With the right care and attention, the central world of a game can be so much more than the sum of its parts. At first glance, these are Fate 2‘storm, Monster Hunter World‘s assembly center and Eternal fateYou could look at Fortress of Doom as just a pretty menu – characters or buildings replacing the buttons you press before jumping into a game. But in all of these cases, we see storytelling, Easter eggs, and idiosyncratic choices that transform these spaces into truly unforgettable places – a second home. Towerborneand its beautiful bell tower aspire to join this rich tradition.
The Belfry – a beautiful, rickety tower that rises into the clouds above the world map – will be the home base for each player (and their characters, known as Aces). From here, you can train, upgrade your gear, take on quests, and party with other players before setting off on your missions to save the world. But like the examples above, the team at Stoic doesn’t want to simply give you a more interactive menu – the Belfry will be a real home for the Aces, offering you a way to experience the ever-evolving storyline. Towerborne
Throughout the Belfry, you’ll find everything from the Counsel Building (a hub for quests and important NPCs that provides both storytelling and gameplay), to the Forge (where you can upgrade your equipment), to the Facewright (which gives you unlimited customization options for your Ace) and much more. Taken together, this all makes the Belfry feel more like a village – with the distinctly human feel that brings – than a simple menu. I caught up with Game Director Daniel McLaren to find out why the team felt they needed to perfect the look and feel of their hub rather than create a simple “select mission” menu:
“We want you to feel like this is a world you want to be in, that the NPCs are worth interacting with, that the beauty and the interactions are worth your time. Making a game that people love is both an art and a science, and the art should feel good. For those who like our style, Towerborne It should feel like a place you want to be, it should be something you look back on fondly, it should feel complete and whole, like the journey you took with us was worth your time. I’m not saying a menu-driven game can’t do that, but, um… I’m kind of saying we can do better.”
“Seriously, that’s the kind of question that makes perfect sense on the face of it,” he replies. “Why not just make a game where you choose what you want to do from a menu and then do it? Mobile games have shown that this works quite well if you boil it down to some kind of ‘perfect’ core looped gameplay experience. But that’s not what our game is about.
It took some work to make the Belfry this way – the Belfry is an explorable space, and Stoic had to tweak the layout of the NPCs, among other things, to ensure that you don’t spend part of your time walking from place to place. But the result is a place that the team believes you will never need spending too much time in it – then you will probably only want to hang around and see what you can find.
The key to this feeling is that the Belfry has been designed to feel like it is truly the home of all Towerborne players, meaning you’ll never be there alone or with just your chosen party. It’ll be teeming with other players going about their own business, and you’ll have the chance to meet them (using a communication system with emotes and stickers) and maybe even go on adventures together – either through a matchmaking system or by grouping up in the Belfry itself.
“We want the Belfry to feel lived in, and having other players there makes the game feel alive and worth playing,” explains McLaren. “Besides, what’s the point of having a living game if you can’t see others, help new players, make new friends, or just dance for hours?”
The Bell Tower NPCs will be just as important as other live players, not only because of what they offer you, but also because of the game’s broader story. While storytelling takes place throughout TowerborneIn the world of , you can consider the Belfry the home of the game’s narrative. Quests can be taken on from several NPCs (and a job board gives you additional incentives to play in certain ways or go to certain places), but there will be more characters to help you understand the world you’ve entered – and as a live game, Towerborne
“Our goal is to continue to expand the world of Towerborne over time with new content, new enemies, new locations and a new story,” says McLaren. “While quests, and by extension quest NPCs, are a surefire way to ensure players are at least exposed to the core elements of the story, they exist to answer the core questions of ‘Why am I here? Why am I doing this?'”
“But what fun is an RPG if it doesn’t give curious players the opportunity to discover ‘deep knowledge’? Don’t worry, players will find a variety of narrative NPCs both in the Belfry and in the world who can divulge their own tidbits of information. As time goes on, who can predict who will show up and where they might be found?”
Perhaps most excitingly, this evolving story means that the Belfry itself will change over time – the version we will see at launch is just the beginning of what this place will be. This evolution will be a physical reminder of the story Stoic has to tell: “The beauty of the way we develop and support this game is that we are looking into the future of you, the players of Towerborne,” says McLaren. “We have so many great ideas, stories and features we want to share and the Belfry is just one place we can make that happen.
“What you will see, no one knows. I heard a rumor that there is a goat there. Somewhere.”
Of course, there’s always a balance to be struck. The Belfry won’t be where you spend most of your time – there’s a whole game to play, of course – but Stoic wants it to be a pleasure to spend time between missions, not just during them:
“At its core Towerborne is an action RPG in the side-scrolling brawler combat style. We obviously don’t want it to be just a monotonous game, and so there is certainly a story, secrets, things to discover and NPCs to meet, but it all serves a game that is about collecting loot, improving your ace and killing bigger, more dangerous enemies. We want to give players lots of ways to explore the world of Towerborne and be strong enough to do it!”
We will tell you much more about The on Xbox Wire Towerborne will be released later this year.
Towerborne
Xbox Game Studios
The Belfry stands as a beacon of hope and safety amidst the ruins of humanity and the City of Numbers, while monsters lurk just outside the Tower’s walls. You are an Ace, reborn from the spirit realm with the skills, courage and determination to protect the people of the Belfry. With spirit companions at your side, you are destined for battle. Can you become the Ace humanity needs to survive? Find out in Towerborne, the latest action-adventure game from Stoic, the studio that brought you the award-winning Banner Saga trilogy. Co-Adventure – Venture alone or with up to three other Aces* from the Belfry to defeat the looming terror that surrounds the Tower. Either way, you won’t be alone. Aces can recruit Umbra Companions to join them in battle, gaining access to enhanced skills and unique abilities associated with each spirit. After fighting your way through enemies, return to the Belfry to turn in quests, reforge gear, and more. Brave the Wild – Towerborne was designed with player choice in mind. Create your Ace with options to customize appearance, gear, and weapons. Change your entire gameplay experience at any time by changing your threat level as you venture into the wild. Find and wield powerful weapons with unique special moves from one of four styles: War Clubs, Gauntlets, Dual Daggers, and Swords & Shields. Mix and match to make your Ace your own! Continue the Fight – With an evolving world map and seasonal content, your Ace will never run out of areas to explore and enemies to defeat. Seasons of Towerborne continues the story of The Belfry by introducing new enemies to fight, regions to discover, skills to master, and lore to uncover (available upon launch). *Online multiplayer on console requires Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or Game Pass Core (subscriptions sold separately).
