After the initial boom of Indies back in the early 2010s, with titles like Super Meat Boy, Fez, Braid, and LIMBO all paving the way, first-class indie games have become much more frequent, with at least a few Game of the Year contenders releasing every year. Last year saw Kena: Bridge of Spirits, Loop Hero, and Death's Door release, all of which were truly excellent experiences that easily rivaled even the biggest AAA titles. This year, the wonderfully unique Cult of the Lamb may just be the breakaway star of the industry.
Revealed back in August 2021, Cult of the Lamb is equal parts roguelike and city-builder, and boasts a charmingly dark art style that fuses cute woodland creatures, with demonic imagery. Based on the Cult of the Lamb trailers and screenshots released so far, Cult of the Lamb looks like it'll be one of the most unique games of the year, and perhaps one of the best Indie titles. But there's quite a bit potential players should know before the game releases in just a week's time.
Everything To Know About Cult of the Lamb
Cult of the Lamb puts players in the hooves of a recently possessed lamb, who was just saved by a mysterious demon, and thus owes them a life-debt. To repay that debt, the player must begin a cult in the demon's name, and must set out on a journey to gather more resources, and followers. Cult of the Lamb's general gameplay loop is split into two distinct parts: a city-management game, and a roguelike dungeon crawler.
One half of Cult of the Lamb sees the player build up their cult's village from the ground-up, beginning with a simple altar to the demon, and expanding with shacks and buildings, all of which feed into the game's progression system, which sees the player unlock new abilities and progress further in the game's story. To find the materials needed to expand the cult, players must embark on some good old-fashioned dungeon crawling, the second half of Cult of the Lamb's gameplay.
Each of Cult of the Lamb's dungeons and arenas are procedurally generated, with randomized loot, and enemies. Players will need to make their way through the area, eliminate all foes, take what's left behind, and dive deeper into the darkness before they finally come across a boss of a rival cult. Eliminating that boss will grant the player's cult more power and more resources, which can then be used to expand the cult's base of operations. As players continue through Cult of the Lamb, they'll meet a variety of adorable woodland creatures, all of which can be corrupted into joining the player's demonic cult and then used to gain more power and influence.
While the general gameplay loop is what will probably keep players invested in the game, it's the title's distinctive art style that'll draw in crowds. Cult of the Lamb offers a wonderfully unique juxtaposition of adorable cartoon woodland creatures, mixed with satanic and violent imagery, reminiscent of those old YouTube animations like Happy Tree Friends. This art style immediately impressed gamers when Cult of the Lamb was first announced, and it's the feature that's made the game stand out in every showcase since. For those still on the fence, a demo of Cult of the Lamb is currently available on Steam, so there's plenty of opportunity to try out the game before its August 11 release.
Cult of the Lamb releases August 11 2022 for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.