Crowsworn Kickstarter Demo Preview – Niche Gamer

Upcoming souls-like Metroidvania Crowsworn released a demo showcasing some of its gameplay and bosses, which we were able to try out.

The demo gives us a glimpse into how the game’s exploration and combat will work out, featuring three different areas for players to move through, as well as multiple boss fights.

So, is it really similar to Hollow Knight? Is it as difficult? How does it set itself apart? Find out the answer to these questions and more in our demo preview for Crowsworn.

Crowsworn‘s demo opens up with a brief animated cutscene, giving us a closer look at the game’s main character, who seems to be crucified on an open field. We don’t know much about the main character so far, since the demo doesn’t really have any story content, as it is mostly made up of things that won’t make it into the final game.

The Kickstarter demo is supposed to be an approximation of the final game, but its areas are demo-exclusive. So far, we’re not really sure whether that means the bosses will also be left in the demo and won’t be present in the final game or if that only applies to the actual levels.

For this demo, the player can explore three interconnected sections of the map, which house a seemingly early game set of power-ups. The demo is split between two parts, the first one being the metroidvania exploration section where we explore the map and fight two different bosses, while the second part serves as a standalone combat showcase against another boss.

Crowsworn features a pretty metal upgrade system, where you graft new body parts onto the main character to receive different bonuses. These range from increasing the amount of currency you receive from enemies to straight up getting new special moves or buffs to certain attacks.

Differently from other souls-likes, the game doesn’t feature any sort of corpse run or retrieval system, instead taking a chunk of the player’s currency away upon death. This is quite rough, since getting stuck on a boss means your funds are going to dry up substantially, so it’s better to hit the shops before attempting a tough encounter.

Speaking of tough encounters, Crowsworn’s boss fights are a little weird. The main part of the demo is a little all over the place when it comes to difficulty, featuring areas and bosses that are on completely different spectrums of difficulty, making it tough to gauge what part of the game this is meant to represent.

The game’s combat is incredibly smooth and takes a lot after Hollow Knight, featuring directional attacks and a big emphasis on evasiveness. The main part of the demo only gives us access to a dodge roll and wall climb, while the boss demo gives us access to an air dash, although the game’s trailer shows that those are just the tip of the iceberg.

Crowsworn‘s Bloodborne influence shines through its healing system, which incentivizes an aggressive playstyle. The main character has one healing charge by default but can restore it by attacking enemies a certain amount of times. This creates a lot of close-call scenarios, where you are one hit away from death but manage to recharge your flask.

From what it looks like, the player won’t get that much extra health during the game, so it seems that we’ll be playing a squishy character for the most part, who has to rely on his mobility and special moves to stay alive during combat.

The demo ends with a very chaotic fight against an unnamed boss at the Thorned Capital section of the map, which is quite a jump in difficulty. The fight goes on for a while, and you are constantly assaulted by small enemies and projectiles, making it a dizzying encounter.

My feelings are somewhat mixed on this fight, not only because there are a million things happening at once, but also because hunting for upgrades feels like a hard requirement. There is a hidden blacksmith that can craft an extra healing charge as well as sharpen your weapon, which I did not find on my first playthrough.

I might have clocked in a little over an hour of attempts against the last boss, which didn’t feel rewarding to beat. Placing necessary upgrades like a damage increase and extra healing inside of a hidden room that is incredibly difficult to find feels like bad design and something that I hope does not carry into the final game.

On a second playthrough, I realized that my first experience was the complete opposite of what happens once you take the time to hunt for upgrades, since you can pretty much face-tank the boss with a second healing charge and increased damage.

The secondary part of the demo is entirely separate from the main area and supposedly represents a fight even later in the game. This fight is incredibly easy, mostly because the player actually has access to the intended upgrades from the get-go.

I can’t say I’m exactly hopeful when it comes to Crowsworn‘s balancing, because this aspect of the demo is quite messy.