Solasta Solasta II - Journey to the Lands of Neokos in the Unreal Engine - coming to Early Access - Demo available

[Crispy]

Still looks like BG3.

 

[gurugeorge]

Still looks like BG3.

Is that supposed to be a bad thing?

 

[Morgoth]

Demo is out?

 

[Infinitron]

DEMO DEMO DEMO DEMO DEMO DEMO

The free demo is available now, offering a glimpse into the expansive world and gameplay mechanics of Solasta II. Embark on your adventure in Neokos today and experience the next chapter in the Solasta saga!

In the Solasta II demo, be ready to venture into the fantastical continent of Neokos, where you’ll be met with its sweeping vistas and fantastical foes. Command a premade party of four heroes – Paladin, Rogue, Sorcerer and Fighter/Cleric - and dive into the mysteries buried beneath the small village of Tor Wen. With a fully revamped UI, enhanced mechanics, deep, tabletop-inspired RPG combat, where every strike and spell is determined by the roll of the dice, you will engage in tactical battles and forge your path through meaningful dialogue choices where your decisions shape the adventure before you.

Stay updated on the latest news and developments by visiting the official Solasta website and following Tactical Adventures on our social media channels.

 

[Infinitron]

There are previews too: https://www.eurogamer.net/solasta-2-is-perfectly-poised-to-fill-a-baldurs-gate-3-void

Solasta 2 is perfectly poised to fill a Baldur's Gate 3 void​

Shiny.


I'm quietly amazed by Solasta 2. Here's a Dungeons & Dragons role-playing experience like Baldur's Gate 3 that actually seems on a par with Baldur's Gate 3, for a change. The clarity with which French studio Tactical Adventures has transposed the hefty Dungeons & Dragons ruleset is astonishing; I actually prefer parts of this interpretation, which is a hell of a thing to say, given the quality of Larian's game. And I don't say that to foster an air of competition, but to stress how accomplished this is.

Presentation-wise, it impresses, too. In my preview build, there's sumptuous detail in the Shire-like village environment, which is all hazy sunshine and swaying meadow flowers, and there's high drama in the rocks and cliffsides suspended as if by magic around them. The characters look nice - this may be the most appealing interpretation of a halfling I've seen - and the kobolds bring humour with their harsh cockney accents and relentless wisecracks. I can't stress enough how much this feels like playing Baldur's Gate 3 - heck, Solasta 2's main villain is even voiced by Baldur's Gate 3 narrator Amelia Tyler - and for the team of 50 or so people making it, that's incredibly impressive.

But let's rewind a tiny bit because Solasta 2 hasn't come out of nowhere. The studio's previous game, Solasta: Crown of the Magister (which is very much the same thing), came out in 2021, and it amassed a lot of praise and goodwill for being a faithful video game recreation of Dungeons & Dragons. There's pedigree here, then, but there are big changes afoot, too.

The series has moved from the Unity engine to Unreal, which entails no small amount of work, and while co-op multiplayer will be a thing here, it's not in the game yet - and probably won't be until nearer its full 1.0 release. The plan, as it stands, is to launch into early access later this year. What I play (and what you can try in a Steam Next Fest demo) is a tiny two-hour-long pre-alpha portion of a presumably much larger game - and how much of the overall experience has been completed so far, I have no idea.

Solasta 2 is a dainty and pretty game. It evokes high fantasy in a strong way. | Image credit: Eurogamer / Tactical Adventures
Nevertheless, I like what I see. It's small details I appreciate, such as how all of your party members are included in conversations rather than just one of them. When you talk to someone, all of your team will proffer a response, often based on their individual strengths - charismatic characters might try to persuade someone or deceive them, whereas stronger characters might try to intimidate. This works a lot like in Baldur's Gate 3, by the way: you'll see their plusses and bonuses and decide which you want to use. Dice rolls, too, are done out front, with a big d20 die spinning on the screen as in Baldur's Gate 3.

But I also like the confidence Solasta 2 shows in occasionally deviating from Dungeons & Dragons rules to provide a better video game experience. Take stealth, for example: it's a subtle change, but when you enter stealth, a wobbly circle appears around a character to denote their noise radius. Heavier armoured tanks will usually have large circles around them while nimble rogues will have small ones. There's also a notice-you gauge that fills before opponents actually notice you. Neither of these things are in the Dungeons & Dragons rules as written, but both make for a better and more intuitive playing experience, I think. There are a number of other "homebrew" rules pulled in like this (all of which are clearly labelled) and there are a number of homebrewed subclasses introduced, too. I've only read about these in blog posts, though, as it's a level of detail the demo doesn't offer yet.

