Styx 2: Shards of Darkness (PC/PS4/XB1)

[6souls]

Coming in 2016

Spoiler: show

Following its positive reception from press and players, Focus Home Interactive and Cyanide Studios wanted to delve deeper into the world of Styx with more ambition! The centuries-old goblin assassin Styx returns in a new stealth game, Styx: Shards of Darkness, with a bigger budget, bigger ideas, and a new engine: Unreal 4. Revealed in the first official screenshot of the game, check out a nimble, more refined Styx, built from the ground-up. Master of Shadows was a valiant exploration into the world of the green goblin thief, but in Shards of Darkness, delve deeper into a more complex narrative and fully realized world.

Having been in development for 6 months, discover in this first screenshot the new Styx, putting his skills to good use within the heart of Körangar, one of the many extensive mission areas to explore and creep around in Styx: Shards of Darkness.

Following the fall of Akenash tower, an extraordinary matter has forced Styx out of hiding to infiltrate Körangar, the city of the Dark Elves. Supposedly impregnable, a diplomatic summit offers Styx a chance at slipping in unnoticed, as he learns that the event is nothing but a mere façade… Moreover, the Elves have joined forces with the Dwarves, and the only thing both races have in common is a mutual hatred of the Goblins…

Embark upon a stealthy adventure with new enemies, new environments, and a plethora of new mechanics aimed at refining the abilities and movement of Styx; grappling around corners, climbing ropes, and using his trusty knife as a zip-wire. Shards of Darkness aims to offer unparalleled freedom of movement, along with refined stealth and assassination mechanics, expanding and improving on the strengths of Styx: Master of Shadows.

http://www.styx-thegame.com/en/news/...k-in-2016.html

[6souls]

I can't wait for this to become a free PS+ title.

[6souls]

Styx: Shards of Darkness, the stealth-focused sequel to Cyanide Studios' surprise success story Master of Shadows, comes to consoles and PC in 2016. Styx creeps back in a new adventure packed with bigger production values, a load of new features and a new engine: Unreal Engine 4. Today's spirited E3 Trailer unveils more about the quest awaiting our green-skinned anti-hero in Styx: Shards of Darkness.

While Styx is in business in Thoben, the City of Thieves, he makes a deal with a mysterious human officer, Helledryn. As Styx, you must steal the highly-coveted ambassador's scepter… unfortunately, other, more nefarious parties are interested in such a valuable prize. Of course, the reward is more than worth the risk, as the officer is promising a great deal of magical amber; the resource Styx desperately needs to fuel his power.

Sneak your way to your objectives, evading dwarves, elves, and all manner of other races, all the while hunting down the scepter. Creatively utilize all of Styx's tools: assassination, amber powers, talents and skills, equipment, and crafting!

Each race excels at a different thing. The Dark Elves, for instance, are experts at goblin hunting while the Dwarves have a supernatural sense of smell, enabling them to track you down (even when invisible!). Learn their strengths and weaknesses if you want to survive long enough to snatch the scepter.

[6souls]

Delayed to Early 2017

Originally expected for the end of this year, Styx: Shards of Darkness will finally arrive in Q1 2017 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. Patrick Pligersdorffer, CEO at Cyanide Studio, explains, "With this new episode of Styx we updated our engine from Unreal 3 to Unreal 4. This update has brought so much to the Styx series, from graphical enhancements to new gameplay mechanics and features. The engine transition has required some time for our team to adapt to. We're dedicated to providing the best stealth experience possible for players, so in agreement with our publisher Focus, we are delaying the game until the first quarter of 2017."

Developed with Unreal 4, Styx: Shards of Darkness, creeps into an ambitious new sequel with a host of new features! Today, we are unveiling the very first gameplay video of Styx: Shards of Darkness, where you can watch our goblin hero sneak, climb, swing, and kill through the Port of Korrangar on a mission offered by his latest shadowy client. This is the perfect opportunity to discover some of the new features and gameplay mechanics added to Styx's latest adventure.

In search for the Ambassador's magical scepter stolen by a shape-shifting elf, Styx must infiltrate a diplomatic summit through clever use of the environment and new crafting abilities. A new feature, crafting, enables Styx to use more abilities, such as throwing a cocoon large distances enabling him to teleport into a newly hatched clone of himself.

The series' lauded verticality returns, with many choices of routes and tactics to take throughout the level. Stick to the shadows on the ground, avoiding patrols, or turn to the walls and ceilings to sneak past or attack from above. Kill, or subvert; the choice is yours - just don't be seen!

