If I could, I would spend hours in the world of Hyper Light Breaker doing nothing in particular. I’d settle my character on the edge of a bright pastel cliff and gaze into the distance, where crumbling skyscrapers and strange rock formations silhouette against a neon sky. I’d let the soothing electronic soundtrack wash over me and observe the way the day/night cycle changed the Shadow of the Colossus-sized broadsword protruding from the earth in the distance. Maybe I’d see if a friend wanted to chat with this ‘80s sci-fi novel cover as a backdrop, before hopping on a hoverboard and skating off into that whimsical, colorful horizon to see what’s beyond.
But Hyper Light Breaker will not let me roleplay truancy. I’m in the Overgrowth with a purpose: hunting the minions of the Abyss King. For my hands-on preview, developer Heart Machine plunked me into a pre-generated world suitable for a beginner, though in the full game each run will take place in a unique, procedurally generated world. My first foes are little slime creatures easily dispatched with a few sword swings. And I’m delighted to find that each hit feels just as solid and chonky as I hoped back in my original hands-off preview last year. Around a bend are bigger enemies – humanoid creatures with a bit more speed and damage behind them – so I take advantage of a homing melee attack to successfully chain together smooth combos between enemies. A bit further on, I fire a battery-powered gun to dispatch some snipers so I can safely proceed up a steep hill.
I tried three different pre-built loadouts for the demo, though in the final game you’ll be able to customize them however you like. My favorite melee weapon is a pair of knives, fast and snappy but weaker, and I struggle more with an enormous, slow, and hard-hitting broadsword. A shotgun proves useful against packs of wolves, but I like the subtle but helpful snap-aiming feature of the pistol when I spot some weird one-eyed bats flapping around in a nearby forest. As I expected, my favorite special ability drops a giant cube on the heads of everyone in front of me. It’s effective when I’m surrounded and struggling, which I often am, because even in an early demo area Hyper Light Breaker isn’t especially forgiving. I left the demo retaining a vendetta against a giant tree monster that took me out in just a few whacks, and I’m told that guy wasn’t even a boss monster!
Hyper Light Breaker is an extraction roguelike, so while I spent a lot of the demo just putzing around getting a feel for different cool glow swords, it turns out that’s (mostly) a valid strategy early on. The player’s goal is to defeat the Abyss King, who can only be unlocked by besting a series of boss monsters scattered across different biomes in a single run, who in turn are only unlocked by completing a number of other tasks out in the world, most of which also include defeating enemies. The bosses themselves are hard. I met a wolf-themed one that landed on my head and kicked my inexperienced butt in about five seconds flat. Maybe having friends around will help, as Hyper Light Breaker will feature online co-op. But even so, instead of beelining to these guys, early runs at Hyper Light Breaker will largely involve running around, killing smaller stuff, finding upgrades, and taking it to certain points on the map to be extracted and saved for future runs. Then leave before you get killed, and start afresh. Sometimes it’s better to quit while you’re ahead.
With some enemies cleared out I’m able to hop on a hoverboard and scoot around the environment a little, riding over water and neatly gliding down hills. Hyper Light Breaker takes some cues from Solar Ash’s parkour, especially evident in the smooth way you can swoop up on ledges that are juuuuust too high or chain airdashes into other moves. I liked the on-foot movement and the ways in which it gracefully melded into combat, but I’ll just say it: I wish the hoverboard was cooler! It’s a little slow and clunky! I hope they can lean into the Solar Ash of it all and make it feel a little faster and a little more epic.
Missing from the demo was any clue as to Hyper Light Breaker’s story. I did get to run around a little hub town briefly and enjoy its cyberpunk fusions of nature and tech, populated by an adorable cast of NPCs. But none of them spoke to me in this demo. Like Hyper Light Drifter, I’m told Breaker’s story is told in images and not words, and given the pedigree of the studio I’m expecting something lovely. But for now, all I know is I’m a person with a cool sword and a cool gun who keeps going out into the Overgrowth to chase down an Abyss King. I know my ultimate verdict on Breaker is going to hinge heavily on how well it can weave a story through a multiplayer, roguelike structure, but given the excellence of Drifter, I’m willing to let Heart Machine keep its secrets just a little bit longer.
My demo of Hyper Light Breaker largely confirmed everything I’d hoped and expected when I first saw the game a year ago. It’s mysterious and colorful, movement feels good and combat satisfying, enemies are challenging, customization holds promise, and the music belongs on vinyl. Above all, the sheer vibes are impeccable. I feel like I’m walking around an episode of .hack//sign, or that I’ve somehow fallen 5000 years into the future on another planet. I can’t wait to step beyond baby’s first biome and figure out what it all means.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.