Summary
Fans who are still disappointed aboutScalebound’s cancelation almost seven years ago may be excited to learn aboutDragonhold, a new multiplayer fantasy game that gives players the ability to do something that’s surprisingly seldom done in video games.Dragonholdis being developed by an independent studio known as Exis Interactive. In the past, Exis has assisted in the development ofrenowned titles likeXCOM: Enemy Unknown, XCOM 2,BioShock Infinite,and more.
Back toward the beginning of the messy Xbox One generation, Xbox’s partnership with renown Japanese action game studio PlatinumGames for the dragon-riding fantasy action-RPGScaleboundwas one of few sources of excitement for many Xbox fans. PlatinumGames had previously been known for popular, well-recieved titles likeBayonetta, Vanquish,andMetal Gear Rising: Revengeance.Thus, its thrilling 2014 announcement ofScaleboundwas met with much excitement and anticipation from Xbox fans. Sadly, Xbox’s scrapping of the project in early 2017 reportedly put a strain on its relationship with PlatinumGames. Despite recent rumors of Platinum’s Vice President Hideki Kamiya wishing to make amends with Xbox andstart fresh on revivingScalebound,nothing official has been pubically confirmed.
RELATED:PlatinumGames Still Wants To Do Scalebound
Now, gamers who are still looking to experience riding fearsome dragons in a fantastical open-world setting afterScalebound’s disheartening cancelationcan turn their attention toward Exis Interactive’sDragonhold. Revealed with a post on Exis' website, the studio detailed thatDragonholdwill feature both PvP and PvPvE gameplay, and will allow players to mount huge dragons in combat, which was the big draw with PlatunimGames’Scaleboundnearly a decade ago. The post goes on to mention thatDragonholdwill feature ranged and melee on-foot combat, as well as a set of unique characters to play as and dragons to ride.
Dragonholdwill launch exclusively on Steam with two different multiplayer modes. The PvPvE Extraction mode will have players team up to fight world bosses and secure loot, while the PvP Supremacy mode sees players battle each other across the skies atop their mighty dragons. It’s interesting to see an extraction-based multiplayer experience in a fantasy setting, as they’re usually military or sci-fi shooters likeEscape From TarkovorBungie’s upcomingMarathon. Despite riding dragons being the star of the show,Dragonhold’s on-foot melee combat still looks surprisingly satisfying, and players will be able to transition seamlessly from their dragons, diving down to the ground to fight on-foot.
WhileDragonholdmay seem like it’ll appeal to the gamers who were once excited forScaleboundon Xbox One, PlatunimGames' titlewas going to be a single player action-RPG with a cool, headphone-wearing protagonist and a compelling narrative;Dragonholdis strictly online multiplayer. Time will tell ifDragonholdwill be able to stake its claim on a portion of the multiplayer gaming world as an extraction-based spiritual successor to the unreleased Xbox-exclusiveScalebound.
