A newly announced PlayStation 5 title seems to be channeling the crafting gameplay and colorful fantasy art style of recent Legend of Zelda games. While much of the discussion surrounding the recent PlayStation Showcase livestream seems to be centered around big reveals like Spider-Man 2’s Symbiote gameplay or the upcoming remake of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, there were plenty of smaller titles being presented.
Meanwhile, the iconic Legend of Zelda series has reached new heights over the past few years thanks to the success of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom - the latter of which was just released on the Nintendo Switch earlier this month. Both of the latest Zelda titles have redefined the long-running series by taking players to a vast open world filled with plenty of secrets to uncover and side quests to complete, with Tears of the Kingdom adding building mechanics to increase the sense of freedom by letting fans build their own custom weapons and vehicles.
A new title from an up-and-coming indie studio named DreamLit seems to be building on the mechanics of the most recent Legend of Zelda sequels for a mystical adventure on the PlayStation 5. Towers of Aghasba was first revealed during this week’s PlayStation Showcase with a brief trailer, in which a young hero must gather resources to rebuild their people’s sacred city. Along the way, players will travel across a vast fantasy world, encounter massive creatures, and work to restore the natural world.
The gameplay shown in the Towers of Aghasba trailer seems very similar to The Legend of Zelda in many ways. Not only do players build homes for their people using the natural resources like Link can in Tears of the Kingdom, but many of Towers of Aghasba’s combat and transversal mechanics mirror those in the last few Zelda games. The main protagonist can be seen hunting creatures with a bow, riding on the back of a horse-like creature, and even using a glider similar to Link’s to travel across chasms.
Of course, Towers of Aghasba has an identity of its own through its more island-like esthetic, and with Tears of the Kingdom being exclusive to the Nintendo Switch there is plenty of room for a polished, Zelda-like experience on the PlayStation 5. Only time will tell if Towers of Aghasba can replicate the successful formula of recent Legend of Zelda entries, but the game’s trailer seems very promising so far.
Towers of Aghasba will launch for PC and PS5 in 2024.