The Ascent is “Absolutely an Equal Experience” Across Co-op and Single Player, Says Developer

Given how promising Neon Giant’s upcoming action RPG The Ascent has looked in all that we’ve seen of it so far, it goes without saying that there’s no shortage of people who’re excited to dive into the game. But considering the emphasis it’s putting on co-op gameplay, what does that mean for those who prefer to play their games solo? Well, if you fall in that camp, you don’t have to worry about a thing.

We recently posted the question to The Ascent’s director and co-founder of Neon Giant Tor Frick in a recent interview, who told us that the game is “absolutely an equal experience” regardless of whether you’re playing it solo or co-op. While some things will obviously change across both options in order to maintain proper balancing, Frick says that those who want to play the game single player can do so without any concessions.

“It’s absolutely an equal experience to play the game in single player,” Frick said. “We have tried making an experience that is just as exciting in single player as it is in co-op, even though the dynamics of gameplay change as you add more players. For example playing a bit slower, absorbing more of the world, vs a more intensely paced play session. The game is built to take co-op into account, including all co-op characters being represented in all the cutscenes and things like that. Since you have several players, gameplay will offer more opportunities for synergy between abilities and playstyles.”

In the same interview, Frick also spoke with us about The Ascent’s Xbox console exclusivity, the potential of the Xbox Series X’s hardware, how it helped push the game’s visuals, and more. The full interview will be live soon, so stay tuned for that.

The Ascent launches for Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and PC on July 29.