Red Candle Games, the Taiwanese studio behind critically acclaimed horror adventure game Detention, has announced that its next project will feature a change in genre as the studio looks to bring to life an action game inspired by From Software’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.
As announced on Twitter, Red Candle Games’ next project is Nine Sols – “a lore rich hand-drawn 2D action platformer with Sekiro-inspired deflection-focused combat.” While very few details have been revealed about the game, the studio has teased the game’s premise with a short statement alongside some art.
According to the tweet, players entering Nine Sols will “Embark on a journey of Asian fantasy, explore the land once home to an ancient alien race & follow a vengeful hero’s quest to slay 9 Sols, rulers of a forsaken realm.”
WIP title #NineSols, a lore rich hand-drawn 2D action platformer with Sekiro-inspired deflection-focused combat. Embark on a journey of Asian fantasy, explore the land once home to an ancient alien race & follow a vengeful hero’s quest to slay 9 Sols, rulers of a forsaken realm pic.twitter.com/yRy4yHtlnF
— redcandlegames (@redcandlegames) December 16, 2021
As can be seen above, the additional concept art shared by the studio depicts what appears to be an anthropomorphic cat gazing into its own reflection in a pool of blood. While further details surrounding the game’s plot are yet to be revealed, it seems as though it may draw on a blend of natural and technological themes.
Where one of the corpses on the ground in the background appears to have a mechanical limb protruding from its lifeless body and the floor of the massacre is giving off the same green vibes as an old motherboard might, a beautifully showcased natural world can be seen reflected somewhat ironically in the artworks blood-soaked scene of death and destruction.
While Nine Sols now has an official title, this isn’t the first time that the studio has shown off footage from the game. Earlier this year, the developer teased a short 12-second clip on Twitter depicting the game’s crisp 2D art style and the build-up to a combat sequence.
Work in progress pic.twitter.com/yPiNIWEOv6
— redcandlegames (@redcandlegames) March 19, 2021
Nine Sols will be Red Candle Games’ third project. In 2017, the studio released its critically acclaimed horror adventure game Detention, in which players find themselves trapped and vulnerable in a cursed high school. Following the success of Detention, the studio returned to the horror genre once again with its launch of Devotion in 2019.
Similar to Detention, the 2019 horror was also initially welcomed with critical praise. However, only a week after launch, the game became inundated with poor reviews from Chinese citizens. These came as the result of an included art asset in the game, which drew comparisons likening Chinese President Xi Jinping to Winnie the Pooh.
Following the controversy, the game was delisted by Steam and remains off the platform to this day. In 2021, the game became available digitally for the first time in two years where it can be downloaded from the studio’s very own e-shop.
Given the high praise that the studio’s first two games received – controversial Winnie the Pooh memes aside – Nine Sols could certainly be a game to keep on your radar in the future. While the studio continues to tease details about the action-platformer’s development, it has remained silent over a potential release date for the game.
Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.