Streaming live to millions of viewers around the world during The Game Awards 2022, Digital Extremes (Warframe) and Airship Syndicate (Ruined King: A League of Legends Story) unveiled Wayfinder – a new character-based, online action RPG led by creative director Joe ‘Mad’ Madureira (Battle Chasers, Darksiders, Ruined King: A League of Legends Story), adventuring to PC and console platforms in 2023. Geoff Keighley and Joe Mad premiered a gameplay trailer during the world reveal introducing viewers to the Gloom, an invading sinister threat that players, using the ancient power of their Gloom Dagger, can use to control their gameplay experience:
“Developing new IPs and fantasy worlds is one of our greatest joys, and our studio was built around that same purpose,” said Joe Madureira, Creative Director of Wayfinder and CEO of Airship Syndicate. “I hope the world of Wayfinder is a place millions of players enjoy returning to and immersing themselves in for years to come.”
The world of Evenor is being consumed by the foul force of the Gloom. As Wayfinders, lights amidst the darkness in a world consumed by Gloom, players must control the chaos and reconnect a fractured world as they choose a unique path through an online world of endless action and adventure. To cease the Gloom’s devastating decay of Evenor, players will choose from a variety of Wayfinders (characters) to control, each with their own unique story, play styles, and abilities, harnessing their power together to defend Evenor from forces that seek to destroy it.
“This is the game we’ve always wanted to make, and we finally found the right partner in Digital Extremes to make it real,” said Wayfinder Creative Director and President of Airship Syndicate Ryan Stefanelli. “We can’t wait to get it in player’s hands, using their feedback and conversations to make it special. Especially in the upcoming tests!”
Uniting with fellow Wayfinders, players will use their Gloom Dagger to adventure into Lost Zones – dungeon-like areas touched and consumed by the Gloom – resulting in shifting change and chaos. Wayfinders can control the chaos with their Gloom Dagger, an ancient artifact of obscure origin, strategically implementing mutators that can dictate enemies encountered, items and resources dropped, and more. Wayfinders attempting to control this chaos will find the Gloom pushing back – implementing its own augmentations and modifiers to enemy damage, environmental hazards, and more where no two play sessions are the same.
- CONTROL THE CHAOS: Customize every play experience by stepping through a doorway of endless action with the help of a mysterious device known as a Gloom Dagger. Each adventure has unique modifiers and challenges you conjure and control, customizing what you hunt, and gather.
- BECOME A WAYFINDER: Born of the Gloom, Wayfinders wield arcane magic, mystical tech, or cunning weapons, to restore the balance of a broken world. Customize the way you fight by choosing your weapons and gear and augmenting your powers with the Echoes of your fallen foes.
- EXPLORE AND COLLECT: Embark on hunts and expeditions to discover new locations, battle new enemies and even awaken powerful Wayfinders. Collect and craft weapons and gear as you complete your Atlas and increase Mastery. Participate in live events with ongoing character-driven content updates.
- STRONGER TOGETHER: Wayfinders are stronger together. From adventuring with friends to developing your Apartment and its powerful buffs to a neighborhood, all of your social interactions, character and housing progression are tied together by the most important thread… each other.
“Four years ago when we set out on this journey with Airship Syndicate to build Wayfinder we had high hopes and expectations,” said Richard Browne, head of external projects at Digital Extremes. “The World they have created, the characters that inhabit it, and the ever-changing adventures players can encounter truly live up to the dreams we held. I can’t wait for players to band together and help push back the Gloom from Evenor.”
A Closed Playtest program for Wayfinder was also unveiled. Beginning Tuesday, December 13, accepted PC players can experience hands-on access to Wayfinder in its development stage as Airship Syndicate solicits feedback and continues to refine and improve the game through to launch. Interested players can apply for the Wayfinder PC Playtest now. Additional details on how to access the PC Playtest will be provided to accepted players by email. PlayStation Playtests will be operated in January, opening up hands-on access to Wayfinder exclusively for players on PlayStation consoles, in addition to continued support for players on PC. Additional information will be available soon.
Wayfinder will operate an Early Access Program in Spring 2023 on PC and PlayStation consoles, and will be free-to-play on multiple platforms in Fall 2023, embracing Digital Extremes’ free-and-fair monetization philosophy. For more information about Wayfinder, visit the official game website and follow Wayfinder on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Discord, and Reddit to stay updated on the latest news. For more information about developer Airship Syndicate, visit www.airshipsyndicate.com. For information about publisher Digital Extremes, visit www.digitalextremes.com.
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