New roguelike Ovis Loop looks like Dead Cells, but puts a smart twist on combat

If you're going to ask audiences to play your action game over and over again to make progress, a good combat system goes a long way. This is part of the reason Dead Cells is so beloved, as well as other roguelikes such as Hades 2, Returnal, and Rogue Legacy 2. The simple act of swinging a sword, shooting projectiles, or dodging enemies is enjoyable enough in each case to make the inevitable failures easier to come back from. It also seems to be the case in Ovis Loop, an upcoming entry to the genre with an inventive combat system you can try for yourself right now thanks to a Steam playtest.

Ovis Loop is a roguelike game whose unique battles, detailed pixel art, and distinctive premise make it stand out in a crowded field. It features a robotic bipedal sheep who fights for survival in a world filled with murderous wolves. This sheep, fortunately enough, is able to battle its enemies with a giant sword. It can also equip and modify skills by 'downloading' them from defeated enemies, with the combination and modification of these skills presented through a deckbuilding-style system.

When defeated, the player loses the equipment and skills they've picked up so far, which makes each level and boss fight harrowing, and experimentation with its combat systems an important requirement.

Ovis Loop is set to come out sometime this year. You can wishlist it, find more details, and sign up for its playtest on Steam right here.

Or, you can check out other games like Ovis Loop with our picks for the best action games and best indie games out on PC now.

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