Introduction

Every time I turn around, it seems like another open world survival game is releasing. For me, one of my favorites as a teenager was Minecraft, but as I got older I gravitated toward games like Ark or The Long Dark. I realized I wanted more from these experiences — I needed them to be tougher, with less hand-holding. That’s probably why Stormforge by developer Roboto Games caught my attention as a compelling new alternative in the genre. Only the demo is currently available, but we here at SunsetNerdVerse were asked to check it out and share our thoughts. Time to see if Stormforge can rise against the titans of the genre or if it’s just another survival game in a crowded field. Here’s our Stormforge demo review!

Gameplay

Stormforge puts you in the role of a Stormforged, a being capable of harnessing the power of magical storms. After a very quick tutorial that teaches you the basics of combat and crafting, your hero or heroine is dropped into the wilderness and the adventure begins.

From the few hours I spent with the demo, I genuinely enjoyed what I saw. The combat feels fun and distinctly Dark Souls-adjacent — you can dodge, block, and attack with both light and heavy moves. It’s not forgiving either. Miss a dodge or leave yourself open and your warrior will go down fast. I’m a sucker for combat that pushes back, and Stormforge does just enough to make every encounter feel tense and satisfying.

When you’re not fighting monsters and enemies, you’re building and surviving. Like most open world survival games, you’ll collect resources to craft armor, weapons, tools, and shelter. The building system, even at the demo stage, is impressively robust. There are a huge number of ways to construct large structures, limited really only by your own creativity. I can already picture some of my friends and me spending hours raising absurd castles and towers simply because Stormforge lets you do exactly that.

The inventory and leveling systems are simple but intuitive. As you level up, you can specialize your Stormforged into different warrior archetypes: magician, archer, or swordsman. I sampled each class and found all three had their own distinct pros and cons in combat. Archers can engage from range but depend on ammunition and constant movement to stay alive. Swordsmen are powerful up close but go down quickly without proper blocking and dodging. Magicians operate similarly to archers in positioning but bring high-damage magic abilities to the table. None of these classes are particularly original in design, but all three are fun to play and give players a meaningful choice in how they approach the game.

Graphics

Visually, I’m on the fence about Stormforge. Roboto Games clearly went for a blend of comic book fantasy and old-school design sensibilities, and that direction shines most during battles and cutscenes. During general exploration, though, the visuals feel a little dated. This is a demo, so the final product could look considerably more polished, but as it stands, Stormforge looks nice without being awe-inspiring. There’s potential for it to reach higher, but it’s not there yet.

Sound

There isn’t a great deal to say about Stormforge‘s sound design. The music is solid and the atmospheric audio suits the game well enough, but the OST didn’t leave much of an impression. This is pretty typical for me with open world survival games — the mellow ambient tones that most of them lean on, including Stormforge, tend to become background noise fairly quickly. I usually end up switching to my own playlist after a while, and Stormforge was no exception.

Overall Impression

Stormforge has a lot of potential, and I’m genuinely excited for whenever an early access or full release arrives. I can already picture myself spending extended hours building elaborate structures, exploring the map, and grinding toward the ultimate version of my Stormforged warrior. The visuals are a little underwhelming and the OST isn’t particularly memorable, but what I need from an open world survival game is fun, engagement, and enough freedom to feel like my choices matter. Stormforge, even in its current demo state, delivers that.

Conclusion

The Stormforge demo shows a lot of genuine promise, and I’m looking forward to seeing what the full release brings. Roboto Games did what needed to be done: gave players a wide range of ways to engage with the game without trying to go overboard with what’s on offer at this stage. Stay tuned here at SunsetNerdVerse for a full review of Stormforge when it eventually launches (if we can get our hands on it, of course)!