Generally, though, Solasta 2 is a rigorously researched and meticulously implemented Dungeons & Dragons affair. And on that note, there's a not-insignificant chance it will be the first major D&D video game to use the updated 2024 Dungeons & Dragons rules. Tactical Adventures is waiting on the official Systems Reference Document 5.2 to be released, which is expected to arrive within weeks of the 2025 Monster Manual coming out, the latter of which launched just this week on 18th February.

I doubt menus will excite you like they excite me, but look how clear and organised these are. I particularly like the spell book and the little dice icons showing the damage you'll roll. Also - not a small point - but what kind of person names one of their central characters Knut? | Image credit: Eurogamer / Tactical Adventures
Everywhere in Solasta 2's demo there is detail and expertise to appreciate. The characters have strong personalities and decent voice work - the dwarf is posh and not Scottish! - and there are multiple approaches to solving situations you'll find yourself in. Do you talk, do you fight, do you sneak? Pathfinding is swift, with toggle-able click-to-move or direct-move controls, and you can jump and swim with the press of a button rather than having to select it as an ability, as in Baldur's Gate 3. There's a lot to like.

But there's a lot to wonder about as well. I've seen but a glimpse of the game here, and I've no idea how much beyond this nicely realised area has actually been built. How much choice and consequence will there be in the wider world, for example, and how reactive will the story of the world and my companions be? All I know is there's an evil villain on the loose and that me and my pals are all orphans with the same (later-given) surname - none of which strikes me as particularly interesting or original. But perhaps it will be: it's so hard to tell. There's so much left to see.

One thing is for certain though: there couldn't be a better time for a game like this to slip into the void left by Baldur's Gate 3. It arrives in a world both prepared and excited for exactly this kind of experience. Solasta 2 could do very well indeed.

https://www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/s...namely-killing-things-and-taking-their-stuff/

Solasta 2 is a CRPG that's all about the traditions of the genre—namely, killing things and taking their stuff​

In turn-based fashion, like the gods intended.

(Image credit: Tactical Adventures)

Larian can afford to make something other than a sequel to Baldur's Gate 3 for its next game. Tactical Adventures, which is a substantially smaller studio responsible for a game it's probably sick of seeing called "the other D&D 5E CRPG", has less freedom to subvert expectations. And so 2021's Solasta: Crown of the Magister is being followed by Solasta 2, due in early access later this year, and with a demo launching as part of Steam Next Fest.

The standalone 2.5-hour sidequest in the demo definitely shows some improvement. The acting's better, and they've got Amelia Tyler from BG3 to be the villain (a purple fungus witch called Shadwyn). The faces and hair have improved too, with everyone sporting cool tattoos, though I don't love the elves having moth eyebrows like in Warcraft. The character creator's unfortunately off-limits for the demo, which hands me a premade party of four level-three heroes—including a multiclass fighter/cleric. Unlike the original, Solasta 2 will let us make our own multiclassed abominations. Which is nice.

(Image credit: Tactical Adventures)
It begins by setting me up to solve the problems of a coastal village, which means settling a disagreement between locals via skill check. The delight I feel seeing a d20 spin across the top of the screen may be a kind of stolen valor, but I feel it all the same.

Talking to the locals is all prelude before the seafood buffet that awaits in the wilderness, which is a beach and a set of damp caves. My first fights are not with the traditional giant rats but giant crabs, and are an underwhelming introduction to Solasta 2. The most memorable parts of the original were encounters like a fight with spiders who crawled along the walls of a floating magical library, or with a vampire who countered my light with a zone of darkness. They were 3D battles with verticality. The second time I fight crabs in Solasta 2, they prove unable to cross a low barrier in the sand.

What's more frustrating is that I'm trying to protect some fisherfolk who are apparently suicidal. Armed only with daggers they charge headlong into danger, and even with my paladin alongside I can't save them all.


While the crabs have to be fought, the cave's kobolds are more susceptible to charm and I pass a skill check to win them over. They've been riled up by a cult that's messing with a magical nexus further into the caves, and my next quest is to go and deal with them. The deep caves are cut off by water, however, and I have to take a long rest to bring on low tide and open up the demo's final area.

