I’m writing this little update because Steam Next Fest is well and truly up and running now, and the demo of Vellum is one of those that I’d recommend you check out.
The game is outlined quite well in the post below, but when I wrote it I hadn’t played the game myself. I have since remedied this near-fatal mistake and so I thought I’d share the quickest of updates and add a bit of detail (my thoughts have been bolted on to the bullet points located below).
There’s also a new video that shows a really healthy cunk of gameplay, so you can see a full run of one of the game’s mini-campaigns: The Tortoise & Hare Tome. During our run we encountered a variety of enemy types, unlocked some new spells, and then slapped the boss around a bit.
Check out our gameplay below, then head over to Steam to download the Next Fest demo. Finally, once that’s downloading, kill a few minutes by reading my interview with the Vellum devs, to get some new insights into the promising action-roguelite that everyone is talking about!
Original Article
One game that I think a lot of us are keeping firmly in sight is Vellum. This spell-filled third-person hyphen-heavy action-roguelite is not only getting a demo for Steam Next Fest, it’s also hitting Early Access on Steam on March 28th, 2024.
In Vellum, players will take on the role of a scribe, and either alone or with three friends, they must use magic and general ass-kickery to take on the Torn – the game’s dark presence that must be defeated.
Players will use “the power of the font” to map out their own story, and we’re promised “over 300 Pages of Power” to customise and individualise your experience. The Vellum gameplay loop will be focused on short, accessible runs, with co-op for up to four players.
There’s a trailer, which you can see directly below, and after that there’s the bullet points from the presser, which explain things better than I would. Plus, if you keep scrolling down, there’s some hot-off-the-press news about the plan to bring Vellum to consoles.
Vellum game details (my notes are italicised)
- Swift Tales: Approachable, under 30-minute roguelike runs crafted for quick gameplay sessions for 1-4 players. These mini-campaigns play out over multiple levels, with escalating difficulty. They’re quick and snappy, which is ideal for busy people like me who struggle to book in extended gameplay sessions.
- Scrolls of Power: Tear through enemies with over 300 powers for you and your team. All powers can be build-makers, no filler. This is one aspect that we didn’t get to see too much of as our time was limited. We did try and experiment a little, and there are really obvious ways that you can synergise as a team.
- Torn Pages: With over 100 upgrades and enemy effects to choose from, only you will decide how your foes evolve throughout the course of battle. My favourite part of the game; players must vote on how they improve their enemies. Again, this gives you a chance to synergise what you’re doing.
- The Font: Invoke unique Tome-themed powers as a team through the mystical Ink Font in combination with your individual builds. I had arrows firing from the Font and landing on my enemies from above – very cool.
- Fabled Scribes: Take ink to paper and infuse your Scribe with colorful ultimate and signature powers, creating over 70 loadout combinations. Cosmetic items can be purchased between runs. I’ve already got a new head.
- Brutal Bindings: Increase your challenge by affixing bindings to your Tomes. Greater challenge brings greater rewards! Bring it on!
- Reference Section: All the high-quality literature puns you could ever desire. Keep on scrolling for more launch plans!
Vellum console release plans
PC is currently the only platform that Vellum is confirmed for, however, one of the devs jumped onto a Reddit thread about the original incarnation of this news piece. In that thread the following update was shared:
We’re definitely interested in bringing it to consoles in the future (probably after Early Access) – but we’re releasing on Steam only for now as we can update much faster there based on community feedback. Couch-coop is unlikely, but there would definitely be cross-platform coop.
There you have it, direct from the devs: the plan is to launch the game on PC and then once it’s live, the studio – Alvios Games – will look to bring Vellum to consoles, with online cross-platform play a solid part of the plan.
Before we close the book on this news piece, there’s more on this particular subject near the end of my interview with the developers.
