A Dark New Looter For PC Gamers
Gods, Death & Reapers is the next brutal adventure from Wolcen Studio, and it is shaping up to be a seriously gritty ride for ARPG fans on PC. Revealed with a new trailer during the PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted, this isometric looter throws you into a post apocalyptic world where all the gods are already dead and you serve Death himself as a Reaper.
The trailer wastes no time setting the tone. It opens in the aftermath of a fiery battlefield, with an axe wielding warrior in a horned helmet standing among corpses riddled with arrows. An eerie voiceover cuts in with a chilling line that sets the stage for the whole game: every Reaper remembers their first death, the betrayal, and the afterlife that never arrived.
From there, things only get more intense. You get glimpses of tortured souls being dragged into oblivion, strange mythological horrors, and flashes of fast paced combat that show what it will actually feel like to fight as a Reaper in this twisted afterlife.
Extraction Style ARPG Gameplay
The developers are calling Gods, Death & Reapers an Extraction RPG. Instead of just clearing dungeons and hoarding loot in safety, each run through a map is a high stakes mission. You dive into myth inspired environments, fight enemies, grab as much valuable loot as you can, and then try to escape with your spoils.
If you make it out successfully, you get to keep what you collected. If you die before extracting, you lose the treasures you were carrying. That risk and reward loop is at the core of the game and should feel familiar if you like extraction shooters but prefer top down ARPG combat.
The trailer teases some of the abilities and playstyle you will be using during these runs. Reapers are shown:
- Running circles around enemies to outmaneuver them
- Summoning ghostly shield walls to block incoming attacks
- Dancing through clusters of incoming strikes from bloated monstrosities and their minions
It is all about staying mobile, using your skills cleverly, and surviving long enough to escape with your gear. The world itself will be a major threat too, not just other Reapers. The game highlights a Reaper versus Reaper versus Environment mode, where both enemy players and the world are trying to shut you down.
That mix of PvP and PvE inside a mythological, grim setting should create some tense moments. You are not just racing monsters, you are also competing or colliding with other Reapers chasing the same loot and escape points. Every run has the potential to turn into a last second scramble between desperate players and relentless creatures.
More Modes Coming For Different Play Styles
While the extraction mode is the star of the show, Wolcen Studio is planning additional ways to play for those who want a slightly less punishing experience or prefer to stick to cooperative PvE.
Two main extra modes are already confirmed:
- Story mode for a more relaxed experience where you can focus on the narrative and world without constantly risking your gear on every run.
- Co op PvE mode where you and your friends can team up against enemy factions together instead of clashing with other players.
These modes are not arriving right away. The team has said they will be added later in the development cycle, but they are officially planned. That means you can look forward to a broader experience over time, with options for hardcore extraction fans and more casual or co op focused players.
For now, the focus is clearly on building that high tension loop of dropping into myth infused maps, pushing your luck on loot, and trying to make it out alive.
How To Get In Early
If the idea of becoming Deaths unwilling enforcer in a brutal post divine afterlife sounds appealing, you can already start getting involved. Gods, Death & Reapers has a Steam page where you can add it to your wishlist. Doing that is an easy way to track updates and get notified as development progresses.
There is also a closed alpha playtest you can register for. This will give some players a chance to try the game early, help stress test the core gameplay loop, and offer feedback before it moves into a wider early access release. The early access version is planned for next year, so the team still has time to polish combat, balance loot and risk, and refine the different modes.
For PC gamers who enjoy looter style progression, dark fantasy worlds, and the tension of losing your hard earned gear if you push too far, Gods, Death & Reapers looks like a promising title to keep an eye on. The combination of isometric ARPG action with extraction style stakes could carve out a fresh niche in the genre.
If you are tired of the usual fantasy comfort zones and want something more blood soaked and unforgiving, this might be the next game to claim a spot on your wishlist. And if you want to see what else is coming to PC soon, the wider lineup from the PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted offers plenty more reveals powered by Xbox Game Pass and other publishers.
Original article and image: https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/events-conferences/the-gods-are-dead-and-death-is-your-only-master-in-gods-death-and-reapers-a-chaotic-hack-n-slash-extraction-looter-now-accepting-alpha-playtesters/