(Image credit: Tactical Adventures)
The setpiece that ensues is the highlight of my time with Solasta 2. While protecting the big glowy nexus, which ticks closer to exploding if I don't spend one character's action each turn calming it down, I'm attacked by waves of corrupted rock-folk and kobolds gone bad. Each turn a section of the map falls away as ground shakes and arcane lightning strikes. Fortunately the kobolds I befriended turn up halfway to help out.

Though it doesn't quite have the homebrew chaos of a fight in Baldur's Gate 3 (shove is a full action here, as per D&D's rules, rather than the generous bonus action of BG3), positioning and movement matter. There's a real satisfaction to a well-placed shatter spell, or lining up a sneak attack with my rogue (though that's made harder because I can't hide once combat has started for some reason). Though the demo ends immediately after, this setpiece is what sells me on Solasta 2. The story, setting, and characters may be perfunctory, but as long as I get a string of combats full of interesting decisions like this I'll play it anyway.

You'll be able to play Solasta 2's demo during Next Fest on Steam.

 

[Infinitron]

Preview roundup:

But Why Tho?
COGconnected
Comics Gaming Magazine
DualShockers
Eurogamer
IGN
PC Gamer
PCGamesN
Pro Game Guides
RPG Site
RPGamer
The Nerd Stash

 

[Artyoan]

Odd. They said the 24th but its available to download now. 10 gig download.

 

[Infinitron]

Odd. They said the 24th but its available to download now. 10 gig download.

There was a hint:

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

Demo gameplay:

 

[whydoibother]

Demo is out?

Its on Steam.

 

[Moonrise]

Just finished the demo. Seems better than the first in every way. The models, animations and VA are pretty good. It's still very 5e obviously, which you either like or don't like. I'm a little shocked to be excited about an upcoming game.

 

[Mortmal]

Well, that’s certainly a very good first impression, and they were right to focus on it—you only get one chance to make a first impression. The first few screens you see feature jagged cliffs covered in flowers, along with a highly detailed party that fits the classic RPG adventurer archetype, complete with well-crafted armor and clothing. The sense of verticality is still present, and the first combat encounter is already satisfying, without an overabundance of health items. The game is absolutely gorgeous, and honestly, it feels a bit surreal to be this excited for an upcoming release again.

 

[Abu Antar]

How are the menus?

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.solasta-game.com/news/195-solasta-ii-demo-is-live-now

Solasta II Demo is live NOW!​

Look alive, adventurer.

Roll me a perception check. NATURAL TWENTY? Well well well, among the sea of Dev Updates you find yourself a little gem - a message of a single line buried deep beneath a mound of words. It reads… The demo is available. Now.


We couldn’t wait until Steam Next Fest actually started to put the game in your hands.

As a quick reminder, if you aren’t aware of the content of the demo, we wrote an article about it here: https://www.solasta-game.com/news/194-dev-update-09-ready-for-the-demo



Want to take beautiful screenshots? CTRL+H is your friend!

Now we don’t have a photo mode quite yet (and probably not for a long while), but our programmers have implemented a quick shortcut to hide the UI so you can take nice screenshots without the UI cluttering the screen!

With and without UI, you just need to press that ctrl+H!

And… Here’s a little tip from yours truly - the UI is hidden, but it’s still there. So if you want to take screenshots of your characters preparing a spell, or arming an attack - try clicking where the buttons are and watch them take their battle pose!

Even if the buttons aren’t visible, they still work! Here Joralas is getting to cast Ray of Frost!

Houston I think we have a problem…

While we hope you don’t run into any unpleasant bugs or crashes, them buggers are always lurking in the shadows, hiding from devs while hunting for players. In order to combat that, we now have a Support Page available with plenty of help and known issues that we’ll keep up to date.

No more hunting left and right for information - instead of searching through Discord, Steam and news articles, you can head to the Support Page!

You will also be able to report any bug you come across and write feedback about the game through our demo online form. As a reminder, some questions are Optional - you don’t have to answer those if you don’t want to, such as giving us your email address for us to contact you if we need more info (you can leave that blank).



Make sure you send us plenty of feedback so we can improve the game as much as we can!

Article by Tactical Myzzrym

 

[Alienman]

Wow, I'm impressed. You can play it as a third-person RPG from the get-go on PC without having to mess with mods - unlike BG3. The game feels good so far, and it looks good too. The characters remain charming as in the first game. This looks really promising. However, I did have performance slowdowns in the cave. And I can't figure out how to drop unwanted weapons.

