From the Steam Store description alone, you can tell that there are rather a lot of ideas bouncing around inside Enshrouded. Described as a ‘co-op survival action RPG’, this is a game stuffed to the gills with different mechanics and systems. It boasts NPC quests, mining, crafting and farming; combat skill trees and intricate base-building – and of course, a vast open world filled with dozens of hand-crafted dungeons and castles. All of which can be explored with the help of a grapple and glider, in a way very reminiscent of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
As a melting pot of different genre influences, Enshrouded is certainly an ambitious project in terms of scope, made all the more impressive by the fact it’s still only in Early Access. Yet after 27 hours with Enshrouded in its current form, I’ve found that my initial excitement for the game has waned. I’m now struggling to find the motivation to continue – and despite all the flashing quest markers on the map, I’m feeling a little directionless within its world. There are several factors contributing to this sense of ennui, but I think I’ve boiled it down to one defining reason: Enshrouded simply feels too safe. As a survival game it lacks a sense of peril, and because of this, it forfeits the opportunity to create some truly memorable moments.
To be fair to Enshrouded, there’s still a decent world to explore here, and the game is pretty impressive on a technical level. For fans of soft lighting and moody mists: prepare your hard drives, you’re going to be taking a lot of screenshots. While Enshrouded has some moments of jank, there’s a surprising level of polish in everything from the animations to the nifty building system. Things start in a positive manner, too, with the player introduced to the world through a generic-but-functional fantasy opening, before being popped outside to admire an enticing panoramic view. See this vast world below you? You can explore all of it! See that mountain? You can glide off it! It’s hard not to feel excited when presented with a vista like this, and the opening stages of the game deliver on this promise of exploration and adventure.
