Annapurna Interactive and Giant Squid showed off gameplay for The Pathless, a new adventure game from the makers of Abzû.
Creative director Matt Nava walked through a long demo of this beautiful game, which debuts later this year on the PlayStation 5, Apple Arcade, and the PC via the Epic Game Store.
Sony showed the demo during its State of Play online event today. I liked the art style, which looked like a beautiful 3D anime show.
While Abzû is an underwater adventure, The Pathless takes place in a vast forest, where an archer and an eagle team up on a journey. The player takes on the role of the Hunter, who travels to a mystical island to dispel a curse of darkness that grips the world.
The Hunter must forge a connection with an eagle companion to hunt corrupted spirits. Shooting arrows at objects is a way to interact with the world, even if you aren’t hunting something at the time. You can shoot an arrow at various diamonds in the landscape to open doors or find secrets.
Nava said it’s about finding your way forward in a world with no map. You can use your “spirit vision” to see deeper into the landscape. You take on giant cursed spirits, who bring darkness to the world, to restore the light. The gameplay shows you can hide in stealth in a fiery environment as a spirit searches for you and tries to burn you. As you chase the beast, you can shoot arrows at it while on the run in a test of skill. The gameplay looks pretty accessible. And the eagle looks like it will give you good perspectives, ways to escape, and gameplay variety.
This one is more cartoony than realistic, but I love the look.
