At this year’s Game Developers Conference, Danish indie developer BetaDwarf has announced that their RPG hit FORCED is coming to Xbox One.
FORCED is a co-operative 1-4 player action RPG, taking place in a mysterious fantasy universe, where players are trapped as gladiators, forced to fight for their lives. Their only help is their Spirit Guide, Balfus, who’s the only one, who can interact with the many magical shrines, scattered about in the arenas. Combat in FORCED is quick and reaction-based, utilizing a mark system, to allow players to use tactics where they are marking and finishing enemies between them. Players can choose between four different classes, each with its own set of skills and perks. And progress is carried over between classes, letting players experiment without risk.
After a rather interesting production cycle, that included but was not limited to: living illegally in an unused university classroom, a team working for no pay up front, a Kickstarter and personal loans as security, FORCED launched to rave reviews back in Ocotber 2013. After selling 150,000 copies on PC, Mac and Linux, the game will receive a new lease on life via ID@Xbox, Microsoft’s new tool for indie developers to flex their creativity in the console realm.
Steffen Kabbelgaard (BetaDwarf CEO) said:
“We’re super excited to be working with the newest console technology, and we are really happy to be able to let a whole new group of potential gladiators experience our game….FORCED has been built from the ground up to support twin-stick controls, as well as online and local multiplayer, so the transition to console is completely natural. And with Xbox One, we won’t have to worry about shortage of computing power.”
Though there is no firm release date for the Xbox One version of FORCED, Steffen Kabbelgaard has expressed that the process will be “significantly faster” than the development of the original version of the game. So good news there. In the meantime, enjoy the screenshots and visit the official site if you feel like learning more. Though it’s not like your being FORCED to do so…
