In a gaming landscape dominated by Dark and Darker on Steam, a new player is stepping into the arena, aiming to capture the spotlight. Dungeonborne, introduced as Project Crawl in September 2023, is making waves with its Steam Next Fest demo, reminiscent of the successful dungeon-extractor Ironmace’s offering.
Dungeonborne’s concept is straightforward: players choose a fantasy character class, team up with fellow heroes, and delve into dungeons to battle monsters, loot treasures, and survive. The game adds an extra layer of intensity as a closing ring gradually forces players closer together, leading to inevitable confrontations both with each other and the dungeon’s inhabitants. Success means acquiring funds for better equipment, while failure at least grants valuable experience.
Despite some rough edges, such as initial connectivity issues, the game has already garnered attention on Steam with over 17,000 concurrent players, an impressive feat for a debut title from the relatively unknown developer, Mithril Interactive. Dungeonborne’s resemblance to Dark and Darker is striking, sparking discussions about the game’s similarities on Steam forums.
While the dungeon-crawling genre inherently shares common elements, the parallels between Dungeonborne and Dark and Darker are significant. Mithril Interactive has explicitly distanced itself from Nexon, the publisher that took legal action against Ironmace, the developer of Dark and Darker, alleging the unauthorized use of source code and assets.
The most notable difference between the two lies in their availability on Steam. Dark and Darker, despite Nexon’s injunction reportedly being dismissed, remains absent from the platform. This presents an opportunity for Dungeonborne to capitalize on the absence and potentially overshadow its predecessor.
The question remains: how will Nexon and Ironmace respond to Dungeonborne’s emergence? While Nexon may lack grounds to object, the possibility of legal action from Ironmace looms, especially if Dark and Darker is declared an entirely original project in the future.
For enthusiasts eagerly awaiting Dark and Darker’s return to Steam, Dungeonborne offers a close alternative. The demo is accessible until the conclusion of the Steam Next Fest on February 12, providing a taste of what may be the next big contender in the extraction-dungeon-crawling genre.
