Sometimes, the world you live in sucks. It is a place filled with despair, and misery, and blood, guts, and death. This is much the case with the world of Mörk Borg, an apocalyptic fantasy TTRPG where you have no sense of hope, only dread, that is now also a video game. This video game, Mörk Borg Heresy Supreme, is more of an action RPG, though its tabletop routes are still to be found, and it is as mean as it is darkly enchanting.
Stylistically it very much takes after its original book form, using only black, white, yellow and red for its colour scheme (you can guess what the red is used for). In the demo version of the game there is only one class to choose from, whose stats and starting weapon are randomly generated. Though, you can just re-roll infinitely until you get something you’ve happy with, an ability I hope is limited in the full release.
To start, you are tasked with finding a troll finger. You set out into the world, this miserable little world, on a 2D plane, your only directional options being left or right. When you finally meet enemies, you can slash at them with your weapon, be it a femur, a knife, or a scimitar you pick up after slicing a skeleton in half. There’s a dodging mechanic, you both consume items for health or lob them at your opponents for damage, this starting class can also kick or block with a shield. It is laborious in a way that teeters on the edge of being insufferable, though I expect it’ll fall right off for some.
Everything is slow, some of it perhaps a bit too much so, yet there’s a method to the madness. You don’t have much health, so timing a block or a dodge and a slash at just the right time is important. Dark Souls comparisons are all but guaranteed to be made in future reviews. I died quite quickly, of course, this game is tough and cares not for your happiness. Dying almost seems like it’s the point, especially with its lightly procedurally generated world.
The RPGness of it all comes in the occasional dice roll, a digital D20 randomly deciding your fate, your character’s attributes assisting or impeding said rolls. Levelling up comes at set points apparently, with some skills improving, others worsening. It is a player hostile game, one that begs for you to challenge it, and that’ll be a boon for many, and a curse for many more.
It’s too early for me to say whether I like the thing or not, but I can say I’ll be curious to give it another look whenever it does come out. In the meantime, you can check out the demo, or just wishlist it, on Steam right here.
