Godfall, an action RPG set for release in late 2020, has drawn inspiration from many sources to establish its modern fantasy setting and "Loot Slasher" gameplay. The Stormlight Archive book series by Brandon Sanderson, is a fantasy epic of knights with magical weapons and armor, and it has informed the visuals of the techno-magical gear players can collect.
Set to be published by Gearbox Software in late 2020, the new PlayStation console's expanded capabilities to tell an epic story about ancient orders of knights who must hack-and-slash their way through dangerous elemental realms and the supernatural creatures therein. This narrative ties directly into a "Loot-Slasher" RPG system where character classes are determined by the armor they wear, melee combat is emphasized over ranged attacks, and players grow stronger by looting new weapons and Valorplates from the foes they slay.
Keith Lee, CEO for Counterplay Studios and Creative Director for Godfall, has cited a number of franchises that influenced his "Loot-Slasher": loot-based games such as the Monster Hunter franchise, plus books like Isaac Asimov's Foundation series, and The Stormlight Archive of Brandon Sanderson. The Stormlight Archive's world-building shares several interesting similarities with the setting of Godfall, suggesting possibilities for this PS5 game's story and how it might justify the magical weapons and armor players can loot.
Comparing Godfall and The Stormlight Archive
Information on Godfall's storyline so far is slim, gleaned from interviews and trailer footage released by Counterplay. In a world buffed by destructive storms, a heroic Knightly Order must stop the apocalypse by climbing the Skybreaker Monolith and fighting their way through hordes of enemies in various elemental realms. These arcane knights augment themselves by donning "Valorplate", ornate techno-magical suits of armor with unique abilities, and wield a host of similarly flashy melee weapons.
Brandon Sanderson's The Way of Kings: Book I of the Stormlight Archive, published in 2010, introduced fantasy readers to Roshar, a world buffeted by constant, tsunami-like storms, filled with coral reef ecosystems and elemental spirits. The warlords of this world fight each other to claim ornate techno-magical suits of armor called Shardplate and soul-cutting swords called Shardblades. In the sequels, Words of Radiance and Oathbringer, a dreaded Desolation stirs on the horizon. To stop this apocalypse, the broken order of Knights Radiant must re-form, reclaiming the Shards and magical Oaths they once bore.
Already, there are clear similarities between the settings of Godfall and the Stormlight Archive: a world buffeted by apocalyptic storms, Knights who wear Valorplate versus knights who wear Shardplate, elemental creatures from others realms, and so on. This isn't so surprising; the Stormlight Archive's unique aesthetic of aquatic life, flashy armor, and oath-based magic lends itself well to the setting of an action RPG.
The heroes of The Stormlight Archive eventually discover that their Shardplates and Shardblades are made out of Spren, the elemental spirits of their world. The Valorplates and weapons of Godfall may have similar origins, bestowed on humanity by dying gods or drawn from the essence of defeated foes. Like the weapons of the Monster Hunter franchise, forged from the bones and hide of slain monsters, the panoplies of Godfall could very well be made from the enemies players defeat.
Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight Archive series is not the only inspiration for Godfall, but its unique visuals and atypical fantasy setting have clearly left their mark on Counterplay Studio's latest production. With luck, Godfall will be able to entertain players on release with exciting gameplay and a comparably epic story, one that pays homage to the best elements of The Stormlight Archive while forging its own original path.
Godfall is expected to release in late 2020.
Source: Playstation Lifestyle
