Epic combat, fantastical spells, nail-bitingly tense stealth: these are all fine, I guess, but I want to hear about your RPG's fishing minigame. Thankfully, in the upcoming, solo-developed action RPG Mortal Crux, you get all of the above and then some. We got a peek at fishing and some of Mortal Crux's other new features in a fresh trailer at the PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted showcase.
Mortal Crux is a weird gem of a game I've been looking forward to for almost two years now, ever since its Resident Evil-style fixed camera interiors and Soulslike take on overhead, hack 'n slash combat first caught my eye. Solo developer Jesse Walker has only shown more and more since that time, and Mortal Crux is shaping up to be quite the kitchen sink RPG.
There's a real Larian quality to its attention to detail and focus on systems: fire propagates in a realistic manner, frozen enemies can be shattered for an instant kill, and you can even block spells in midair with a well-timed thrown weapon (and vice versa).
Mortal Crux's addition of fishing is definitely a crowd pleaser, but I felt a real sick thrill at the reveal of a stealth system in this new trailer. I'm a big fan of being a sneak-bastard in an RPG, but only when it's fun, and Walker seems committed to getting the feel right, telling me that "Those who are careful will often be able to remain undetected while eliminating entire camps of enemies if they stake out patrol routes and patiently take them down one at a time."
Stealth won't just be an appetizer to combat, and to that end Mortal Crux's system is almost entirely sound and line of sight based—it won't be like The Elder Scrolls where you get spotted from a mile away when you've got ten points in sneaking, but can literally bump into people without them noticing at 100.
Investing in a stealthy character will mean faster crouched movement and the ability to sneak past enemies with superhuman senses, all with ample reward: "Whether it's the first goblin you encounter on the journey or a powerful archmage 40 hours in," Walker asserts, "if you can get a dagger to their throat, each die in a single slice."
In a similar vein, Mortal Crux's latest trailer also showed off a new Mesmerize spell that'll even have mountain trolls distracted by pretty lights—think Baldur's Gate 3's Hypnotic Pattern spell, but with a particularly slapstick animation for the enthralled creature. Walker's been working on expanding the game's alternatives to direct combat, and while full pacifist runs of Mortal Crux aren't in the cards, the developer is keen on giving players as deep a toolkit as possible.
Now, finally, for fishing: it's not just a source of alchemy or crafting ingredients. "It also has a collectible aspect to it, by tracking stats like catch length, weight, and quality," Walker explains. "There's also fishing-focused quests for players who want to invest time in it as more than just resource collection.
"I'm still working on the mechanics, but expect a full-fledged minigame. You never know what you'll pull up and there are several one-of-a-kind items you can only find by fishing in certain areas."
And all of these gameplay possibilities will work with up to four-player co-op to boot, which Mortal Crux also demonstrated for the first time today. Mortal Crux is still very much in a "when it's done" release timeframe, but you can wishlist it on Steam right now.
