TH3-M15 GUILD Game Sample - PC/Indie
19So this game is actually a pretty pleasant surprise... a game that essentially says hi to "Vampire Survivors" but improves certain aspects of the experience with cool features and QoL additions. What? You don't know what "Vampire Survivors" is? If not, you're probably not very familiar with games released in the last few years or you've been living under a rock. Referred to as a "Bullet Heaven" or "Reverse Bullet Hell", Vampire Survivors released in Early Access for PC back in 2021 and while it wasn't much to look at, it eventually released to "Overwhelmingly Positive" acclaim due to its low price point, mindless fun and addictive time-based gameplay. Being dubbed a "Dopamine Simulator", while it was not exactly the first game of its type, it achieved massive fame compared to its predecessors which immediately led to many "clones" coming out the wazoo (and most don't even hide it). While "TH3-M15 GUILD" is one of many clones, it attempts to bring some fresh ideas to the table as well (though not to be outdone, the devs of VS are keenly aware and seem to make updates that aim to trivialize the competition).
Deploy into battle as the TH3-M15 Guild, the deadliest group of mercenaries across the land! Hauntingly, there exists no reported sightings on any of the active members, making the people wonder if the guild even exists. Those that do know them, are either in awe or in fear of the guild’s prowess and efficiency. With the world now at war, between the Aigam Council and Phian Federation, TH3-M15 guild has once again been hired and is on the move. They’ll do whatever it takes to complete their mission… Do you have what it takes to finish the job, mercenary?
Released in May by developer & publisher, Capybara Forge, TG adds a futuristic vibe and faux-anime veneer to the VS action with a bit of underlying lore to the characters and settings, which is surprisingly mostly absent from VS. If you haven't played VS before, then a general recap of the gameplay involves the player moving their character around while attacks automatically fire out the character based on what direction their walking in or the parameters of their weapons. Gems / orbs are constantly dropped by defeated enemies which level your character up and allow you to select a variety of upgrades to your current arsenal or to new items entirely; on that note, there are different characters to choose from with varying stats, many achievements that trigger different unlockables, and currency that transfers to buy permanent unlockables after every successful or unsuccessful run. As the timer increases, the enemies become stronger and numerous mid-bosses appear that require the player to constantly move and be on their toes to get through the waves. After 15 / 30 minutes, the player essentially "clears" the stage as "Death", the grim reaper, comes to end the player. This changes under certain conditions.
For those who have played VS inside and out, there are things you can look forward to in TG besides the reskinned graphics and added narrative. Each character is unique as, besides different stats and traits, they come with specific active and passive abilities that can be upgraded on top of the bevy of skills accessible to all characters. These abilities get the player a little more involved in the action, are less RNG dependent, and there are specific achievements for each character, so learning each one is worthwhile in the long run. Stages are littered with various doors, kiosks and side objectives that make exploring and surviving interesting. That said, it's also a greater challenge than VS with more aggressive waves and each level has an end goal. To get to them, it will require repeated playthroughs of the levels to know the sequencing and the best routes to take as well as meeting the legends of the TH3-M15 Guild who can upgrade your Actives and Weapons to legendary proportions. Lastly, you must confront the true stage boss who has tons of health and has evolving attack patterns as you beat them down, and you still need to make it back to the guild in one piece...
Experimenting with each character is a lot of fun and the game satisfies your dopamine needs while feeling a little more purposeful to play. It's still mindless, just less so... but it's also got a lot of potential to build on the foundation popularized by VS and they should add plenty of content. The game was developed by the Jabeguero siblings (Graham, Ziad and Keanu with Natascha on marketing) and friends, but with a crazy name like "TH3-M15 GUILD" (aka "Themis Guild"), the algorithm probably won't be kind to this one... make sure you try it out when you can! This is a game showing some things in action. You can get it at:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2602290/TH3M15_GUILD/
Enjoy.
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