There’s no denying that Pokemon is quite literally everywhere, and it has been since shortly after it was first revealed in the VHS advertisements it sent out back in 1995. Since then, the idea of centering a video game around collecting strange creatures has become immensely popular, to the point that Pokemon is far from the only franchise doing it anymore. In fact, if you take a short little jaunt on Steam these days, you’re likely to find more creature collectors than you can count—though that’s not necessarily a bad thing for players like me who thoroughly enjoy the genre. The trick, though, is finding a good one, which has become increasingly harder with the advent of AI. Even so, my latest journey through Steam’s seemingly endless library of indie games had me stumble upon a game called Wilderings: The Lost Spring, which takes Pokemon‘s familiar formula and gives it a satisfying roguelike twist.
I recently spent just under an hour with Wilderings: The Lost Spring‘s free demo on Steam, and I have to say, this gorgeous little creature collector is already showing a lot of promise ahead of its Early Access release. The game follows a young woman named Abi as she ventures into a world devastated by a mysterious corruption, with the ultimate goal of restoring its once-thriving ecosystems. Along the way, she befriends creatures known as Hantu, which are basically Pokemon that can be used both in combat and exploration. Where Wilderings differs from traditional creature collectors, though, is in its roguelike structure, which sees Abi embarking on repeated expeditions into the corrupted world, battling enemies, collecting upgrades, and gradually restoring the land to bring even more Hantu back. Between runs, she can return to her floating skyship to strengthen her companions, unlock permanent upgrades, and prepare for whatever comes next.
Wilderings Is a Gorgeous, Addictive Take on Pokemon’s Established Formula
Check Out Wilderings: The Lost Spring’s Free Demo on Steam
Now, whenever someone claims a game is similar to Pokemon, it’s easy to assume that it’s all about collecting creatures and nothing more. After all, that is precisely the main draw of Pokemon, and it always has been—gotta catch ’em all, am I right? However, Pokemon has nonetheless been about more than merely catching and collecting monsters, and has instead emphasized befriending them and using them in battle, as well as discovering the world itself. Wilderings: The Lost Spring adopts that same philosophy, only this time, its “trainer,” if you will, can actually participate in combat and exploring the world is less about discovery and more about restoration and harmony.
Scattered throughout Wilderings‘ dying world are Springs that need to be restored, or “rewilded.” Upon attempting to rewild a Spring, though, enemies called Vlugkin begin attacking Abi, and even before she has the help of some friendly Hantu, she can retaliate with her own set of combat maneuvers. They’re fairly simple, mind you, and largely boil down to a light attack, a heavy attack, and a ranged attack, but she can learn more combat skills as she progresses—more on that later. Once a Spring has been restored, the corrupted area around it comes to life with fresh, green vegetation, and it looks incredible, but the primary appeal of restoring a Spring is actually in the potential rewards it offers.
Like any good roguelike, Wilderings rewards players for restoring a Spring by offering them a selection of cards that can either temporarily buff Abi’s own combat abilities, grant passive buffs to her stats, or, and this is the best part, give her a new Hantu companion. Of course, only one of these cards can be selected each time, but selecting a Hantu will permanently unlock that Hantu for players to choose as their starting Hantu ahead of their next run. At the start, you can only have one Hantu with you, but there are enough slots that players can actually have four Hantu following them around as they explore the corrupted land of Wilderings.
Like Pokemon, Hantu can assist in combat, whether that be by attacking enemies or supporting Abi with healing on command. Between runs, they can even be upgraded by feeding them the appropriate fruit, and they can be temporarily upgraded mid-run as well, should players get lucky enough to find a card that buffs their Hantu in some way. Furthermore, players can find any Hantu they’ve collected wandering around their base between runs, giving a more immersive benefit to finding them by making them feel like actual companions rather than glorified weapons stuffed inside a Poke Ball or PC box.
Back at their base, players can also upgrade Abi through a fairly sizable skill tree, as well as Hantu they’ve collected via their own skill tree. The base itself can also be enhanced by unlocking various upgrades that can improve Abi’s subsequent runs, and the upgrades even add a little extra visual flair to the base. There is also an encyclopedia of all the different Vlugkin players have encountered during runs, with information about their strengths and weaknesses, as well as information on the various Hantu they’ve collected and where they can be found. Based on what I saw during the demo, there are several different biomes in Wilderings‘ world, each with their own unique Hantu to find, giving players plenty of potential discoveries ahead of them.
Wilderings Still Needs Some Polish, But I’m Already Looking Forward to More
As much as I enjoyed my time with Wilderings: The Lost Spring, I do think it needs a bit more polish before it’s ready for Steam Early Access, particularly when it comes to performance. During my time with the demo, I encountered some pretty noticeable lag that made combat more frustrating than it needed to be, and at one point, the game actually lagged so badly that I ended up dying because I couldn’t properly react to what was happening. That’s especially unfortunate for a roguelike, where a single mistake can mean losing an entire run, and it certainly made me a little more cautious about how much I was willing to push forward. Still, considering the game hasn’t even launched in Early Access yet, I’m willing to give it some grace, and I’m hoping those performance issues will be ironed out as development continues.
Even with those issues, though, I genuinely had a difficult time putting Wilderings down, and I think that says quite a bit about what it already has going for it. Its gorgeous visuals initially caught my attention, but it was the satisfying gameplay loop of restoring Springs, collecting Hantu, and gradually growing stronger between runs that ultimately kept me playing. I especially love how the Hantu feel like an actual part of the world, rather than just another collection of creatures to throw at enemies, and I’m curious to see just how much variety the full game will offer. There’s still some work to be done, no doubt, but Wilderings: The Lost Spring has already given me more than enough reasons to look forward to getting my hands on it again when it launches in Early Access.
Wilderings: The Lost Spring is still without a Steam Early Access release date, but it’s free playable demo is available now.