 

[Lacrymas]

There's definitely something wrong with the ground textures, lol

 

[GentlemanCthulhu]

This is really impressive. A massive improvement over the original, which I thought was already quite nice. Quickly shot up my most anticipated games list.

 

[Nifft Batuff]

For a moment I thought it was the demo of Veilguard.

 

[Denim Destroyer]

I can look at the characters and not want to gouge my eyes out! I hope the full game maintains the level of improvement the demo displayed over Solasta 1. Lots fun and only took me two hours so I recommend giving it a shot if you have the time to spare.

 

[Lacrymas]

First impressions after fixing the ground textures - the game is really struggling to run. Severely unoptimized. Pre-alpha indeed. Other than that, they definitely don't have the budget to pull something like this off. The facial animations are comically exaggerated, every piece of loose fabric flaps wildly in the wind, textures pop up like nobody's business and that hair needs grooming. It seems like small fishing villages are as multicultural as a major metropolis irl. I don't see this appealing to me, just like Solasta 1, it has that modern D&D vibe I don't particularly get along with.

 

[Mortmal]

First impressions after fixing the ground textures - the game is really struggling to run. Severely unoptimized. Pre-alpha indeed. Other than that, they definitely don't have the budget to pull something like this off. The facial animations are comically exaggerated, every piece of loose fabric flaps wildly in the wind, textures pop up like nobody's business and that hair needs grooming. It seems like small fishing villages are as multicultural as a major metropolis irl. I don't see this appealing to me, just like Solasta 1, it has that modern D&D vibe I don't particularly get along with.

50 FPS with all settings on Epic, running the game in 4K on a 4070, no dlss on —struggling and unoptimized?

 

[Artyoan]

I'm not having any performance issues at all on the highest settings and with a mid pc. Not done with the demo yet and I'll assemble my list of positives/negatives/suggestions when I'm done.

But so far I'll echo the sentiments that this is really impressive for a demo. Also wanted to comment that this won't be completely foreign to Solasta 1 in terms of the setting despite being on a new continent. There are not only Manacalon ruins present but Shadwyn is directly connected to established lore in a comment made by an NPC. Though that won't be obvious without having read part of the Solasta source book on what the Fallen are.

 

[mediocrepoet]

First impressions after fixing the ground textures - the game is really struggling to run. Severely unoptimized. Pre-alpha indeed. Other than that, they definitely don't have the budget to pull something like this off. The facial animations are comically exaggerated, every piece of loose fabric flaps wildly in the wind, textures pop up like nobody's business and that hair needs grooming. It seems like small fishing villages are as multicultural as a major metropolis irl. I don't see this appealing to me, just like Solasta 1, it has that modern D&D vibe I don't particularly get along with.

50 FPS with all settings on Epic, running the game in 4K on a 4070, no dlss on —struggling and unoptimized?

It doesn't even boot on my Vic-20!

 

[Lacrymas]

First impressions after fixing the ground textures - the game is really struggling to run. Severely unoptimized. Pre-alpha indeed. Other than that, they definitely don't have the budget to pull something like this off. The facial animations are comically exaggerated, every piece of loose fabric flaps wildly in the wind, textures pop up like nobody's business and that hair needs grooming. It seems like small fishing villages are as multicultural as a major metropolis irl. I don't see this appealing to me, just like Solasta 1, it has that modern D&D vibe I don't particularly get along with.

50 FPS with all settings on Epic, running the game in 4K on a 4070, no dlss on —struggling and unoptimized?

I'm getting 22 FPS on the lowest settings and 15 on max settings. There's definitely something up. There's also this awful shimmering effect around the characters when they move and it looks dreadful.

 

[mediocrepoet]

First impressions after fixing the ground textures - the game is really struggling to run. Severely unoptimized. Pre-alpha indeed. Other than that, they definitely don't have the budget to pull something like this off. The facial animations are comically exaggerated, every piece of loose fabric flaps wildly in the wind, textures pop up like nobody's business and that hair needs grooming. It seems like small fishing villages are as multicultural as a major metropolis irl. I don't see this appealing to me, just like Solasta 1, it has that modern D&D vibe I don't particularly get along with.

50 FPS with all settings on Epic, running the game in 4K on a 4070, no dlss on —struggling and unoptimized?

I'm getting 22 FPS on the lowest settings and 15 on max settings. There's definitely something up.

What are your system specs? RAM, processor, GPU, etc?