Shiny Shoe, the indie developer behind Monster Train, has announced its next project, a co-op tactical roguelike game Inkbound. Inkbound takes you on a journey through procedurally generated storybook worlds, battling monsters that are set on unraveling the nature of reality itself. The game offers both solo and co-op gameplay in hybrid real-time/turn-based encounters. Each run in the game makes your heroes more powerful and you learn from your mistakes to make the next run better than the last one.
Inkbound is set in the world of The Atheneum, a world that contains all the stories that have ever been written. Anything written in ink in this world can become real including nightmarish carnivals, ancient ruins on the brink of volcanic annihilation, and more. People charged with maintaining these stories are called Binders and they can go anytime and anywhere where it has been written and if it is not written, they can create tales of their own.
Check out the announcement trailer for Inkbound below:
Inkbound is a combat-heavy game, and the developer has created a combat system that blends the kinetic brawls of an ARPG with the deep strategy of a tactics game. It follows the turn-based system where turns are snappy and quick to offer a more fluid experience however you can also slow down the game and take your time to fully evaluate your current threats. You can choose from the optimal times to rush enemies for melee strikes or position yourself for a perfectly aimed ranged attack.
Andrew Krausnick, Creative Director at Shiny Shoe commented:
Inkbound is not a card game, however, like Monster Train you’re creating and upgrading a build to change the way you engage with each roguelike run. Fans will notice that Inkbound shares DNA with Monster Train, but we expanded upon what we learned making that title, to create a richly different experience, which also combines our love of co-op games and ARPGs.
The developer has developed Inkbound to be a co-op title and the whole concept of the game is built around cooperative play. This further enhances its tactical elements as Binders can work together to debuff enemies and follow up with devastating attacks. Another scenario could play out where one Binder can hang back to keep their party healthy during a battle while another one takes the beating and takes care of the enemies. Each run in the game is different thanks to the roguelike mechanics and procedurally-generated levels.
While the game certainly rewards co-op gameplay, the game can be played completely in solo mode as well where solo Binders can forge their own journey. Some of the best loot and the biggest challenges in Inkbound can be obtained in co-op mode. Mark Cooke, CEO of Shiny Shoe also added:
We cultivated an incredible community with Monster Train, so with Inkbound we wanted to explore ways to approach that shared experience within a new genre. This is a living game, which provides us with the opportunity to nurture our community over the long term. Our goal is to give Binders new surprises to discover every week — whether it’s deadly new enemies, powerful loot, or even entirely new biomes. And that’s the mission statement of Shiny Shoe. We want to attract a base of players who love our games and find new reasons to keep playing them, so that they’re remembered fondly 20 years from now.
Additional details about Inkbound can be found on the official website of the game where you can also sign up for the upcoming beta. Inkbound is currently slated for an early access release on PC in 2023 that Shiny Shoe is self-publishing. A Steam page for the game is now live and you can add it to your wishlist and also follow the upcoming updates.
What are your thoughts on Inkbound? Will you be interested in playing the game when it comes out? Let us know in the comments section below.
