There may be plenty of open-world fantasy games out there, but fans of the genre play them just as rapidly as they release, and they’re always looking toward the next big thing. For many, it’s games like The Witcher 4 and The Elder Scrolls 6 that serve as the holy grails they’re desperate to play, but as the wait for these titles continues, some alternatives to enjoy in the meantime are as important as ever. And for those who have played everything from Kingdom Come to Avowed, it may be time to see what some smaller studios are cooking up. For those willing to branch out, the Steam game Valorborn could be a contender.
Mulitplayer fans will be better off playing Elder Scrolls Online, Valheim, or various other fantasy games, as Valorborn appeals directly to fans of immersive singleplayer games. It offers a healthy mix of grounded, human foes and fantastical enemies, making it comparable to Skyrim in terms of the threats players will face. However, players will also be free to follow a number of paths in Valorborn, deciding exactly what that want their character be with no restrictions whatsoever. It’s that freedom that should allow this Steam game to really shine, and through early access, Valorborn might just prove to be a gift that keeps on giving.
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Valorborn Features at a Glance
- CREATE your character via a detailed creation system allowing for body type customization, numerous hairstyles, and more.
- CUSTOMIZE every member of your party or explore the world as a lone adventurer.
- CRAFT gear, hunt, and build bases to help you survive against the threats that populate the open world.
- SHAPE your own story, as there are no scripted paths, with players instead interacting with factions and NPCs however they please.
- EXPLORE a world with kingdoms and citizens that follow day and night routines and react to danger naturally, with or without the player’s involvement.
- AVOID death at all costs, as permadeath means you can lose party members suddenly if you’re not careful.
Dive into a living medieval fantasy sandbox RPG where the world moves with or without you and factions rise and fall. Become a thief, hunter, or sellsword… and shape your story in a fully enterable world where every building, cave, and road hides opportunity or danger.
Who’s That Character?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Easy (7.5s)Medium (5.0s)Hard (2.5s)Permadeath (2.5s)
When it comes to the things that fans of the genre want, it’s almost easier to point out what Valorborn doesn’t have to offer. Players who prefer solo exploration like in the Zelda series have that option available go them, just as those who enjoy traveling in parties like with Baldur’s Gate 3 will be able to do so. Players can create and customize the appearance and names of each and every party member from scratch, planning out their story from the get-go. Perhaps they want to recreate the likes of Astarian, control the entirety of Critical Role’s Vox Machina party, or come up with fully original characters. This is all possible thanks to the character creator, and it instantly sets the tone for what players will be doing in Valorborn.
Once they have their lone wanderer or party created, they can venture out into the open world, and players will quickly find that there are no guardrails presented to them whatsoever. If you want to be a thief for profit, you can do so. If you prefer to be a bounty hunter and a do-gooder, that is also viable. And if you want to join and manipulate factions to do things your way, that too is on the table. While it’s unclear how many dialogue options there will be, and if the factions will be as deep as they are in Bethesda games, the fact that this content even exists is promising. The world itself should also prove to be incredibly immersive, as not only is “every building, cave, and point of interest” designed to be explored, but the NPCs that populate the world follow a day/night cycle and have daily routines that make them behave a certain way each day.
Any aspiring thieves will be happy to know that Valorborn features a lockpicking system that will surely help them snag some expensive loot.
With immersive towns akin to The Witcher 3’s Novigrad, and no restrictions on the stories players want to tell, there’s good reason to be excited about this project. However, Valorborn doesn’t stop there, as the Laps Games-developed RPG also features a proper building system. In addition to survival mechanics like hunting, gathering, and resource management, players will want to build easily defensible camps to prevent attacks from hostile human factions, giant trolls, and aggressive skeletons. Simple wooden fences and full-on towns are showcased within the trailer, suggesting that this system could be quite deep, so anyone that adores building in games like Valheim may also want to take note of this singleplayer RPG.
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Valorborn’s Early Access Period Should Only Improve the Experience
Valorborn is essentially launching into early access on Steam feature-complete, as early access will instead be used to add to the game’s “fully expandable” open world. Laps Games wants to drop major updates every 3-4 months that add new locations and stories, seeking feedback from the community to shape these content drops. Early access is expected to last “at least one year,” with the developers wanting the game to remain in early access until they feel like it is “fully ready” for a proper release. This slow and steady approach has served early access success stories like Hades 2 very well, and will hopefully prove to be just as beneficial for Valorborn. For those that pick up the game in its early access period, they’ll also be met with a lower price tag, with the full version of the game expected to be more expensive. The current price point for the game is unknown, however.
With players able to actually shape future content by chatting with the developers on the Steam forums and through Discord (and given that the base game looks quite promising already), there’s good reason to consider giving Valorborn a chance. More and more interesting games are being added to Steam all the time, so some players’ Steam wishlists are probably getting to be a bit out of hand. Still, with big games like The Elder Scrolls 6 seemingly still a fair bit away, open-world RPG enjoyers craving something new may want to consider giving this particular title their time.
