Saving your entire species is a pretty heavy responsibility. Your tribe is dying, the gigantic tree keeping everyone alive has caught some mysterious disease, and the only hope of fixing things involves descending into an underground nightmare full of creatures that would happily tear you limb from limb at the first opportunity. At least you’ve got a living weapon to defend yourself with.
That’s life in Arboria, a dark fantasy action roguelite where death is permanent, mutations are encouraged, and the next unfortunate warrior gets to pick up where your last one failed. Developed by Dreamplant, Arboria left Early Access on September 9, 2021, combining third-person Soulslike combat with procedurally generated dungeons and a grotesque world of trolls, bizarre monsters, and biological weaponry.
It’s currently sitting at a Mostly Positive rating on Steam, with 78% positive feedback from around 545 reviews. Not exactly unknown, but for a game that’s been available for five years, it’s still one that plenty of roguelite fans may have missed.
The Family Tree Is Looking a Little Worse for Wear
The Yotunz tribe has a serious problem. Yggr, the Father Tree responsible for sustaining their entire civilization, is slowly dying from a mysterious disease. With extinction looming, the tribe needs somebody brave enough to venture into Durnar, an ever-changing underground world filled with dangerous creatures, strange environments, and secrets waiting to be uncovered. That somebody is you. Or, more accurately, whichever Yotun warrior happens to be next in line for a potentially fatal expedition.
You’ll explore procedurally generated dungeons across different biomes, searching for a way to heal the Father Tree while gathering Veri, a valuable resource used to strengthen your tribe and satisfy its rather demanding Godz. The deeper you venture, the nastier things become. Strange monsters roam the tunnels, powerful bosses guard your progress, and every encounter could bring your current adventure to an abrupt end.
Your Sword Is Alive, Try Not to Upset It
Combat in Arboria takes inspiration from Soulslike action RPGs, putting an emphasis on timing, dodging, and learning how enemies attack. You’ll need to dash, roll, and strike your way through hostile creatures, adapting your approach to whatever horrors appear around the next corner.
Your weapons are a little different from the usual collection of swords and axes, though. Symbiotic Weapons are living organisms that bond with your warrior, giving you different ways to fight depending on which one you choose. You can also develop Bio-Mutations, organic abilities that provide additional combat options and help shape your build throughout an expedition.
Combining mutations with different weapons creates opportunities to experiment with new strategies, whether you prefer getting up close to your enemies or finding ways to deal with threats before they overwhelm you. It’s a fitting system for a world where almost everything looks like it might be growing, rotting, or preparing to sprout something horrifying.
Death Runs in the Family
Getting killed in Arboria means saying goodbye to your current warrior for good. There’s no miraculous resurrection waiting at the village. Your troll is dead, their adventure is over, and somebody else will have to finish the job. The good news is that their efforts aren’t entirely wasted.
Veri collected during expeditions contributes to your tribe’s development, allowing future generations of Yotunz to benefit from the achievements of their predecessors. That persistent progression gives you a reason to keep venturing underground, even when your latest attempt ends with another warrior becoming monster food.
Your successors can inherit improved stats and abilities, gradually strengthening the tribe as you work toward reaching deeper areas. The developers have even given fallen warriors a rather unusual retirement arrangement. Their severed heads are preserved in jars at the graveyard, where they can apparently witness the accomplishments of future generations.
A Village Full of Strange Characters
Between expeditions, you’ll spend time among the strange inhabitants of your village, a collection of trolls whose crude humor fits the game’s delightfully odd personality. The contrast between the tribe’s ridiculous behavior and the serious threat facing their civilization gives Arboria a character of its own. Its dark fantasy setting also mixes organic horrors with mysterious technology, creating an underground world that feels considerably stranger than the usual collection of medieval caves and skeleton-filled corridors.
With 25 Steam achievements to unlock, multiple weapon and mutation combinations to explore, and an entire tribe depending on your progress, there’s plenty to keep determined dungeon crawlers occupied.
Arboria isn’t without its critics, with some players pointing to repetition and pacing issues, but its unusual setting, combat system, and generational progression have earned it a loyal following. So, if the idea of battling grotesque monsters with living weapons sounds appealing, this overlooked 2021 release could be worth digging up.
Your first troll probably won’t survive the journey. Neither might the second, third, or fourth. But somewhere beneath Durnar lies the answer to saving the Father Tree, and the Yotunz have plenty more warriors willing to become the next head in a jar.