With haunting, war-torn levels, environmental destruction, a substantial weapon mod system, and extrasensory abilities, it's hard to believe that Trench Tales is made by just a single developer. This third-person horror shooter gives off huge Resident Evil vibes, but its WW1 setting and focus on gunplay makes it alluring to fans of Battlefield 1 or Sniper Elite, and now its creator is recruiting playtesters to help refine the experience.
Set in alternate history at the end of the First World War, war games that are totally grounded in realism, there are mysterious energies and powers at play here. The soldiers you'll encounter aren't just hostile because they're on the opposing side of the conflict, but also due to them being reanimated. A dark force is seeing fallen soldiers return from the dead, alongside some imposing and powerful warlords.
As well as wielding WW1 weaponry, which is highly customizable thanks to Trench Tales' gunsmith system, you can use some dark magic of your own to trigger abilities that'll help you survive. Whether it's healing more quickly, scanning enemies and tracking them through walls, or slowing down time, you can channel this mysterious energy for your own benefit.
While not on quite the same scale as the Battlefield series, there is some environmental destruction that you can utilize as well. You could use explosives to blast a hole in a wall to create a new sight line, or to maybe carve out a path away from a hot spot of enemy activity – just make sure they don't hear the boom.
Developer Talking Drums, which is remarkably a one-person-band, has already hosted one playtest for Trench Tales, but now it's gearing up for another. If you participated in the first one, you'll automatically get access to this new test, but it's also opening things up further and letting new players request access over on its Steam page.
The new playtest for Trench Tales begins on Friday, April 18 and concludes on a currently unspecified date "next week," according to Talking Drums.
Once you've got your fill of Trench Tales, check out some of the other titles on our best action games lists.
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