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Crimson Capes Reimagines Souls Combat in Two Dimensions
Souls-inspired design has influenced countless games over the past decade, but Crimson Capes takes a more unusual approach by translating that formula into a fully 2D experience. Developed by Studio Poor Locke, the sword-and-sorcery action adventure is set to launch on PC via Steam on February 12, offering deliberate melee combat, non-linear exploration, and online multiplayer systems rarely seen in side-scrolling action games.
Rather than simplifying the Souls formula, Crimson Capes leans into its most demanding elements. Combat is built around timing, positioning, and commitment, challenging players to read enemies carefully and master the fundamentals of blade work rather than relying on raw statistics.
Deliberate Swordplay and Distinct Playstyles
Players step into the role of Milon the Tempest, a witch-hunter leading the Crimson Capes, an elite guild tasked with dismantling a growing conspiracy of wizards across the kingdom of Amvros. Contracts take players across a dangerous realm, gradually revealing darker forces at work and the cost of wielding power.
Combat is driven by animation-commit swordplay inspired by realistic fighting techniques. Feints, thrusts, cuts, and guarded stances form a back-and-forth rhythm where mistakes are punished, and mastery is earned.
The game features four playable heroes, each with a distinct weapon style, moveset, and skill tree, encouraging experimentation and build diversity rather than incremental stat grinding. Magic is woven directly into combat through elemental abilities such as wind, thunder, fire, and darkness.
Non-Linear Exploration With Souls DNA
Exploration follows a familiar Souls philosophy, rewarding curiosity and player choice. Ruined towers, forgotten caverns, mystical forests, and ancient strongholds can be tackled in multiple orders, with artifacts, abilities, and narrative threads hidden well beyond critical paths.
Optional dynamic hunts add replayability by introducing unique enemy configurations and bosses that vary between runs. These encounters are designed to challenge player adaptability, echoing the unpredictability of systems like Bloodborne’s Chalice Dungeons.
Online Co-Op and Invasions in 2D
Crimson Capes also adapts Souls-style multiplayer into its side-scrolling framework. Players can team up online as fellow Capes to complete hunts together, or invade another player’s mission as a Deathblade, introducing sudden PvP encounters that can dramatically reshape an ongoing contract.
This blend of cooperation and invasion aims to preserve the tension and unpredictability that define Souls multiplayer, even within a 2D space.
Crimson Capes will launch on February 12 on PC via Steam with a 10% launch discount available for a limited time. Console versions are planned for a later date.
