This is a guest post from Contributor Vaughn Hyde
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It’s hard to judge the potential of a game based on a small amount of time with it, let alone a demo. However, if Tarkus turns out to be anything like the demo, its future looks incredibly bright. Tarkus is an indie action-platformer developed in Unity for mobile by Allyson Maciel, a Brazilian illustrator, pixel artist, and game developer.
In Tarkus, you take control of Ivar on his journey to rid himself and his brother of an affliction that they both carry. Equipped with a sword, bow, and a mask that slows the progression of the sickness, Ivar must make his way through environments filled to the brim with enemies in hopes to find a cure. Other than that, very little is known about the world in which Tarkus takes place. But small details like the wording used when describing a health power-up and the grotesque and intriguing character designs keep me coming back to the somewhat short demo hoping for anything more on this interesting hellscape.
Each of the creatures I witnessed in the demo were unique in their deformed states. Of course, you have the standard zombie-esque creatures roaming the forest, but there were also original enemies like the four-eyed shadow mage (I made up that name because it currently doesn’t have one) that throws fireballs at you from a distance or the blindfolded hulk with a massive sword. Each of the enemies not only has their own look but also the way they fight, which keeps you on your toes when approaching a foe that you have yet to see.
Combat is very smooth and offers a degree of challenge that many fans of the genre will absolutely enjoy. Your platforming and timing skills will be put to the test, especially when facing the boss at the end of the demo. Sparse checkpoints and health orbs also help lend to the difficulty of the demo, without feeling unfair. Those that like the challenge of games like Hollow Knight and Dead Cells will find a home in Tarkus.
The one issue I have with the demo is actually its control scheme. You’re given six buttons to control your different actions, move left or right, swing your sword, shoot your bow, jump and a dodge roll. But, sadly, most mobile devices have limited space for these buttons so I found myself constantly hitting the wrong ones. Some of this could be blamed on my sausage fingers but that’s purely speculation. The easy fix for this issue would be to eliminate the dodge roll, which the developer has spoken about on Twitter.
With a few tweaks to the control scheme, it’s very possible that Tarkus will become a massive hit, especially if any of the fantastic enemies featured by the developer make it into the final game. To follow Tarkus’ development and check out the demo make sure to follow Allyson Maciel on Twitter.
