Every so often, I’ll come across a post in my X feed with some random indie game I’ve never seen before, and if it looks compelling enough and has a demo, I’ll give it a try—and occasionally, that demo will surprise me. My latest quest, pun absolutely intended, led me to A Short Quest, an upcoming action RPG by two ex-AAA developers under the name Silent Moon, and I have to say, after 30 minutes spent with its Steam public combat playtest, I’m practically salivating. Unashamedly inspired by RPGs like The Elder Scrolls and Gothic, A Short Quest looks like something that fans of those franchises should be keeping an eye on, because I know that I am.
I’ll emphasize again that the demo currently available for A Short Quest is actually just a playtest that allows players to get a feel for its combat. However, even that, as brief as it was, turned out to be one of those appetizers that really makes you want to try the whole menu. Plus, the way A Short Quest‘s combat is designed, you can actually play through the combat playtest multiple times to try out different builds ranging from heavy and light melee weapons to ranged weapons, and a variety of magic spells to boot. Basically, I can’t wait to try out a legitimate demo of this game, because the combat alone is already a blast, albeit from the past, and every promise A Short Quest is making looks like something I could really sink my teeth into for far more than half an hour on Steam.
A Short Quest’s Combat Playtest Is Charming in the Best Way
My first run through the playtest saw me trying out its melee combat, which is about as classic as it gets. Every weapon feels heavy, slow, and just a little clunky, which is exactly what I would expect from a game so openly inspired by old-school RPGs. I know some players are going to hate that, especially if they go in expecting something modern and polished, but I honestly loved how unapologetically dated it felt.
Guess the games from the emojis.
Guess the games from the emojis.
Easy (120s)Medium (90s)Hard (60s)
The playtest takes place inside a small arena where each round begins after ringing a bell in the center. Enemies then start pouring in, with every round becoming increasingly difficult until the game eventually throws some truly ridiculous things at you. One of those things is a deceptively overpowered goat that will send you flying across the arena if it manages to ram into you—and yes, it did manage to get the best of me.
Every weapon feels heavy, slow, and just a little clunky, which is exactly what I would expect from a game so openly inspired by old-school RPGs.
There is a fair bit of humor and exaggeration throughout the playtest, but never so much that it turns the whole thing into a joke. It simply keeps the experience lighthearted enough that getting demolished by a goat or watching an enemy tumble across the arena means the combat never becomes too frustrating. Even when I died and was humiliated that I had to start all over again, I still usually found myself cracking a smile before immediately ringing that bell one more time.
After each round, I could spend the gold I had earned on a stronger weapon, try something completely different, or buy potatoes that restored my health when eaten. I eventually settled on dual daggers because I almost always prefer a faster playstyle, especially when the alternative is swinging some enormous weapon that takes three business days to reach its target. The daggers let me dart in, land a few quick hits, and then get out before whatever I was fighting could flatten me.
Of course, using the daggers also meant I needed plenty of stamina, since attacking and dodging both drained it quickly. Dodging is especially important here because these enemies hit ridiculously hard, and standing still for even a second too long can end a run before you know what happened. Something about combining quick dodges with first-person melee and magic even reminded me a little of Avowed, although A Short Quest is obviously going for something much rougher and more old-fashioned.
A Short Quest‘s magic-based combat ended up being one of my favorite parts of the playtest. Arcane Daggers summoned a group of spectral blades that launched toward enemies, while a necromancy rune allowed me to resurrect an enemy I had already killed and make it fight for me. Granted, my newly resurrected friends rarely lasted very long, but watching them turn around and start attacking their former allies never stopped being entertaining.
I also need to mention the dog, because you can pet him, and that information is obviously essential. He sits near a bowl of food that I stole and ate because I needed health, after which I immediately pet him and watched little hearts appear over his head. Apparently, the dog forgave me for stealing his dinner, which only further confirms that he is, in fact, a very good boy.
Beyond the combat and humor, I really loved the atmosphere Silent Moon managed to create in such a small space. The wind blows through the trees outside, birds call in the distance, and torches crackle inside the stone hall, while the lack of constant music makes every little sound much easier to notice. Even the small amount of voice acting in the playtest was convincing enough to make me curious about the characters I will eventually meet in the full game.
Apparently, the dog forgave me for stealing his dinner, which only further confirms that he is, in fact, a very good boy.
Near the arena is a gate marked “Staff Only,” and I spent far too much time trying to see what was waiting behind it. The vibrant world outside looks so inviting, especially after seeing more of it in the game’s trailers and footage, but the playtest refuses to let players leave the arena. By the time I finished, I wanted someone from Silent Moon to open that gate and let me wander off more than I wanted to attempt another round.
A Short Quest Is Promising Much More Than One Small Arena
The combat playtest is obviously only a tiny piece of what A Short Quest is eventually supposed to become. The full game takes place in a crumbling kingdom where the king has gone mad, goblin raids have become common, and the player is tasked with delivering an important note to the king. It’s a classic RPG setup, but it’s nonetheless something that I can’t wait to see play out.
A Short Quest’s Key Features
- Handcrafted forests, caves, crypts, and swamps
- Fully voiced characters and quests
- Melee weapons, ranged weapons, magic, and tools
- Hidden chests and secrets above and below ground
- An alliance system involving friendly fire and enemy factions
- Necromancy spells that turn fallen enemies into allies
- Asymmetrical skill trees for melee and magic
- A dog companion that can be equipped for combat
- Taverns where players can apparently stop and have a beer
The alliance system is probably what interests me most after experiencing the necromancy rune in the playtest. Silent Moon says players will be able to pit enemies against one another using allegiances, friendly fire, and spells, which sounds like the perfect excuse to cause problems and then let everyone else sort them out. I already had fun turning one dead enemy against the others, so expanding that idea across the entire game could make encounters far more emergent and unpredictable. I also failed to mention that the enemies can, in fact, kill each other, either accidentally or on purpose, depending on what they are.
Exploration is the other big reason I am so eager to see more of A Short Quest. The developers are promising forests, caves, crypts, swamps, secrets in the treetops, and treasure hidden deep beneath the surface, which all sounds far more exciting after being trapped inside one arena. I mean, the game wouldn’t even let me walk through one gate, and now it expects me to patiently wait before exploring an entire broken kingdom.
The full game takes place in a crumbling kingdom where the king has gone mad, goblin raids have become common, and the player is tasked with delivering an important note to the king.
The full game will also allow players to gain experience and invest in asymmetrical skill trees for melee and magic. In the playtest, leveling up simply gave me a point that could improve what I was already using, and once that point was spent, I could not move it somewhere else. Since the whole purpose of this test is to gather feedback on combat, I assume the system will continue changing before release.
Of course, I’m not expecting A Short Quest to suddenly become another massive RPG like Skyrim, and I don’t think Silent Moon is trying to make one. This is a two-person team building a deliberately smaller RPG around handcrafted environments, difficult combat, strange tools, and the sort of charming jank most major studios abandoned years ago. Honestly, the fact that it’s called A Short Quest makes the promise of a focused fantasy adventure even more appealing to me.
Thirty minutes was nowhere near enough time to know how all these ideas will come together, but it was enough to leave me wanting more. The combat already has plenty of personality, the atmosphere immediately made me want to explore, and everything promised for the full game sounds even better than what the playtest currently allows. Now, I just need Silent Moon to unlock that gate and let me see what else A Short Quest has waiting beyond it.
A Short Quest is currently available to Wishlist on Steam.
