Titan Souls E3 2014 Preview

One hit point, one arrow, and all bosses. That's the short description for Titan Souls, one of the indie games being brought to Steam, Vita, and PS4 by Devolver Digital. The game, which has a decided retro look to it that will certainly evoke fond memories for anyone who's played the original The Legend of Zelda, opens at the entrance of what appears to be the ruins of a temple complex and then ... leaves you on your own. This isn't a game with a handholding tutorial, introductory cutscenes, or even a screen of background text, instead leaving it to you to explore the world and learn its mysteries on your own. Where are you? Who are you? What do those mysterious glyphs appearing on the screen mean? What's the connection between the bosses? All will be revealed in due time, assuming you survive, that is.

All that stands between you and instant death is your arrow - your one and only arrow. Since that's all the ammunition that you have you'll need to retrieve your arrow each time you shoot it, a dangerous endeavor considering that you're defenseless without it. You can either run to pick it up where it lies or press a button to help draw it towards you. You'll need to be careful if you choose the latter, though, as pulling an arrow through something can have unexpected consequences, sometimes good, but sometimes very bad as well.

Each boss you encounter will be a puzzle. How can you injure it? What attacks does it have? What mistakes will it make you pay dearly for? How do its attacks evolve during the battle? These aren't battles based on memorizing and exploiting simple patterns, and gamers who enjoy a challenge are going to quickly find themselves loving Titan Souls.

The very first thing I noted in this preview was that you have one hit point, and that means that if a boss manages to hit you at any point in a fight then you're out. You'll find yourself back outside, but none the worse for wear otherwise. Unless you're trying for the trophy/achievement awarded for running the game in one life, that is. You'll have to start over again with the boss that defeated you, but previously defeated bosses will thankfully remain dead. The non-linear format of the game will even let you try your luck with a different boss for a bit if one is proving to be particularly troubling for you.

I enjoyed my brief hands-on time with the game, and I'm proud to report that I even managed to defeat one of the bosses in that short time. I've already have some ideas on what I want to do the next time I face the other bosses I saw, and just the fact that I'm looking forward to playing Titan Souls again is a good sign that it will be a game to watch for when it is released next year.