When I first stumbled upon Rooted, an upcoming post-apocalyptic crafting survival game from Headlight Studio, I was immediately blown away by how good the visuals looked in the trailer. Of course, I was also skeptical. I thought perhaps this game would never see the light of day, or if it did, it wouldn’t be nearly as attractive as that reveal trailer made it seem. Nevertheless, I kept checking back in on the Rooted Steam page, and I even joined the developer’s Discord for any updates or progress reports.
Despite my persistence, there was a newly cut, extended version of that original reveal trailer uploaded on July 6 that somehow slipped past my radar.
After checking it out, I still have some fundamental questions about Rooted, but this new trailer goes a long way toward showing how much work the studio has put in over the last several months. This new trailer has also renewed my interest in and hype for Rooted, assuaging some of my earlier concerns.
I am happy to report that Rooted now more closely resembles an actual game instead of a good-looking proof-of-concept video. Don’t get me wrong, it still looks quite stunning and atmospheric, but now we get a better glimpse at the building mechanics in action. We also get to see a snippet of resource collection, as there’s one section of the trailer where it looks like the character is actively harvesting branches from a tree (although it is unclear if players will have to actually chop down said trees, as is de rigueur for survival titles).
This trailer also shows the ability for players to switch between third-person and first-person perspectives, a feature I personally love, especially in scavenging survival games. I enjoy being able to see my character, but I also like to get up-close and personal when rummaging through containers or trying to pick up rocks or sticks off the ground. Trying to find the hitbox to engage the interact prompt in third-person can be downright frustrating sometimes.
We also get a glimpse of the player out in the wilderness, as well as in dilapidated buildings. It appears this takes place in a post-apocalyptic city and surrounding forested area, based on the locations on display.
What we don’t get a glimpse of — and what hasn’t been touched on or shown in the previous trailer either — is what to expect from combat, or if there even is combat, whether in the form of PvE or PvP (as Rooted can be played solo or in multiplayer). Will players be facing off against dangerous wildlife, enemy human NPCs, and one another? That is still left unanswered, despite the fact that it could be a pivotal component to Rooted‘s success.
At the end of the day, I am more excited than ever at the prospect of what Rooted could shape up to be. It is already ticking off a number of boxes for me, so I’m rooting for Headlight Studio to deliver a rewarding and engaging experience.
As to whether this one comes out as strong in reality as it looks in concept, though? Well, we’ll just have to wait and see. And how long we’ll wait is anyone’s guess, since Rooted currently doesn’t have a firm release date and seems early in its production.
For now, you can wishlist Rooted on Steam and check out the extended trailer below.
