At Spiders, we love exploring different types of RPGs. Since our creation we have tried various styles of combat systems and learned something new with each game we’ve released. For our latest game, Steelrising, our goal was to focus on providing a more action-oriented, deliberate, detailed, and fun fighting experience.

A Soulslike game

From Demon’s Souls remake to Elden Ring, Soulslike games have captured players’ attention. Of course this wasn’t necessarily the case when we started the Steelrising, but everyone in the team wanted to pay homage to this genre. We wanted to home in on combat, making sure players must think about the best course of action and the skills at their disposal, but in a universe of our own. We also wanted to share our passion with as many players as possible, which is why we decided to create an assist mode. 

Steelrising leans into the Soulslike formula, but with the unique heart of a Spiders game.

The story of Steelrising happens in one night, at the very beginning of our twisted version of the French Revolution. Automatons are running rampant. They have totally overpowered the revolutionaries; these humans simply didn’t stand a chance when facing even the most basic of these creations.

Fighting fire with fire, you are Paris’ last hope. A single automaton against an army, your task is not easy, every enemy standing in your way can be your last if you underestimate them. 

To compel players to save the city, but also the permanent danger in attempting to do so, we decided to put the emphasis on a detailed combat system. Timing, studying your opponent’s every move, making sure not to draw too much attention so as not to find yourself outnumbered, and finding their weaknesses will be key to your success. 

Yes, they are strong, but so are you.

You will not only have to master your skills, you will also have to manage your cooling system. The more aggressive you are in combat the more heated you will get, which could lead Aegis to overheat and become briefly incapacitated. This mechanic may remind you of the classic stamina system that is present in many games of the genre, but by using instant cooling you can quickly reduce your temperature to land a few more hits or escape to safety. But beware! If used excessively or at the wrong time this could lead you to become completely frozen mid-combat, and open to attack. 

In addition to stamina management, other classic action-RPG aspects include stats that you will need to thoughtfully upgrade, as well as plenty of items and modules to collect for customizing and enhancing your playstyle.

One of the specificities of Steelrising’s gameplay is its verticality. Aegis can jump, and this ability will open new possibilities to attack and surprise enemies, use different combos, or even avoid some fights altogether if you wa

It’s been more than two months since the all-new PlayStation Plus completed its launch rollout in late June, and we are pleased to see the positive feedback we’ve gotten from our members. This includes games available on the service, such as Stray, Ghost of Tsushima, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, which are among some of the top games played so far from the PlayStation Plus Game Catalog. Today, we’re excited to share the lineup we have in store for the month of September that we are adding to both the Monthly Games lineup for all members and Game Catalog for Extra and Premium members on PlayStation Plus. 

The Monthly Games are available from September 6, and Game Catalog and Classics from September 20. Let’s take a closer look at the packed month ahead.   

PlayStation Plus Essential | Monthly Games | Available September 6 (until October 3) 

Need for Speed Heat | PS4

Hustle by day and risk it all at night in Need for Speed Heat, a white-knuckle street racer, where the lines of the law fade as the sun starts to set. By day, Palm City hosts the Speedhunter Showdown, a sanctioned competition where you earn Bank to customize and upgrade your high-performance cars. At night, ramp up the intensity in illicit street races that build your reputation, getting you access to bigger races and better parts.

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We’re fast approaching the month of September. Soon the temperatures will be cooling, leaves will be changing color, and a fantastic harvest of indie games will be filling our PS Store baskets. September’s got some heavy hitters–The Last of Us Part I, anyone?–but there’s also a bumper crop of amazing indie titles you’ll want to look out for. From killer game shows to character-driven adventures to delightfully eye-searing retro gunplay, here’s what you can look forward to on PS4 and PS5 this month. 

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Temtem

Are you looking for a new twist on the tried-and-true critter collection genre? Temtem is exactly what you’ve been hunting for! This game from Spanish developer Crema takes the concept of finding, taming, and battling creatures to a massive new scale in a persistent online multiplayer world. Colorful creatures called Temtem inhabit the beautiful island paradise of the Airborne Archipelago, and you’ll catch, train, and battle them in tried-and-true turn-based combat. But you’re not alone on your journey to the ranks of top Temtem trainer. Team up with friends or strangers online to explore the islands, battle the minions of Clan Belsoto, and fight and trade your collected Temtem. With oodles of Temtem to find, copious customization options, and weekly special quests, your Temtem adventure will likely keep you busy for hundreds of hours.

Release Date: September 6 | Publisher: Humble Bundle | PS5

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The To

We at Black Mermaid are very excited for the upcoming release of Moonscars, our first game as a new studio!

If you watched our trailers, you probably already know that we are fans of the Souls series. We’ve long been inspired by their rich worldbuilding and approach to gameplay and wanted to create a game for other fans like us.

We set out to create a challenging experience set in a 2D world, with quick and responsive-feeling combat that suited the peculiarities of 2D. Today, we’d like to share a bit about how Moonscars came to be—and some of the lessons we learned through our own cycle of trial and triumph.

Myths and masters

In Moonscars, you play as Grey Irma, a clay sculpture made in the image of a fierce woman warrior and brought to life. Her visual design carried over from a painting Stefan did in 2015 (above), and while her personality was crafted to fit best with the story, her appearance was defined a long time ago.

The creator of all living statues, The Sculptor, was once a great man. At the time of the events in the game, he still  wields great power and is driven to make the world a better place according to his vision—yet very few are willing to accept the costs and sacrifices to make it come true.

We liked the concept of the legendary Cypriot king and sculptor Pygmalion and his ivory statue Galatea, which tells the story of a sculptor who fell in love with his creation, and wanted to imagine a world where this concept is expanded more—perhaps with a dark twist to it. The central elements of our story and setting are sculpting and molding: a world of clay, bone, and ichor.

Visually, we took inspiration from the Dutch oil painting old masters, which led us to create a world using a muted palette of dark grays, with accents of reds and greens. The dark palette also favored us a bit in the background painting process, given our small team.

Shaping the game

We (Stefan and Alex) met working together in jobs creating gamified experiences for promoting br. For quite a while we talked about starting our own project, and so we took a leap of faith, quit our jobs, and set on our own journey.

With Stefan’s experience in traditional painting and a newfound passion for animation, coupled with Alex’s knack for programming and overall dexterity, in a short time we created a sneak peek of our new project and showed it to the public. It attracted lots of attention and positive reactions, which gave us a confidence boost. Months later, when we partnered with Humble Games, we started expanding our team and brought on Andryi Moroz, our game designer and story writer, Andrei Platon, who also shares a passion for animation, and a few close friends who helped us on a per-task basis.

And so, the creation of Moonscars was underway.

As we started a new studio, we faced a couple challenges. One was finding local talent to complete the team.

We were also short on past experience developing full games, so we had to learn this craft on the fly—and when starting the project, we didn’t consider how much time we’d need to get to that stage where t

The Extended Play promotion comes to PlayStation Store on Wednesday, August 31. From then until Wednesday, September 14, you can enjoy discounts across special editions and DLC of select games, including Supermassive Games’ horror The Quarry, online c-op adventure Outriders and many more.