There are perhaps no more classic stories than those where a brave hero rescues a princess from the clutches of a evil villain. Within moments, the release date trailer for Lovish establishes this dynamic with an air of hesitance that only grows as viewers learn more about the game and its characters. Using the pixelated art style of gaming’s classics, Lovish will take players on an adventure through rooms and random encounters on a quest to get the princess back.
The questionable actions and motivations of the game’s main character, Sir Solomon, are illustrated in detail on the Steam store page. Fearing that the princess would not fall in love him, he abandons all of his companions to save her by himself, vowing ominously to “make the princess his”. His ultimate goal will be to defeat the Devil Lord that is responsible for the capture to begin with. While players control him, they will be thrust both through traditional one-room challenges and minigames that test a variety of skills.
While the core of Lovish is based on traversing levels in 2D space comprised of platforms and enemies, the game also incorporates several other genres of gameplay. As players progress, they will occasionally encounter choices that could help or harm their character. The events can also completely change aspects of the game, such as introducing RPG turn-based combat or timed jump challenges. The trailer also shows off a shop that will allow players to augment Solomon’s abilities.
The 8-bit art style complements the classic story set-up of Lovish well. Much like the hints that there is something deeper happening in the story, however, the gameplay goes beyond its inspirations by splashing in challenges that wouldn’t be out of place in other games of the time. Lovish is set to release on February 5th for consoles and PC.