„Rogue 'em up” Absolum is an original roguelike beat 'em up from veteran developers and you can play the demo for a few more weeks

From Dotemu, the same team that has helped publish and develop great beat ‘em up titles like TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge, Streets of Rage 4, and the upcoming Marvel Cosmic Invasion, comes Absolum. Unlike many of the titles this team has worked on, this is an entirely original IP. Dotemu is working in collaboration with Guard Crush and Supamonks on this couch co-op roguelike beat ‘em up set in a dark fantasy world.

Absolum is a co-op roguelike beat ‘em up from the genre masters

Leading up to Summer Game Fest, I didn’t really think of myself as someone who enjoyed beat ‘em up games. Sure, I played a few in my time and had fun, but I always chalked that up to the couch co-op of it all. It’s always great to play games with friends. That’s how I experienced games like Streets of Rage 4 and TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge. They were a fun genre, but not something I could find myself wrapped up in. Then I played an early demo for Absolum.

Rougelikes are revolutionizing nearly every genre in video games over the last few years. Honestly, it’s surprising that it took this long to reach a co-op beat ‘em up game. Absolum also does a great job of tying the roguelike mechanic into the game world. Rather than just starting fresh, as if you were going back in time or something like that, Absolum sets up a dark fantasy setting with rebirth magic. The four main characters are part of a group of wizards that worship Mother, a powerful magic user who can bring characters back from death. In this world, groups of powerful wizards do what they can to protect their patron because the only way these groups can truly be defeated is if their patron is killed, thereby making their demise permanent.

Two player co-op.Absolum, Developers: Dotemu, Guard Crush, Supamonks

The core conflict of Absolum revolves around an evil emperor who seeks to control the use of magic. Soldiers in this empire will attack wizards on sight, and by proxy, many other enemies are inherently distrustful of wizards, too. Whenever you decide to go on a run, make choices about where to travel along the map, with the ultimate goal of reaching the emperor and thwarting the empire.

Combat feels chaotic at first, almost like you could button-mash through the game, but you find out pretty quickly that you won’t get far that way. As the enemies get more complex and more of them are showing up and attacking at the same time, you need to think more about how to approach each enemy. But chaos is always fun too.

On every run, you’ll encounter optional power-ups, like any good roguelike. You’ll have to choose between two options, many of which give you access to various elemental magic. There were a few that I had a lot of fun with. One gave my dash a trail of fire, which would set enemies ablaze and deal damage over time. Another trapped an enemy in a bubble when I performed a simple combo. This bubble made it easier to continue a combo into the air, which always felt fun. Any way to send enemies flying and bouncing off objects was excellent.

New character, Cider.Absolum, Developers: Dotemu, Guard Crush, Supamonks

Currently, the demo features only three playable characters. The fourth, and possibly most exciting, since it’s a wizard frog, is not yet available in the demo, but I look forward to trying that amphibian out at some point. Cider is the newest character, who seems to focus on close-range attacks and using a grappling hook to pull enemies in for wild combos. Galandra uses a sword for sweeping strikes, and Karl uses fisticuffs and a blunderbuss. Of all three, I enjoyed playing as Cider the most, but that could also just be because that’s the character I most recently played as. They are all genuinely great fun in their own unique ways.

Meeting the empire's knights.Absolum, Developers: Dotemu, Guard Crush, Supamonks

During my Summer Game Fest demo, I didn’t get to try out the multiplayer features, but I can only imagine how much more fun it would be. This feels like a perfect game for the Nintendo Switch. Give each friend a Joy-Con, sit back, and fight your way through levels of enemies.

I would be remiss not to mention this game’s art style. While it’s not the usual pixel art that Dotemu has become known for, it still manages to look just as impressive. The character designs are spot on, and the enemies are great too. The progression from fighting wolves and crabs to fighting goblins, then armored humans, and eventually the troops of the empire is a perfect visual representation of increasing challenge. I can knock around a hundred goblins, but as soon as one of the black-armor clad knights shows up, I immediately know this is not an average enemy.

If any of this sounds like something you’d love to try, Absolum’s Steam Next Fest demo is still available for a few more weeks. There’s no release date for the full game yet, but fans have already rated the demo quite highly. Out of over three hundred and fifty reviews, 90% are positive. When Absolum eventually launches, it will be available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam. You can add it to your wishlist now.

• indie games
• beat 'em up
• Summer Game Fest