Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree Preview for Steam

Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree was developed by Brownies Inc. and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc. as an isometric roguelike that takes inspiration from Asian culture, and it shows in the opening and artistic design for the game. It cannot be understated as to how influential the Asian inspirations are for this game, and they seeped into the art style and narrative. With regard to the gameplay, it is a roguelite that leans heavily on tying its combat to other features present in the game to differentiate it from other games in the genre. This game has been made with a lot of passion and dedication, which is something players will most likely feel while playing.

The art style of this game has strong inspirations from Asian culture, and the opening is something akin to an old Japanese painting made from gold leaf. This more distinct artistic direction is going to be eye-catching to the player upon seeing the opening sequence. This art style of choice helps showcase not only the inspirations but also provides an additional storytelling element as to the importance of certain characters and sets the overall tone of the game itself.

There are two elements of the gameplay that need to be addressed, and those are combat and non-combat. To go into the combat of the game, it focuses on the player utilizing the “Wakazashi” and “Honzashi,” with both swords being used in combat, with the player switching between the swords mid-combat to refresh their durability. As for the reason as to why the player will need to switch swords in combat, it is to create various combos and try to increase the number of hits in the combo to show off to others. Another important aspect players will need to look at is that different characters have different move sets ranging from how they attack with the swords to with staffs. The staffs themselves offer varying buffs and special attacks that can make or break a run, especially in clutch moments.

So, players will need to strike a balance of attacking with the “Honzashi” and “Wakazahi” to ensure a steady rate of damage on enemies and bosses. With this game being a roguelite, it has various upgrades players can obtain over time to increase the health and damage as they keep playing. Other than long-term upgrades, there are short-term ones as well, with how they can provide buffs only during the run with varying effects, with some allowing players to heal based on switching their weapons all the way to increasing their weapons’ durability. Moreover, players will also encounter various rooms in their run, and some of these rooms can be beneficial, with some even having shops in them.

As for the non-combat portion of the game, one important aspect the player will need to do is equip their characters with different permanent stat bonuses to increase the duration of their run. One prominent feature is the blacksmith allowing players to upgrade their weapons to perform better in terms of attack or durability. This means that the player is responsible for creating new weapons and figuring out what they need to do to optimize their time playing in what best suits their style of play.

The forging itself is very well thought out and showcases some of the steps done in forging a sword. With each step requiring certain elements to be done right in the form of a minigame, allowing players the rare opportunity to increase the quality of the sword they will be using.

This allows for a greater sense of player agency by providing them a chance to make their own one-of-a-kind sword. And this is best demonstrated in the planning phase in the sword-making process, enabling players to alter the blade itself, allowing for some odd shapes to occur. Furthermore, this just adds in another layer of fun for the game, as not too many games allow players to just mess with the shape of the blades they are going to wield.

Brownies Inc. should be proud of the game they have made, as the art feels quite nice and not too busy in terms of designs for the characters, environments, and UI (user interface). As for the gameplay, the non-combat portions really shake things up for isometric roguelites, setting it apart from others in its genre. Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree is a solid 10/10 game due to how it performs and tries to shake up the genre and is a must-have game for any fans of the roguelite genre.

Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree is slated to launch September 18 for PC via Steam. You can play the demo as well as wishlist and pre-purchase the game right now.

Related: Reviews by Kyle Manila

Kyle Manila

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I would describe myself when interacting with games as a strategist with a pension for stealth and loud explosions.