MKAU was recently invited to a hands-off exclusive preview of Ascendant Studios LLC’s first title, Immortals of Aveum, which is being published by EA. Needless to say, the presentation was amazing, and it’s a game I’m looking forward to getting fully immersed in when we finally get a chance to get out hands on it.

You know this title is in good hands when the CEO of the company is Bret Robbins, known for his work in multiple Call of Duty titles and Dead Space, with even more games in his portfolio. We also got to hear from Kevin Boyle, the Executive Producer for the studio, with Dave Bogan, the Senior Art Director, and Julia Lichtbalu, the Associate Art Director, giving us a more in-depth feel to the game.

Taking place on the world of Aveum, you play as Jak, a Battlemage who can cast powerful spells against the hordes of enemies set to destroy a beautifully crafted world, full of lush forests, snow-covered peaks, lava-lit caves, and so much more. The developers talked about how deeply immersive the story is, with Jak being welcomed into an order known as the Immortals, led by General Kirkan, voiced by none other than Gina Torres (from Firefly and Suits).

It was awesome seeing a familiar face in the title. Although it’s an FPS, the developers mentioned that they wanted something that had never been done before, but also something that feels familiar to the player, and from the gameplay, we were able to watch, it feels like Call of Duty, only, minus the guns and marine presence, and carrying more of a medieval magic feel, or as they describe it, Magitech. It’s looking to take the FPS genre by magical storm, focusing heavily on what most games use as a secondary ability and thrusting it into the limelight.

We were treated to some brief gameplay, which we were told didn’t represent the final product, but regardless of its current state, it looks absolutely incredible. It has a bit of an arcane-fantasy vibe that looked real enough that you’d almost think it belonged in the real world.

The character models were highly detailed, and from what we could see in the video, no stone was left unturned when the art team unleashed their own magic – magic that created some truly impressive and brilliant spell effects.

Gameplay looks like it flows smoothly, with the same quick action we’ve come to expect from first-person shooters, using a vast arsenal of magical spells to attack and control your enemies, or even to defend yourself and your allies.

With 3 forms of magic to choose from, you’ll be able to unlock over 25 spells and 80 different talents, which you can either specialise in, or create some truly devastating combinations, and you can further bolster these with Totems and Sigils unlocked through your journey It’s not all about combat though. It looks like players will also need to get their thinking caps on, as there will be plenty of puzzles to solve while taking on bosses and completing the variety of side quests.

While Immortals of Aveum is set to be a single-player narrative, I’m excited to see where they might take it, and hopefully, it’s as successful as I’m feeling it will be. I’m also hopeful that this might become a series, and perhaps we’ll see some multiplayer modes in the future, but only time will tell.

Written by: Hayden Nelson