A land ravaged by decay and despair sets the stage for Verfall, a grim and deep turn-based RPG developed by Hoffnung Haydn that challenges players to navigate a world where every decision carries weight. As the Servants of Corrosion spread ruin, a band of cursed heroes, each marked by an ominous sigil, must rise to prevent total annihilation. But salvation comes at a price: resources are scarce, morality is a slippery slope, and survival demands more than brute strength.
Choices in Verfall are etched into your karma, a system intricately tied to the seven deadly sins. Your moral compass—or lack thereof—shapes your abilities, the relationships you forge, and the story’s trajectory. Do you save the innocent at a cost to your own party? Or sacrifice lives to secure the strength needed to endure? Every decision reverberates, leading to branching paths, and five possible endings—including a hidden true conclusion.
With 18 uniquely skilled heroes to recruit, each offering abilities like spirit communication, object manipulation, or social persuasion, party composition becomes a delicate balancing act. These skills are not just for combat; they unlock secrets, alter the narrative, and open paths to otherwise inaccessible locations. In combat, Verfall offer a turn-based mechanics, pitting you against enemies with nuanced resistances. Mastery over magic, abilities, and finite resources is critical, especially in the brutal roguelite mode where death can undo everything.
Exploration unfolds across 150 richly designed maps teeming with puzzles, hidden treasures, and over 1,000 NPCs whose stories might hold the key to your journey—or your downfall. The freedom to tackle stages in any order creates a dynamic experience, while karma-driven crafting and resource management add layers of strategy to every choice you make. Verfall is expected to be released on the 2nd of December 2024 on PC via Steam. Below an overview and trailer.
Verfall: A Dark and Strategic RPG
The world of Verfall is in ruins. The “Servants of Corrosion” have been unleashed, and now it’s a race against time to save what remains. Heroes marked by the “Mark” carry the burden of a curse and must unite, facing the challenge with the few resources available. Traditional power-ups are not an option — every battle must be fought with what you have.
Key Features:
- Karma and Morality System:
In Verfall, karma is based on the seven deadly sins, and it influences your choices, abilities, and the fate of your characters. Your actions and decisions will shape the story, determining who lives, who dies, and which paths you can take. Karma reflects your choices, from saving or sacrificing children to interacting with NPCs that challenge your beliefs.- Strategic Team Building:
Each of the 18 heroes brings unique and passive interactive abilities, which are essential for shaping the narrative and unlocking secrets:
- Ghost Ability: Converse with spirits and reveal hidden fragments of the story.
- Physical Ability: Jump obstacles and move objects to access special areas.
- Expert Ability: Discover secrets, hidden areas, and treasures.
- Social Ability: Extract crucial information from NPCs and alter the course of your journey.
- Advanced Turn-Based Combat:
Face enemies with unique resistances, using a combination of magic and abilities that are limited but progressively more powerful, depending on your characters’ karma. Combat requires careful planning and strategy, especially in the higher difficulty levels.- Progressive Difficulty and Roguelite Mode:
With four difficulty levels, Verfall challenges players of all kinds. In roguelite mode, death has severe consequences, and limited resources test your adaptability and survival skills.- Explore a Rich World:
- Over 150 maps with bonus stages, action sequences, puzzles, and hidden locations to discover.
- Freedom to choose the order of stages, creating a unique experience with every playthrough.
- Interact with over 1000 NPCs, each with secrets, quests, and stories that may alter the course of your journey.
- Multiple Endings and One True Ending:
Verfall offers five alternate endings, based on your choices and accumulated karma. For players seeking to uncover all the mysteries, there’s a true ending, accessible only for those who complete the game’s deepest challenges.- Karma-Based Crafting:
Craft items and upgrade abilities based on the moral choices you make throughout your journey. Your karma determines what items and abilities you can craft, allowing for different approaches and strategies in your adventure.- Tactical Resource Management:
Resource management is crucial in Verfall. Wisely manage the items you collect, the potions you prepare, and the powers you consume, as resources are limited, and survival depends on how you use them.- Immersive Interactions:
The world of Verfall is full of details and side stories to explore. Interact with characters who may provide crucial information, or just to hear their tales and jokes. But beware: not everything that seems useful truly is, and some interactions may irreversibly shape your destiny.Verfall is a challenging, atmospheric RPG that requires careful management of karma and resources, ideal for players seeking a deep, dark experience filled with moral choices. With tactical combat mechanics, an engaging story about sacrifice, redemption, and the seven deadly sins, and multiple endings that make every playthrough unique, this is a game for those ready to confront their inner demons and fight for an uncertain future.
