At PAX East 2020, right before the end of the before times, we were wrapping up the final day of the expo when fellow HG writer James Cunningham came up to me, telling me that one of the representatives from Akupara Games – someone from marketing, in this case – wanted me to drop by so that I could meet them. Not to necessarily check out any demos, just that they wanted to meet me, as I had been supporting a lot of the games that they’ve published through the likes of Screenshot Saturday. While I was a bit embarrassed, as I hadn’t given them any major attention over those four days, it felt like an honor, the fact that anyone from any notable game publisher personally wanted to meet me, as I always considered myself to be relatively low on the gaming journalism totem pole. So it was quite the memorable moment.
I bring this up because it amused me when a reversal of sorts happened at this year’s PAX East. With just over a week before the expo, I had begun the ritual of being more proactive in contacting folks who would be at the show, asking about any plans. This included Akupara Games, and when I arrived for my appointment, the folks at the booth this time around asked me why I decided to ask to meet up with them now, as if they were completely unaware they they had spent the past few years publishing some truly impressive games such as The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark, Behind the Frame: The Finest Scenery, the recent Rain World: Downpour expansion, and GRIME, to name a few, or were shocked that anyone would be interested in their lineup of upcoming games, which included two then-unannounced titles. It brought a little smirk to my face, and I felt I was in for a good time as I sat down to check out their upcoming games.
Admittedly, things didn’t get off to the greatest start with the first new game, Behind the Frame: The Finest Scenery VR. To be fair, maybe it’s just the fact that I’m typically one to get excited over VR versions of existing games, not to mention the fact that that demo had some technical issues, and there’s the fact that trying to focus on a VR game while being surrounded by an entire expo hall filled with noise is a tough feat. From what I did play, while the game felt fine, it didn’t feel like the narrative painting adventure was enhanced too much by VR. Especially when it came to the Ghibli-inspired visuals, which included still-2D cutscenes playing out on a flat screen. Still, with a little polish, the final product could still make for an enjoyable VR game, especially for newcomers.
Things picked up immensely with the second new game, though, that being the narrative sci-fi adventure Universe For Sale. The current demo for it is light on any huge amount of gameplay, simply focusing on a short prologue with some point-and-click actions and dialogue choices, but what was there suggested an amazing world that should hopefully pay host to one epic story. Set in a futuristic colony on Jupiter, the demo saw us playing as the Master, a mysterious cultist who had the majority of their flesh removed, leaving them as this bizarre skeletal creature with a particularly impressive design, alongside some other unique space-dwellers.
The experience took us into a tea shop, where after some dialogue that provided a little world-building that lets folks know about Jupiter’s current issue, the Master orders some tea and waits to meet the friend Lila. When Lila arrives, we get to see what her profession is: selling universes. As in, small, custom universes that they can create out of other objects, as showcased when using the master’s tea to whip up the model for a new universe. According to Lila, they more or less already exist, she just gives them form, and we see how the material and shape of the universe determines its contents, as showcased by an image based on one of the three teas we ordered. It was a brief glimpse of what’s to come, but it was also a unique hook, and we can’t wait to see what other universes can be made when Universe For Sale comes out later this year.
Moving over to Akupara’s previously-announced upcoming games, it seemed like a happy coincidence that both of them were turn-based roguelike strategy games that revolved around gambling in one way or another. The first was Zoeti, which uniquely uses winning poker hands as a form of combat. So instead of building a deck with a additional cards, you have the standard 52-card deck available. Instead, what you build is a proper set of offensive and defensive moves, with each one capable of being assigned to a certain hand, like a pair for a standard attack, three of a kind for a rapid succession of blows or a flush for something like a more powerful blast.
It makes for simple-yet-clever and effective combat, especially as you try to decide not just what hands to dish out each turn, but what cards to keep, ensuring that your next turn can be just as powerful. In between, you pick up new skills, encounter random events, find potential boosts and more. Between each run, you also get to visit the town that your Star-Soul hero is protecting, where you get to meditate and upgrade skills, shop for items and chat with other characters. The story and world of Zoeti seemed particularly well-done and worth getting invested in, boosted by a terrific art style and a charming cast. So between its clever poker combat and adorable universe, Zoeti could easily be a roguelike hit when it arrives on April 20 for the PC.
Of course, had you paid attention to our recent feature onthe Top Ten Games of PAX East 2023,you’d know that Zoeti wasn’t the best gambling-based roguelike at Akupara’s booth, though it was a strong contender. No, that honor goes to Astrea: Six-Sided Oracles, which swaps out the playing cards for dice. Playing as one of the six titular oracles, each with their own unique skills and sets of dice, you set out to try and save the land from a plague of corruption. Doing so means purifying corrupted enemies along the path, and the amount of purification you can deliver each turn is determined via a set of dice rolls. The twist is that the dice can corrupt you at times as well, sometimes at the cost of purifying an enemy…and yet being corrupted might give you a slight advantage.
Astrea’s greatest strength so far clearly lies in how perfectly it plays with a risk/reward system. You can use purifying dice not just on enemies, but also on yourself in order to get rid of corruption taken via damage, but the more corrupted you become, the more you trigger increasingly-powerful skills that can give you the edge. The most powerful lies almost right before the bar is filled, and should it be filled, then you lose a heart, and losing all three means game over. So you have to properly manage purification between your enemies and yourself, making for great strategy as you calculate the odds on your next dice rolls as well. Of course, you can always add more dice and build your deck as you collect them across your run, which come in three levels: Safe, Balanced and Risky, adding another level of temptation, especially with how far the latter can corrupt you/over-corrupt enemies and make them stronger. To help out, you can also come across Sentinels during your run, which provide additional skills like rerolls alongside your oracle…assuming they survive each battle, though.
Top off the unique and clever dice-based gameplay with a gorgeous art style that nails this sort of interstellar fantasy feel, and Astrea: Six-Sided Oracles could easily be a roguelike smash when it comes out later this year. For now, it’s a key player in a promising lineup of upcoming games for Akupara, which also includes 2024’sSorry We’re ClosedandCryptmaster. So yes, all of this is why I contacted Akupara to see about meeting them at PAX East. Seriously, it isn’t a mystery as to why anyone would be excited to check out the wares from this publisher and the talented developers behind them…
