Drifting Lands shows that people want game mashups … until they don’t

Change is a risky proposition. As much as gaming celebrates new concepts, it also thrives on the traditions that shape our expectations. Sometimes breaking from those traditions pays off, as we’ve seen with games such as Rocket League or Crypt of the Necrodancer. This is what happens when it backfires.

We tried to bring something new to the table with Drifting Lands, as we do with every project at Alkemi Games. Creating an entirely new genre is no easy feat, but we often try to blend elements of multiple genres into a new experience. Drifting Lands was the product of such an experiment. The core idea was to create the illegitimate offspring of Diablo and R-Type. It would be a true action role-playing game experience with a long progression of increasing difficulty, a complex loot system, a plethora of skills with which to refine your playstyle, and tons of replay value as you grind beyond the main story in search of epic gear.