Gord, coming from the new Polish developer Covenant, is an eclectic blend of genres. It mixes city building, survival, strategy, and action-adventure elements with procedurally generated gameplay. Naturally, such a mash up of genres and subgenres isn’t new. However, what will immediately catch your eye isn’t the gameplay of Gord, but its theme. The game is a dark fantasy inspired by Slavik folklore, with an emphasis on dark. Led by prior CD Projekt Red producer Stan Just, Gord will be out on PC via Steam in 2022.
Gord uses color brilliantly. Close up, buildings in your settlement, as well as nearby environmental features and monsters, glow with a muted palette. Just beyond your limited field of vision, however, the world around you fades to black and white. It presents a striking dichotomy. Of course, color or not, your people will have to contend with Gord‘s awful-looking monsters. I hope you’re not afraid of spiders. Frankly, I’m less of a fan of that haggard, boil-ridden tree monster. Nightmare.
Gameplay seems to be split among multiple styles in Gord. As a city builder, you lead your tribe and protect them by creating and defending your gord. Like with most city builders, you’ll start off with a small settlement before moving on to larger, more defendable city. That last part is key, as the game includes opposing tribes, monsters, and “mysterious powers” that assault you from the monochrome forest just beyond your vulnerable walls. You also have to keep an eye on your citizens’ sanity, as sickness, hunger, and death gnaw away at fragile psyches.
A walk through darkened wood
Gord‘s other gameplay element lies with taking quests. Side missions have you leave the safety of your gord and take on monsters face-to-horrifying-face. These quests can include hunting down certain beasts or legendary creatures, or discovering secrets about something called the “Ancients.” Combat involved melee, as well as the use of offensive and defensive spells.
The game is still in development, and won’t see the light of day (or dark of night) for some time. However, you can get more information on Gord at its new Steam page before it heads to PC in 2022.
