The Dark Messiah of Might and Magic-inspired RPG now has a gameplay preview, but the public claims that it isn’t real footage.

This fantasy hack-and-slash game was unveiled last year with a flashy announcement trailer that drew skepticism. It combined in-game assets with pre-rendered animations, and the developer even admitted that certain camera angles and animations were crafted solely for the trailer’s visual flair.

Pre-rendered or partially pre-rendered trailers are common, especially in the early phases of game marketing. Since then, developer Push On has released a new teaser trailer, claiming to show actual gameplay footage.

Sadly, it strongly resembles the announcement trailer. In the new video, the player rushes toward a fortress embedded in a cliffside, taking cover behind a shield that arrows pierce through. As the player closes in, a massive crate launches him skyward, and he lands on a cart below. Then, midair, he grabs a flying barrel and smashes it into an enemy before dueling some goblins in sword combat.

The combat animations and transitions are striking and incredibly smooth. This very fluidity is what triggered the debate in the YouTube comments. Some say it would be better to admit that this isn’t true gameplay but merely an in-engine sequence. While it might be possible to replicate this in-game, it was clearly pre-scripted. No one has done this with a controller, but it looks great. Others argue the opposite, claiming the animations are typical of actual gameplay, with the usual cuts and slides seen when transitioning between moves.

Grabbing a barrel in midair raises questions about the authenticity of it all. However, the actual combat sequences seem to be in real-time. There are many canned animations, like the blade clash between the player and the goblin, but the player’s slashes, stabs, fluid enemy transitions, and multiple kicks to the goblin’s body appear dynamic.

The abilities on display are also intriguing. There might be an invisible archer helper you can signal to pepper enemies with arrows, creating the feel of orchestrated team combat. The shield, meanwhile, shatters and warps under fire.

Although Alkahest has no release date yet, it already has a publisher in HypeTrain Digital (Voidtrain, Breathedge, Pathologic 3). According to the Steam page, the game will feature an alchemy system to craft potions and other concoctions.

Source: PCGamer, Steam