The leveling system returns expanded and enhanced. Using the magical power of Amber, Styx is able to turn himself invisible for a short period of time, and if you choose to upgrade this skill, it can even turn victims invisible while you go in for kills. By leveling up the assassination tree, Styx gets access to improved aerial kills, as well as the ability to kill an enemy from a barrel or box and stuff the body inside in a single, swift, move.

Styx's second adventure builds upon the foundations laid Akenash, with more fluid movement and climbing abilities, a richer story told with cinematics including an enhanced bestiary, and side-missions to complete for the sneakiest of goblins.

[6souls]

Steam Pre-Orders open at 1 PM ET, Coming March 2017

Styx's second adventure builds upon the foundations laid in the tower of Akenash, with more fluid movement and climbing abilities, a richer story told with cinematics including an enhanced bestiary, side-missions to complete, as well as new and improved sneaking and assassination skills.

The titular goblin's aerial abilities have been improved and expanded. Swing from ropes and attack from above with a slew of new tools such as the crossbow, with a range of different bolts such as the non-lethal poison bolt. The crossbow can be used not only to kill or disable enemies, but also to detach environmental objects crushing those below.

Cloning is one of Styx's signature abilities, and they've received a major upgrade. One of the new upgradeable abilities is the cocoon, which is a craftable item that you can throw to spawn your clone at a distance. Another new ability is called Rebirth, which teleports Styx to his clone's location, killing it in the process. It can be used in a number of ways - to travel to spots that are difficult to reach, or to get out of danger when things get dicey.

You will need to use all of Styx's tools and abilities to get to your goals. If you choose to specialize in crafting, Styx gets access to another craftable contraption, the Acid Trap, which dissolves enemy corpses after they step on them. This is particularly useful against enemies whose armor cannot be penetrated by Styx's dagger, and enemies whose body is too heavy to carry.

http://www.styx-game.com/shop

[6souls]

March 14, 2017

Cyanide Studio, developers of Styx: Shards of Darkness, today share in video how they envisioned and gave life, personality and soul to the main lead of their game, the witty goblin Styx.

More ambitious than its predecessor in every department, Shards of Darkness takes our nimble thief out of the shadows of Akenash and into a bigger world with more skills, a greater bestiary, and more intricate, vertical level design. Shards of Darkness benefits from a larger production and better realization, with a story supplemented by cutscenes in which Styx expresses his trademark wit and snark - get a sneak peek at his sarcastic, fourth wall breaking humor in this video!

You’ll learn why Styx is not the kind of character you're used to playing, and how his wits outweigh his weaknesses. As a goblin, direct confrontation is the best way to kick the bucket, so you’ll have to study your environment to find the best approach and tools to overcome your enemies.

Discover how this “ugly little green character” adapts to your playstyle, as “you can be the guy that goes in and out through the level getting every item, or the sneaky one who never raises any alarm.” Take advantage of Styx’s acrobatic prowess and rain down from above, or use your tools and abilities to totally avoid detection – it’s entirely up to you. No matter how you play, he’ll be there for the entire journey, criticizing not only the player, but his creators too!

[6souls]

Styx: Shards of Darkness, the Stealth game from Cyanide Studio, releases Tuesday March 14 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC! Players will take control of agile goblin thief Styx, as he assassinates, sneaks and snarks his way across an immense, dark fantasy world filled with deadly secrets and enemies. Watch the game’s lively launch trailer for a taste of Styx’s abilities, quick acrobatics, and even quicker tongue!

Styx’s latest adventure sees him making an unexpected deal with a mysterious human officer named Helledryn – and she’s got a job with far higher stakes than anything he’s tackled before. He must steal an ambassador’s scepter, which has attracted the interest of several nefarious (and goblin-hating) parties. As a reward for completing this dangerous mission, he’s promised a mountain of magical Amber, the source of Styx’s power and a substance he’s hopelessly addicted to. Of course, it’s not long until our green-skinned thief is stuck in a web of intrigue and assassination!

Master the verticality and non-linearity of Styx: Shards of Darkness’ open environments with an array of tools and abilities. Struggling to bypass a heavily guarded entrance? Scout the path ahead using your amber vision, distract the guards with a controllable goblin clone, then emerge from temporary invisibility to stab them in the back! Styx will always have a wide range of dastardly creative methods for completing his objectives – and if you join a friend in the drop-in coop, you’ll discover even more ways to unleash chaos!

[6souls]