If you’re a medieval gaming fiend like myself, you would have been overjoyed to see the first gameplay trailer for A Plague Tale: Requiem in the early hours of yesterday mornings’ Xbox & Bethesda Showcase. The rats are back and bigger than ever (I can’t 100% confirm this, but it just sounds better), the horrific reality of what it was actually like to live through the medieval era is on full display and every aspect of the games visuals look gritty, grotesque and absolutely stunning. I am well and truly ready to get my hands dirty.
A Plague Tale: Requiem is set directly after the events of A Plague Tale: Innocence, continuing on with the story of the brother and sister duo travelling across Provence, while dealing with a sickness that’s affecting their family alongside the entire country. As touched on previously, the visuals look astonishing with a balance of dark and dreary city-scenes contrasted against a much more colorful and vibrant environmental which is a welcomed change from it’s predecessor.
One aspect of the showcased gameplay that has me truly excited is that Amicia appears to be a lot less passive in her encounters across France, which might suggest that we can expect to experience a lot more combat in the sequel. In just two minutes of footage we’re presented with Amicia strangling, shooting and stabbing three separate individuals, all of which looked terrifying and exceptionally detailed. I’m a lot more optimistic knowing that with every failed stealth attempt I make throughout my eventual playthrough, I’ll have an array of back-up means of ‘conflict-resolution’ at my disposal. Although no official release date was confirmed in the showcase, it was announced that A Plague Tale: Requiem will be a day-one release on Xbox Game Pass, which just highlights another reason to subscribe to the ever-growing library that Game Pass is offering.
