Video Games
Vampiric Melee Runner ‘Bloodthief’ Receiving New Demo for Steam Next Fest
The June edition of Steam Next Fest is fast approaching, and solo developer Blargis will be joining in on the fun with an updated demo for Bloodthief, their ultra-fast melee dungeon-runner that has you using blood to fuel your parkour skills as a vampire to take out your foes. Before the new demo arrives, you can still check out the previous demo that was released back in February.
Inspired by the likes of Ghostrunner, Ultrakill, Quake and Hotline Miami, Bloodthief has you speedrunning through a medieval dark fantasy world, where movement and combat are deeply intertwined. You will need to use both creatively to parkour through hazardous dungeons filled with enemies and traps, as well as secrets, shortcuts, powerups, and treasures. In order to do so, you’ll need to do the aforementioned drinking of your foes’ blood to fuel your abilities.
The existing demo takes approximately 1 hour to beat, but if you’re the completionist type, the playtime can run up to 20 hours to get 100% completion. That’s across seven levels, featuring four swords, one special weapon, five powerups, five enemy types, and 20 secrets to find. Meanwhile, the extended demo releasing next month adds an entirely new level, one new weapon, and the three secret artifacts required to build that weapon.
No release date has been announced as of yet, but if you’re keen on keeping track of Bloodthief‘s development, Blargis regularly posts devlogs on his YouTube page.
The June edition of Steam Next Fest kicks off on June 9, and runs until June 16.
Video Games
Bloody Body Horror Revealed in ‘Stellar Blade: Blood Rain’, Currently in Development [Trailer]
Shift Up has shifted things dramatically from 2024’s action-adventure game Stellar Blade, offering up a body horror bonanza in the newly announced sequel, Stellar Blade: Blood Rain. The sequel is currently early in development, but if the trailer is any indication, players will be in for plenty of body horror.
Continuing the story from the original Stellar Blade, Blood Rain will star a new protagonist named Eve. Earth has been abandoned, and what is left of humanity has fled to a Colony in outer space.
Shift Up had mentioned during a Q&A following its latest earnings presentation last month that development on Blood Rain (which was still unannounced at the time) was progressing smoothly, and was on track to meet their targeted quality standards.
Shift Up stated that with this new title it would be transitioning to a first-party service model, effectively moving away from the restrictions the game experienced with original publisher Sony, which had the game under an exclusivity agreement for the PlayStation 5. “This will allow us to lead marketing strategies that fully reflect the distinctive identity of the Stellar Blade IP, and we expect to communicate the unique appeal of its universe to players more directly and effectively.”
Whether this means that Xbox Players will finally be able to play the original game (or its sequel) is still not clear. Meanwhile, Stellar Blade is reportedly being ported to the Nintendo Switch 2, but no official confirmation has been made.