If you’ve been waiting for the arrival of delightful action roguelike Shoulders of Giants on Steam, you can take a look at it in its new, upgraded Unreal Engine 5 form courtesy of a new prologue playable as a free Steam game. First launched in 2023 via the Epic Games Store, the co-op game blends Risk of Rain-style action with a dash of Hades and a cast of Star Fox-style animal companions. It’s preparing to arrive on the Valve store soon, and you can play through the first act in a standalone form right now.
Shoulders of Giants puts you in control of a pair of characters – a sword-swinging robot and a gunslinging space frog standing atop its back. This gives you a blend of melee and ranged options as you progress through a series of open-world, randomized levels either alone or in up to four-player co-op in the manner of some of the best roguelike games such as Risk of Rain 2. Alternatively, you can team up with a friend and take control of each half of the pairing – one the robot, the other the frog – if you’re really looking to push your coordination skills to the limit.
Each run, you’ll come across all manner of loot, from standard weapons for both your characters to other equipment such as grappling hooks and grenades. You’ll also choose upgrades across four different categories – the frog, the robot, survival skills, and core stat improvements – to help you bring down the forces of entropy and restore light across the galaxy.
While a previous demo version gives Steam users a glimpse of the full experience, the new Shoulders of Giants Prologue, available now as a free game, is designed to feel more like a complete taster of what’s to come. Rebalanced to allow the game’s first act to work as a standalone adventure, it’ll also give you the first look at the upgraded Shoulders of Giants Ultimate version on UE5, which also boasts faster-paced gameplay than the original release, along with additional weapons, bosses, and abilities that aren’t present in the Steam demo version.
With a 4.3 out of 5 rating from users on the Epic Games Store, Shoulders of Giants is certainly a game worth your attention if you’re on the hunt for your next co-op adventure. Whether you’ve been waiting for the Steam release or are already a fan who’s eager to see how the UE5 revamp is shaping up, this prologue is a great chance to see how you feel about it before buying in when the full game arrives. It also supports online co-op, so you can bring your crew with you – and at the price of free, you won’t find a much easier sell.
Shoulders of Giants: Prologue is out now on Steam as a free game. It’s a standalone experience showcasing the new-look UE5 version that offers the first act of the full game balanced and tuned to be enjoyed on its own. If you’re curious to try it out, head here to download the prologue, where you’ll also find a link to wishlist the full game, which is set to arrive on Steam sometime in 2024.
For even more action-packed adventures perfect alongside pals, here are the best co-op games to play in 2024. Or take a look through the best indie games on PC to see what else you might have missed from smaller studios.
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