I’ve been holding back on Hades 2. I briefly dipped into Supergiant’s hugely anticipated sequel when it hit early access, but I’m inclined to wait until it’s finished to experience the story in full. Fortunately, Sworn is here to scratch that action roguelike itch, and it’s much more than a simple King Arthur spin on the traditional format. With a wealth of build options at launch and support for up to four-player co-op, its corrupted Camelot is a promising playground that I’m prepared to pour plenty of time into exploring.
I first had the chance to play Sworn with the team from Windwalk Games at Gamescom 2024, and if I hadn’t been booked in to interview the legendary duo of Shinji Mikami and Suda51 afterwards I would have struggled to put it down. From the moment you put your hands on the controls, it’s clear how closely the central progression and systems of Sworn resemble those of Hades. Where Supergiant is building on that structure with new characters and narrative, however, Windwalk makes its case with something the best roguelikes thrive on – a bountiful buffet of build options.
At launch, Sworn includes four playable characters: Vigilante, Rook, Spectre, and Monk. Each of them has a distinct play style, which you can build on further with a choice of four unique weapons and spells for each. Do the math there and you have 64 potential loadout combinations (16 per character) before you even head out on a run. From that base, you’ll create a build by altering and enhancing your skills with blessings from the Fae Lords, with a total of 331 to be discovered in the early access version – suffice it to say you’ll have plenty of chances to experiment, then.
Along with more general upgrade trees that boost things like core stats, health regen, and your chance of getting rare boons and drops, each weapon also features its own skill network perfectly fitted to its outline. These aren’t just pure number boosting, either – they typically offer a choice between different benefits. The Spectre’s scythe, for example, can build souls naturally over time or as she hits enemies, and can spend them either to heal her or to deal bonus damage based on the number she’s gathered.
Of course, this is just the start. You’ll travel across the lands of Camelot in an attempt to stop the tyrannical rule of a corrupted King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. From early forests through the rat-infested Cornwall Township and Lovecraftian Deep Harbor, you’ll make your way to the castle of Camelot itself. Along the way you’ll encounter plenty of iconic figures from Arthurian lore as major and minor encounters – indeed, in the final zone almost every enemy acts as a miniboss of sorts, demanding careful attention to overcome.
The boss fights are the real highlight, and there are ten to discover as you progress through the four biomes. These have some clever attack patterns allowing them to adapt to whether you’re fighting solo or coming in with a group of friends. You might see more dangerous area-of-effect attacks against your group, perhaps, or tracking projectiles that each lock onto separate players to keep you all on your toes.
Sworn might not be doing anything to dramatically innovate on the formula, but instead it’s a robust, comprehensive offering packed with depth from day one. The Arthurian setting is a perfect fit, and the ability to play in co-op is a fantastic addition. Game director Sam Leonard notes that the early access launch is just the beginning, and that the team has “multiple content releases planned ASAP for some much-requested features” and “tons of new content coming” after that.
Sworn is out now on Steam in early access, with a 20% discount available if you buy it before Tuesday February 11. Expect to pay $19.99 / £19.99 during the sale period, or $24.99 / £24.99 once it ends. Get it here – I’ll certainly be diving in to put my skills to the test against the fallen knights.
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