Publisher Hooded Horse is one of the most consistent names in the tactical and strategy game space right now. The team has helped bring some of the best the genre has to offer to PC in recent years, with Xenonauts 2, Against the Storm, Cataclismo, Heart of the Machine, and of course Manor Lords under its umbrella. Each one of these games is a wildly different experience, and Hooded Horse’s latest signing is no different. The publisher is partnering with developer Chronocle for its new game He is Coming, which looks like a brilliant mix of minimalist visuals, roguelikes, and auto battlers. Best of all, it has a demo you can try right now.
In He is Coming, you’ve only got three days before the next boss arrives. In that time you need to venture across the world map to find weapons, equipment, and items to craft a build specifically designed to overcome the next imposing foe, with beasts and other monsters lurking in the shadows. During the day you’ve not got much to worry about, but at night you need to watch for animals on the hunt, either retreating to the safety of a bonfire or exploring for more experience and possibilities.
Now that you’ve survived three isolating days and cold, lonely nights, one of 30 bosses is knocking on your front door. Let’s hope your work over the last 72 hours of in-game time has paid off, because now you’ve got to sit back and watch the auto battler chaos unfold. After a while you’ll come face to face with the Demon King in the run’s final encounter, so you want to make sure you’ve got the pick of the roguelike’s more than 350 different items.
https://youtu.be/ed93dGm9-58 [private until embargo]
You can also unlock special rewards and bonuses between runs, just like genre stalwarts Hades and Dead Cells, so you’re never going to be starting again completely from scratch. With plenty of run variety across the map and myriad items you can find, it’s always nice to feel secure in knowing you’ll finish an attempt with something at least.
It’s not just predetermined bosses that you’ve got to worry about, however. He is Coming’s Kingmaker mode puts a multiplayer twist on proceedings. In this asynchronous experience you’ll face off against the builds of other players, giving you a look at what everyone else has been cooking up to take on the Demon King.
Hooded Horse says He is Coming will make the leap to Steam Early Access in 2025, with a demo for the game currently available on Valve’s storefront. You can find it here.
Don’t forget we also have all the best fantasy games and RPGs to keep you busy until He is Coming arrives.
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