In the Wizard demo, I did a lot of horrible things to goblins.
According to Alpha Beta Gamer, the retro-style FPS Wizordum(which opens in a new tab) recently obtained its first playable demo as part of the 2022 Realm’s Deep event. This fantasy-themed boomer shooter, influenced by Raven Software’s Heretic and Hexen, has you fling fireballs at goblins in an overrun medieval town.
The art style of Wizordum is undoubtedly its strong point. The game has an extremely colorful, cartoony look, almost as if developer Emberheart Games sunk Hexen in frosting. Almost like those Doom WADs or Counter-Strike maps of the Simpsons House(opens in new tab) or Bikini Bottom (opens in new tab).
The effect is indeed very refreshing, and the demo’s two levels are pleasurable to spend time in. Wizards don’t really place ridiculous demands on the player, though only the second easiest of four planned difficulty levels is currently available. None of the scraps in the demo showcase more than a handful of goblins, and they all abide by pretty typical shooter archetypes. You have melee goblins, beefy melee goblins, and ranged wizard goblins from which to choose.
That’s not necessarily a dig at Wizordum. I expect Emberheart to add more enemy variety as the game nears the end, and it was interesting to play something a little more placed in contrast to the rest of the genre. The arena layout is diverse enough, and the demo’s three weapons (mace, fireball, and icicle machinegun staff) are rewarding to use. The shooting is enjoyable enough and provides as a nice counterpoint to Wizordum’s exploration.
The two levels involve optional areas, some light puzzling, and a bit of key hunting and backtracking that really was complex enough to make me think but not sufficiently so that it decelerated my advancement through the level. Wizordum’s levels are equivalent to Raven’s sprawling, sixth-dimensional tesseract levels, but lightweight.
Once compared to the hardcore combat and grimdark looks discovered in so many boomer shooters, the shooter’s bright aesthetic, easygoing shooting, and chill exploration were like a palette cleanser for me. If you’re interested in Wizordum, you can wishlist it on Steam and perform the demo (opens in new tab), or you can even support Emberheart Games on Patreon (opens in new tab).
