Not many people can say that they want to step into the world of Nightmares, but that's going to be us and Violet in Koshmar: The Last Reverie, an upcoming action fantasy RPG from Purple Ray Studios.
Formerly dubbed Project Nightmare (which I can appropriately appreciate due to that Slavic language connection), Koshmar The Last Reverie will have you exploring a dreary fictional Victorian-inspired world plagued by Nightmares. As explained to us at the early reveal of the game, it is also interestingly inspired by the real sleep epidemic which plagued Europe in the 1700s. I definitely have to thank the team for that rabbit hole I went down on.
You will play as Violet, a teenager living in a small town blessed (or cursed depending on your perspective) to see the sickness spreading into the real world. She will explore nearby towns and take on Nightmares of others, as well as monsters of her own while chasing down the source of this sickness. We got to chance to ask the team if they put in any fears of their own as Nightmares, but while they did confirm this, they didn't share any spoilers on which ones. For me, it would be creepy crawlies.
As the story progresses each choice causes a ripple, leading to one of three endings. You'll have to be careful with your dialogue choices, which quests you choose, how you fight, and even inventory management (whether you give or keep specific items) if you want to keep your sanity, or if you want to lose it, of course.
Sometimes games claim they have implemented the butterfly effect where choices matter but will only have very clear opposing options which will lead you down one path or the other. Koshmar, however, seems to have committed to the "everything you do has an effect" which I am very excited to see first hand. It sets an additional level of tension and horror to the already scary topic, knowing that one wrong step can set you down a horrifying path. I'm also usually one to charge ahead no strategy no plan only fight, so it will definitely be a fun challenge to get the ending I want (always the good one first).
The gameplay itself is separated into two. You will get to explore the real world and the world of Nightmares which Violet can access through Nightmare Rifts, being the only one who can see them. You'll unlock Weapons, Skills, Attacks and Passive Modifiers which change up the attack style. I'm an up-close-and-personal kind of player, so I'll be making my choices suit that, but I also know that Scythe is going to be my go-to. It's just too cool of a weapon not to be.
Going into Nightmare rifts, your goal is to wake the person up, but not every Nightmare will be the same, as the Rifts are procedurally generated. Some will have a bigger focus on combat, other on environmental challenges, while the rest on unique encounters. On top of that, we will be able to access core rifts which will progress Violet's story. This type of mechanic gives the game lots of replayability while still leading you in a specific direction story wise.
Everything that has been presented to us makes an enticing package that I am definitely looking forward to, especially with the beautiful and stylized art direction the game takes. Koshmar: The Last Reverie doesn't have a release date just yet, so we will have to suffer our own nightmares until it drops. In the meantime, you can check out the trailer below!
Koshmar the Last Reverie Trailer
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