our own personal skate park, we soon discover that there’s a lot more to do here than just get our adrenaline pumping. Stressed-out villagers need help and, not surprisingly, their worries soon turn into jobs for the knight-in-training to take on. Before we know it, we’re settling land disputes and rounding up livestock.
These mission types might sound a bit like boring quests, but Maggie – or Magnus – manages to make even the most mundane tasks more entertaining. The property dispute, for example, is resolved by measuring the distance between two points in a quick, race-like challenge, while capturing the animals introduces a bit of shield-based puzzle-solving and combat.
The puzzles mostly involve throwing the tool – Captain America style – at targets to trigger certain actions. It’s very similar to pulling levers and pressing buttons in other games, but the shield acts as a sort of mediator. There’s also a dynamic day/night cycle that can be sped up to help find solutions. The puzzles are a bit simple, but these examples also represent the very first puzzles of the game, so hopefully they’ll get more creative and complex as the adventure progresses.
Combat behind the shield feels more challenging, as the protagonist can perform basic strike attacks as well as block, parry, and inflict pain from above with air strikes. Throwing the weapon mid-jump also slows down the action, allowing for additional strategy and cinematic style. As with platforming, combat is far more rewarding when you combine and chain together the various options in your arsenal.
And it seems there’s plenty of potential in that regard, as The Knightling features an extensive, combat-focused skill tree full of upgrades for the protagonist. Our demo doesn’t go into too much detail about the progression paths, but we can invest some shiny, collected currency into a powerful move called “Velocity Attack.” Harnessing the force of a shield slide, we perform the maneuver to powerfully knock back targets with a series of lightning-fast spinning attacks.
Despite some tricky targeting, we can combine our standard skills with this newly acquired ability to make light work of low-level minions. However, we’re quickly dispatched towards the end of our playtime when we encounter more aggressive threats. While getting beaten to a pulp is never fun, our inglorious defeats confirm that the button-mashing that served us so well before didn’t reflect the depth of the combat. By the third respawn, we begin to employ additional strategies and tactics to defeat larger, sword-wielding enemies.
Unfortunately, even our more deliberate approach to combat cannot save us from the first armored attacker we encounter. The villain wields a respectable blade and wears a thick helmet. We must first remove his armor before we can defeat him. Unfortunately, our previous investment in the Velocity Attack is not enough to purchase the upgrade needed to strip the enemy of his defenses.
This disheartening realization soon brings our preview to an end, but it also gets us excited for our inevitable return to the Outskirts. Not only will we be revisiting the skill tree after the fact—and demanding a rematch—but we’re also looking forward to tackling other unfinished business.
First of all, our time came when the story was just getting good and the gameplay was evolving. It seems that Sir Lionstone has embarked on a very dangerous mission and his brave apprentice is determined to accompany him. However, this requires the gift of flight, a Magnus mod that seems to be next on our to-do list. Even better, a second shield-focused skill tree suggests that the device will not only let us float, but will eventually net us enough upgrades to put a Swiss Army knife to shame.
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Of course, The Knightling’s planned 15-hour campaign also promises collectibles, side quests, and other activities that will no doubt be made even more exciting when tackled with the Magnustego multi-tool. We can’t wait to find out and discover everything The Knightling has to offer when it launches – likely ahead of Doom: The Dark Ages – sometime next year.
