The games industry is going through an interesting shift as of late, mostly thanks to streamlined development tools and the widespread availability of publishing platforms like Steam and Epic Games. As a result, many indie games and studios have risen to fame by creating games that rival the quality of AAA studios – which wouldn’t obviously be possible in the gaming landscape of prior generations when such things weren’t feasible. There are so many promising indie and AA games coming out in the near future – and this feature series is dedicated to putting a spotlight on such games.
Previously, we have covered many such promising projects like Black Myth: Wukong, Mystery Moon, and Outbreak Island just to name a few. Developer DuiXiaoHe’s upcoming Airtight City 2.0 recently dropped a trailer, and it has fans salivating to know more about the game, its many inspirations, and other details of interest. To that end, we can’t help but ask the question – what the hell is Airtight City 2.0?
Airtight City 2.0 is a third-person hybrid action shooter, and it is currently being developed by a single person. It’s also the developer’s debut title, and it’s looking like a really ambitious project for a single man at the helm. Coming back to the game then, Airtight City sees players controlling what seems to be a cybernetically enhanced soldier as he embarks on a quest to bring peace and justice to the world.
The game’s description states that the protagonist’s suit is powered by the collective energy of millions of souls, and the story will involve a lot of blood and violence. In addition to that, the story will also be based on a central theme of non-individualism, which is a rather odd choice when it comes to telling a story with such an empowered lead character. But that also makes it a rather unique narrative setup amongst the barrage of games with similar characters, so we are also excited to see what’s in store for the final release.
The story might be intriguing (which is a great thing), but most players are going to be jumping in for the gameplay – and it looks slick, to say the least. Airtight City 2.0 effortlessly blends shooting and melee combat together for an experience like no other. The moment-to-moment gameplay involves slashing and dicing through hordes of enemies as you try to make your way through the opposing forces. Our player character is equipped with plenty of weapons, ranging from a simple pistol and assault rifle to a katana and supercharged knuckles and a lot more.
Long-range weapons will obviously be used to deal chip damage to enemies from afar, and you can also use them to break shields – as seen in a sample trailer. Once those defenses have been destroyed, you can get in closer and deal with a flurry of strikes from your weapon of choice. DuiXiaoHe doesn’t shy away from violence, and each attack and brutal and is accompanied by the appropriate splatter of blood and broken limbs. Furthermore, our player character will also have access to a suite of special abilities that can be chained together to create even deadlier combos – including but not limited to a kinesis ability that will lift an enemy into the air before blasting them to smithereens.
While the game’s fast-paced combat looks like standard hack-and-slash at first glance, the developer has said that this isn’t going to be the case. Instead, there’s going to be a ton of focus on how players use the tools in their arsenal – so we can expect varied enemy types that would require changing tactics and strategies every now and then. All in all, it’s a pretty robust combat system with plenty of things going on – and we really hope that DuiXiaoHe ends up stitching it together in a neat package that has both accessibility and depth.
Of course, given the fact that Airtight City 2.0 is an action RPG at heart, there’s going to be some focus on progression as well. Though the game isn’t looking like it’s going to have stat-based progression, players will most likely get more powerful gear as they make their way through the game. So while you might start the game slashing through enemies with a katana, you would get a heavy hammer for defeating your enemies further down the line. The abilities would most likely be showered in a similar way, which would increase your overall power level and make your character ready for the endgame.
And this brings us neatly over to the levels, which are looking pretty linear from what we have seen of the game. While some might take it as a criticism, it could actually work in the game’s favor by forcing players to master the combat system since there wouldn’t obviously be a lot of leeway for movement and dodging – which would also lend a pinch of survival horror to the gameplay proceedings as well. The levels themselves have a decent amount of variety amongst them as well, ranging from a portside dock to claustrophobic facilities and many more. Of course, we’ll have to wait for the final release to know more on this matter.
It’s also important to talk about the overall presentation of Airtight City 2.0, and suffice it to say – it looks absolutely gorgeous. There’s a consistent theme in the art design, which is pretty astonishing when you consider everything is being juggled by a single person at the helm. Apart from that, the technical aspects are also looking really competent – with high-quality texture work and plenty of post-processing effects like volumetric fog and rain all culminating in a clean and crisp visual presentation. But the most amazing thing about Airtight City 2.0 in terms of visual presentation is that developer DuiXiaoHe has garnished this presentation with plenty of embellishments such as how the katana keeps spinning after you throw it in the air or how the player character exerts a cloud of smoke as it charges up for entering Demon mode. These neat little things add up to make Airtight City 2.0’s visual presentation rival that of AAA studios – which is a really great thing.
And finally, there’s the topic of the release. Airtight City 2.0 will be releasing for PC, but details surrounding the actual release dates are scant at the moment. Of course, that’s not a surprise by any stretch – considering that it has just been revealed and is being worked on by a single-man studio. The game is also being self-published by DuiXiaoHe – which is being done through Patreon funding.
At the time of writing this feature, the developer is working on a demo – with the intention to bring more developers on board for the project and also garner more fan interest in the game. As such, it’s rather obvious that Airtight City 2.0 is still some ways from its final release. That said, DuiXiaoHe is pretty consistent with development updates on the matter, and hopefully – the developer would be able to assemble a team for the project.
In conclusion, Airtight City 2.0 is looking like a really promising game with a ton of its own style and charm. And we really hope that DuiXiaoHe is able to capitalize on that potential and craft a game that stands true to most of its promises, and then some more.
Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.
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