Aethermancer looks like the roguelite monster tamer I’ve always wanted
I don’t know what draws me so much to the RPG subgenre of monster tamers. Maybe it’s the emphasis placed on build and team crafting, the ability to form a party of adorable creatures, or just the satisfaction I get from filling yet another encyclopedia of creatures. Maybe Pokemon was easy The a formative experience for me. Who is to say that? All I know is that monster tamers have a very special itch for me and many others out there.
One of the best monster tamers of recent years is Monster Sanctuary by Moi Rai Games, which combines the classic formula (collect monsters, train them, use them against big bosses and other tamers, etc.) with Metroidvania-style exploration. The monsters all have deep and complex skill trees, competent synergy building is a necessity, and the presentation is a beautiful blend of bright art and charming music. It was a perfect storm of mechanics, sound and gameplay.
A major post-release update added some new gameplay options that added some random elements to the procedure, allowing you to switch between skill trees, monster locations, and items. Random number generators are a big thing now, and for good reason – mixing things up in a beloved game is one of the best ways to keep things fresh. You can’t throw a stone on YouTube without coming across a video of someone randomly picking a Pokemon game or Elden Ring and reacting in complete shock when Brock sends out Godrick the Grafted as his ace or whatever the kids are up to these days . Moi Rai capitalizing on this makes perfect sense, and it’s this understanding of how to extend a game’s lifecycle by adding random elements that makes me feel very confident that his next project will be one to watch out for .
Aethermancer, Moi Rai’s recently announced next project, takes his tried-and-true monster-taming mechanic and brings it away from Metroidvania and into the world of roguelites instead. Roguelites are difficult to get right – they have to be challenging enough to make failure a very real possibility without feeling unfair, and there has to be a sense of incremental progression, whether within or between runs or attempts . The Binding of Isaac is what I would call the quintessential roguelite – death is very easy to achieve in this game, but each run is a learning experience, and the more you play the more tools you unlock, which is what the game does makes it easier bit by bit. To compensate for this, the game gets harder at essentially the same pace, inducing a constant and strong sense of progression.
Roguelite monster tamers have already been tried. The Siralim series is a great example of how the two genres can work well together – in the early hours of a Siralim game, monsters are very simple and have few options to work with, but as you unlock more facilities, is it’s possible to put hours into crafting the perfect monster to take on the toughest of challenges. Siralim nails the sense of progression and fantasies of power, but falls short with its barebones presentation and repetitive gameplay loop that consists largely of random encounters and item gathering. It’s a fun time, but their flaws prevent them from evoking those “oh god, just one more run” or “I just need one more Rabbitexon to finish this area’s Critterdex” feelings that kept us roguelites and monster tamers for hours let play
From what we know about Aethermancer, it sounds like a sense of progression is a big part of the design philosophy. You can use currencies earned through runs to advance between runs, unlock new classes, and power up your monsters. The idea of reviving my favorite monsters between runs and tweaking builds and strategy sounds incredibly fun, and we know that Moi Rai Games has a keen sense of designing combat systems. In terms of presentation, even at such an early stage, Aethermancer looks like a very pretty game and is already a significant improvement over Monster Sanctuary.
I’m wary of putting all my eggs in one basket – it’s all too possible to Hoping for a game we’ve only seen a trailer for. That said, I’m optimistic that Moi Rai Games is up to something great here, and if it can pull it off, it will be a game changer in bringing together two of the most compelling and time-consuming genres. It’s a studio that has stood the test of time and I’m incredibly excited for the next offering.
