What is ‘Bearers’? #
Yes – apologies in advance, this is going to be a serious exposition dump. Head to How is Bearers? to skip to the future plans.
Trying to define a game that shares similarities with a number of genres but exists somewhere in the grey area between has been a reoccurring challenge throughout the early stages of the development cycle, especially leading into our first public showing at PAX Australia 2024. This challenge culminated in the choice of 3-4 short lines of text to emblazon the banner that we hoped would accurately speak to the style and direction of the game. Ultimately, we went with…
- 3RD PERSON ARPG
- TCG TACTICS
- SOULS-LIKE COMBAT
- PvP, PvE, Co-op
It’s a lot, though these are core tenets of the game concept – when taken in as a whole. Labelling it any one of these alone we felt would be a misrepresentation of the vision that was crystallised in our minds but escaped succinct definition.
Going back further, to April 2022, it began simply as a project named Ability Battle (AB) by solo Developer Christian Hodges (of studio The Inflated), to reimagine the abilities/skills system featured in one of our favourite childhood titles, Guild Wars, and specifically, the elegance and player agency of the build system.
Now we’re talking about a system within an RPG that’s 20+ years old, so as the project took shape, it was clear that some adjustments needed to be made to bring the pace in-line with the expectations of a contemporary audience and broaden the scope (to draw in new blood, and not just the 00’s RPG old heads like us). The decision was then made to incorporate the skill-based and technical action of a Souls-like to inject dynamism and pace. Both the AB ability/skill system, and the Souls-like style of movement/mobility are thoughtful and purpose-driven in the same way and ensure that the tactical core identity is retained.
To address the third and last genre from the banner also speaks to another call for modernity…
Not sure about you, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone vouch for the fun of inventory management in an MMORPG. At best, it’s a misaligned and messy reward/progression system; at worst it’s bloat/grind by design. It’s rarely intuitive and generally a vehicle for microtransactions in the form of offering more streamlined storage systems.
“Inventory management is fun”, (No-one, vol. ∞, Ever)
Therefore, in lieu of an inventory system, Bearers would favour a collectible card system with the purpose of intuitive interaction, encapsulating complex mechanics within a card-based framework. This would mean ease of access, shuttling players more quickly into the action, and importantly, work to enhance the player agency through flexibility, encouraging experimentation with builds and discovering synergies, and allowing an overall freedom of expression for the players.
I’m still trying to figure out what would be the best 3-4 lines to put on the banner…
Where is Bearers? #
The first public showing was put together for PAX last year – a simple single-player demo level that allowed the player to try one of 3 basic builds in an open environment, populated with some basic mobs of enemies and a few NPC’s that either gave tips, abilities, or offered to join the player. Ultimately, the objective of the exhibition was to get some eyes on the game, to let people have a feel of the mechanics, give a basic idea of how the ability system will work, and get some feedback.
Early doors, a significant focus was put on developing Bearers as a PvP-first title – with the goal of showcasing the ability/skill system and the dynamic movement in a modern format – a 3v3 PvP Arena.
Of course, it would be accompanied by a PvE campaign – both of which built around party play (again, like an old school RPG), but it was felt that PvP was both a great way to maximize the potential of the system as well as a ceiling-raiser in terms of scope.
The design of the PAX demo was therefore an open PvE setting by necessity rather than choice, as Bearers wasn’t quite ready to host multiplayer Arena battles. This may have been a blessing in disguise, as the sentiment around the demo (despite the bugs) was very positive and led to many enthusiastic questions regarding the open-world RPG experience.
Once back in Queensland and in development and design mode, the call was made to pivot, adjusting priorities to focus firstly on creating the party-based campaign experience to provide players with the full gameplay loop, to build trust in the core systems, and foster a player community rather than rely on an immediate influx of players for a PvP-first mode. With an eye on creating a sustainable future for Bearers, work began on a new Open World Level (OWL).
How is Bearers? #
The Open World Demonstration Level (OWL) 🦉 is the next development target for Bearers. The demo level will aim to provide a richer and more comprehensive experience, serving as both an introduction to the game’s story and a condensed representation of the core gameplay loop that will be featured in the full PvE campaign.
OWL Features…
- Story Prologue – Exordia
- Introduce story of The Chosen Bearer
- Introduce key characters
- Physical movement and combat
- Currency from defeating enemies
- Unlocking abilities with currency
- Using abilities
- Introducing AI companions
- Introducing Shrines - Locations where AI or human companions can join your party
- Forming a party - AI, human, or both
- Finding/Completing quests - Quests to introduce each of the eight professions
- Defeating bosses
- Special reward loot – Earned by defeating bosses, completing quests, or secrets discovered during exploration
- Progressing through the elevation of the level - Difficulty progression compartmentalised and built into world design
If the OWL works as intended, it will serve as an extensive tutorial that will prepare players for the full campaign, and as a proof of concept to inform future development decisions.
When is Bearers? #
We’re aiming to have the Open World Demonstration Level ready by the end of Q2 2025.
To follow the development of Bearers…
- Sign up on the Bearers website to join the mailing list for further dev logs
- Join our Discord channel to stay updated, participate in testing and share feedback to help shape the game’s development.
- Follow us on Bluesky or X
Why Bearers? #
Be the game you want to see in the world 🌏