There’s something incredibly satisfying about a successful turn-based battle. Thinking ahead, reading the mind of your opposition, and planning your move with consideration; turn-based tactic games are all about strategy, stats, and skill. Dark Deity has already proven itself a strong contender in the genre, so we’re thrilled that more information has finally been revealed about the game’s sequel, including the launch of the first Dark Deity 2 demo, which is playable right now.
Dark Deity is a pixelated, anime, tactical RPG adventure where you must lead a band of heroes into battle to save their land from the grips of war. A huge cast of engaging playable heroes and an even larger pool of character classes make Dark Deity vastly customizable, replayable, and complex. The highly anticipated Dark Deity 2 takes the foundations of the first game and adds 20 legendary heroes, 45 branching classes, new characters, a new story, and some brand-new mechanics.
You’re often outnumbered during the game’s tactical turn-based combat, meaning your weapons and skill types must be carefully considered, as each wrong move can have a catastrophic outcome. There is no permadeath here, but in an arguably more challenging mechanic, downed team members instead lose stat points. Accumulatively, this can have truly detrimental effects on your unit as a whole, especially in later chapters. As such, you must study your foes and capitalize on your strategic prowess with every move.
But it’s not all about combat, as Dark Deity 2 also features a deep and moving story, evolving relationships, and game-changing narrative decisions across 30 chapters. Set 25 years after the events of the first game, two of your main party members are Gwyn and Riordan, descendants of Irving from the original. However, since most of the cast are new characters, Dark Deity 2 can be played by returning fans and new players alike. While the story drops you into the action right away, character development is ongoing, with regular, visual-novel-like dialogue keeping you immersed in the developing narrative. Plus, when it comes to combat, in-depth tutorials are available for new players but can be toggled off and customized if you’ve experienced Dark Deity before.
While much of the traveling and dialogue, at least in the demo’s early chapters, is automated, there are still plenty of decisions to make. As the story progresses, you soon learn that factions are at each other’s throats and fracturing internally, too, and you – as members of the Eternal Order – must make tough decisions on who to back and how to keep the peace. This, in turn, changes the outcome of the game, giving Dark Deity 2 even more replayability than its predecessor.
Further replayability is then provided by another new element to the sequel, and perhaps the most exciting – a randomization mechanic. This feature can randomize recruitment order, stats, aptitude, and more, meaning no two games will ever be the same.
The Dark Deity 2 demo is available to download on Steam right now and lets you experience the first four chapters in any of the three base difficulties. It is worth noting that, while this is a large portion of the game, some aspects are still not complete, including full voice acting. That said, the demo feels remarkably polished.
If you’re intrigued but haven’t yet played the first game, you can catch up by buying the original Dark Deity on Steam. There’s no confirmed release date for Dark Deity 2 just yet, so the Steam demo and the original game will just have to get you through the wait. You could also check out Coromon: Rogue Planet, a roguelite monster tamer also showcased during the OTK Winter Expo and expected soon from publisher indie.io.
The second OTK Winter Games Expo took place on December 4, 2024. The perfect showcase for game fans, the OTK Winter Games Expo focuses on independent developers and community-led games and is the perfect place to find out more about smaller gems like Dark Deity 2. You can head to the official OTK YouTube channel to catch up on the event and all the games discussed.