It’s been more than a decade since Minecraft stumbled upon what might be the perfect survival-lite game formula. Have players scavenge, craft, and build during the day, then send hordes of monsters to attack by night. Since then, many other games have borrowed and tweaked that formula, such as Terraria and Castle Story. In fact, even Fortnite was initially pitched as this type of survival game (it became something entirely different, of course).
But I don’t think I ever imagined that it would work with a Diablo-style loot-heavy action-RPG, yet Tribes of Midgard seems to have pulled it off.
This is a game that tasks you with protecting the seed of Yggdrasil (the World Tree, for those of you who unfamiliar with Norse mythology). While the sun still shines, you must set out, scavenge resources, and build a protective barrier around the tree. But at night, Helheim sends its terrors out to attack. Survive the night and you can do it all over again, exploring more of the world, collecting better resources, and reinforcing your defenses even more.
Oh, and every few nights, you’re going to be visited by a giant.
Don’t worry, though; you can play the game cooperatively with up to ten players, which should make it a bit less intimidating. Then again, solo players are also welcome to test their mettle against the hordes of Yggdrasil-destroying monsters.
It sounds like bonkers amounts of fun, and all of this comes together with a gorgeous cel-shaded art style. This is definitely something I’m looking forward to.
Tribes of Midgard is due out July 27 for PS4, PS5, and Steam. You can check out the “Giants Are Coming” trailer below.
