These days, some of the most exciting new indie games get their start on Kickstarter. And that’s the case with an upcoming cozy roguelike adventure game called Remnants of Yore. In just 24 hours, the game blew past its Kickstarter goal. Now, the developers are gearing up for Remnants of Yore‘s Early Access launch on Steam, with a full release on console to follow in 2026. Ahead of the March 22nd Early Access release, I got to join some of the developers for an in-depth look at the upcoming cozy adventure game.
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In Remnants of Yore, you’ll play as the cute cat wizard, Yore. The entire world is depicted in a stunning 3D pixel art style that adds to the game’s charming fantasy vibes. But not everything is quite so cozy. Yore is trapped in a village surrounded by corrupted forest, and it’s up to the brave cat wizard to help root out the dark forces. And while you’re trapped in this small town, running the abandoned antique shop just so happens to be how you’ll make your living. As someone who loves a shopkeeping sim and a roguelike element, Remnants of Yore has definitely caught my interest.
Remnants of Yore Offers Up Shopkeeping With a Haunted Twist
The developers behind Remnants of Yore basically describe it a trifecta combining elements of Hades, Stardew Valley, and Moonlighter. Obviously, I knew I needed to see more from a game like that. During my preview session with the devs, I got to take a look at some in-game footage from Remnants of Yore. And when I saw that Yore surfs around the map on a giant enchanted book, I was immediately charmed. But if a cat wizard riding a flying book isn’t quite enough to convince you this game is one to watch, there’s plenty more to recommend it.
Remnants of Yore has two core gameplay modes, with a dash of life/farming sim in the mix as well. First, Yore is making their home in a formerly abandoned antique shop. And during your explorations of the corrupted forest, it just so happens that you’ll run across plenty of rare antiques and artifacts. Selling those items to the locals to earn a living just makes sense. I was pleased to see that the shopkeeping element of Remnants of Yore is fairly in-depth. You’ll be able to set the prices of your items and watch customer reactions in real time. If you set prices too high, you’re going to hear about it.
If you like your games with a little chaos, there’s plenty of that here, too. Given that these artifacts come from a corrupted forest, some of them house spirits. It’s up to you to free those trapped spirits before you sell the items. But you don’t have to get rid of the spirits before you sell off your wares. The devs hinted that there could be pretty big consequences for pawning off cursed items on the locals. Naturally, I can’t wait to see what that ominous warning means.
But before you can sell anything at all, you’ll need to journey into the corrupted forest. It’s there that Remnants of Yore offers its other primary gameplay mode – roguelike combat in a procedurally generated world full of enemies to defeat and items to collect.
Roguelike Combat Meets Life Sim Storytelling in Remnants of Yore
Exploring the lush forest is both how Yore will save the village and how you’ll get items to sell in your shop. These roguelike runs are inspired by games like Hades, with a magical twist. Being a wizard, Yore uses spells to battle against the dark spirits lurking in the forest. As you run across new spirits, you’ll unlock special spirit boons that help you get further into the woods. These power-ups will vary each time you enter the forest, letting you find new ways to take your journey a step further.
Along with boons, you’ll also be able to collect various herbs to help you craft new spells. From the sounds of it, there will be a lot of variety in how you approach combat in Remnants of Yore. So if you like a game that keeps things interesting and lets you choose your own battle style, this just might be a great fit.
But combat and shopkeeping aren’t the only things Remnants of Yore has to offer. The stakes of a good action RPG are all up to its story, and this game will deliver that in droves. Each NPC in the game has their own dynamic schedule and story to uncover. How you interact with the people you meet will impact how the story unfolds, leading to one of many possible endings in Remnants of Yore. I don’t know about you, but I do love a branching narrative.
It’s clear that plenty of people are ready to see what Remnants of Yore has to offer when it hits Early Access on March 22nd. After all, you don’t have a wildly successful Kickstarter if people aren’t invested in seeing your idea come to fruition. After seeing what the devs have created so far, I’m definitely eager to get a chance to experience Remnants of Yore firsthand. It could well be the ideal formula for cozy gamers and action RPG fans alike. Early Access hits Steam on March 22nd, but the free Remnants of Yore demo is available now if you want to give it a test run.
Do you like games that combine a variety of playstyles like Remnants of Yore? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
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