At Xbox & Bethesda Showcase, A44 Games and Kelper revealed the gameplay trailer for their upcoming game, Flintlock: Siege of Dawn. Since the reveal, fans have been eager to know more about it as they were impressed a lot with what they saw. And if you have played A44’s previous game Ashen, you must definitely be excited for The Siege of Dawn.
We had a chance to talk about the game with CEO and creative director, Derek Bradley and he was able to share some interesting details about the game with us. A44 has been working on the game since 2018 just after the launch of Ashen and it seems like all that development time has been put to good use.
Rest of the interview is as following:
Q: Can you add more to the premise of the game? Is every town under siege by the undead army? Will I be facing off the old gods themselves or just their undead minions?
You will certainly fight the gods themselves, though they are rare and powerful beings. The Army of the Dead has spread through the world, so you do tend to encounter the undead wherever you go.
Q: How many different biomes does Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn have? Is the open world freely explorable or will players have to level up in one region before matching the level requirements of the other?
The world does have a progression of large open world zones that you unlock as you make your way through the story. Once you unlock new zones you can always return to the ones you have already unlocked.
Q: How many hours do you reckon the world of Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn offers if players wanted to explore every nook and cranny?
That is a great question, and one that we don’t have a definitive answer for yet. These is a huge amount of content in Flintlock, with a 40 hour main path. If you were to do absolutely everything it would be quite a bit longer!
Q: The game blends gunplay with sorcery and traditional melee weapons. How does character-building work? Can I choose to solely create a spellcaster or settle for a mage-warrior hybrid?
You will always have access to guns, magic and melee combat, but depending on how you build your character in the skill tree, you will have a very different playstyle. This means that you can certainly feel more like a spellcaster, if you spec your character that way, but we don’t close you off from the core functionality of the other archetypes.
Q: Within the same vein, what kind of talents or skill trees am I looking to unlock with progression?
As an example, the magic side of the skill tree is very focused on adding abilities to your mysterious foc-like companion, Enki. At its peak, this side of the skill tree unlocks an extremely powerful Ultimate ability, but the tree is very nuanced and unlocks a range of tricks that can be added to Enki’s arsenal.
Q: You previously mentioned that you’re finding a balance for the game’s souls-like combat. Elden Ring sort of welcomed newcomers to the Souls-styled gameplay with its open-world design. Is that kind of accessibility something you’ve considered for your game?
Most certainly. We believe in making the genre as accessible as we possibly can without losing the core of the trademark high risk combat that is associated with Soulslike games.
The different playstyles possible through the skill tree, open world content and traversal biliities all play a big part in making Flintlock more accessible.
Q: Let’s talk about our companion Enki. What help will it grant us during and outside of combat? What are these new traversal mechanics Enki will be helping with? Also, can I find other companions?
You can find other companions, though Enki is the only one that actually joins you on the road and fights along side you. Enki has a whole section of the skill tree dedicated to his magics (and all of the magics you perform in the game, actually originate from Enki). Enki also allows you to fly through the air via secret pathways he is able to unlock.
Q: Is there a co-op mode in the mix? Since exploration is such a major focus of the game, wouldn’t a co-op mode accentuate that aspect?
Flintlock is our single player, hero character focused title, so there is no co-op planned at this stage.
Q: How will the previous-generation versions of Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn compare with the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S versions? Also, are you incorporating DualSense tech?
Our team is very excited about DualSense tech, and this is something we are actively experimenting with at the moment.
Q: Just to confirm, Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn will not be a timed exclusive like Ashen, right?
That is correct, it will not be a timed exclusive
Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn is scheduled to release for PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series in early 2023.
