Steam’s Early Access just welcomed a fresh face: Guidus Zero, a top-down dungeon crawler with roguelike elements from the creative minds at the indie South Korean studio, Izzle.
The game is set against the backdrop of a world that has been ravaged by a seemingly endless war, with no clear winner emerging. Once the conflict finally ceased, the central continent was marked as a neutral zone. However, peace is shattered by a gigantic sinkhole known as The Scar, which now graces the landscape. From its dark interior comes a substance, Black Blood, that spawns twisted creatures. No one knows how The Scar appeared, the source of the Black Blood, or what mysteries lie in its deepest depths. That’s exactly where you come in.
You’re tasked with leading a group of unique characters into The Scar, delving further into its treacherous heart while combating enemies twisted by the Black Blood. There’s a variety of characters to choose from, each boasting their own strengths and abilities. Combat is real-time and brings a unique spin: movement occurs on a grid where you and your foes can only shift along the four cardinal directions.
As enemies prepare to strike, an exclamation mark signals their intent and highlights the impact zone. Different foes have unique attack patterns—some lash out directly ahead, some cover extensive paths, while others impact larger areas. You’ll face multiple adversaries simultaneously, demanding quick reflexes to evade their strikes.
While moving, utilize a roll to become invincible briefly, though bear in mind it drains stamina. Since diagonal movement is off the table, choosing your path and rolling judiciously becomes crucial. You wouldn’t want to find yourself cornered under a barrage of unavoidable attacks.
Combat here isn’t just about avoiding blows; you’ll need to deal damage too. How you go about it changes based on your character choice. Before each venture, select a character alongside their starting trait. In good old RPG fashion, defeating enemies earns you experience to level up.
Leveling up brings about exclusive skill upgrade choices tied to the trait you started with. These upgrades shape your playstyle, ensuring that even the same character can experience varied gameplay depending on the trait and upgrades you opt for. But remember, all your progress resets upon death, as typical in roguelikes.
However, not everything disappears upon starting over. During runs, you might encounter ore veins—break these to obtain stones, each with distinct stats. The stones in your bag collectively boost your character once thresholds are reached, providing buffs. Stones can be equipped in dedicated slots and remain intact after a run. Any leftover stones morph into fragments at the run’s end, ready to be used as currency or reshaped into new stones by a blacksmith NPC.
Exploration during each run may lead you to special rooms where treasure chests hold artifacts. These artifacts grant unique buffs and improve your abilities, with the potential to stack elemental effects over time. When an artifact reaches five stacks, it bonds with a spirit linked to that element, unlocking unique elemental powers.
By bonding with Ignis, the fire spirit, you gain a burn debuff that deals ongoing damage. Atlen, the water spirit, slows foes and freezes those doused in water. Rathorus, the lightning spirit, induces shocks for extra damage. Enryl, the wind spirit, boosts your speed and augments multi-strikes with a sprint buff. Lastly, Terrania, the earth spirit, triggers a petrify debuff causing fragments to scatter from enemies when attacked.
This builds up into a roguelike experience that begs for “just one more run.” Stones offer persistent growth, and your choices in character, starting trait, and upgrades ensure each journey feels fresh. If you’re eager to dive into Guidus Zero, it’s available now in Early Access on Steam.
To celebrate the launch, there’s a 10% discount running until December 9. While plans for Xbox and Nintendo Switch releases are being considered, nothing official on console availability has been announced yet.
