Tactics combat is so back, and lovers of the isometric plane have been spoiled with excellent grid-based battling over the last couple of years. It's only about to get better, too: Othercide developer Lightbulb Crew is cooking up its own unique spin with Ex Sanguis, a dynamic roguelite tactical RPG where you'll bleed the world back to life.
Ex Sanguis takes Othercide's striking visuals and dials it up a notch—battles happen across black and white battlefields, painted with smatterings of red as you slash away at enemies with blood-infused powers as the STILLAE, elite warriors fighting attempting to save a dying world from the forces of Stasis and restore the flow of life.
Tackle the game's procedural levels however you please—maybe you're the type of person who loves to beeline straight for the boss for a little more challenge, or perhaps you're a more careful strategist who takes their time gathering resources and mopping up small fry to increase your chances of victory. Whichever way you play, your experience is yours to decide.
There are all kinds of ways to mix up your gameplay in Ex Sanguis thanks to its unique timeline effects that can completely rearrange the flow of a battle. Speed things up, slow things down, or—if you want to get particularly clever—straight-up swap time positions around to mold the turn order to perfectly fit your game plan.
Each encounter is also littered with environmental hazards to weave into your combat strategy. Hide behind them to disrupt your foe's line of sight, or give 'em a quick stab and watch them explode. Or perhaps you'd like to knock them flying across tiles into them instead.
And if you don't feel like using your environment, you can go all-in on positioning with forced facing and flanking bonuses that can quickly turn the tides in an encounter if you can make full use out of Ex Sanguis' toolbox. Set the board just right and you can trigger the STILLAE's incredible finishing move and reap your rewards.
All of this dynamic tactical strategising is weaved in with roguelite elements that keep each encounter feeling fresh. Random skill drops will force you to switch up the way you're thinking and playing—combining them with your current loadout to create dynamic new synergies will go a long way to helping you secure victory. And even if you end up facing loss, fear not: Ex Sanguis has a little bit of meta-progression that means not every mission failed puts you back to square one.
If you're itching to run and slash your way across grid-based battlegrounds, this is certainly one you should be watching. Or hell, you might even be able to play it: you can currently sign up to join the Ex Sanguis playtest, getting a first-hand taste of tactical bloodbaths galore.
You can support Ex Sanguis by wishlisting it now on Steam, which is also where you can enroll to the game's playtest.
