Baldur’s Gate 3 proved that what was once old can be made new again, as Larain’s sequel to the beloved RPG series quickly took over Steam and continues to thrive more than a year after launch . Dark Souls, meanwhile, proved that this challenge, and how it puts players through immense obstacles, can work in favor of a game’s design rather than against it. Put these two games together, and you have Alaloth. This RPG may look like the classics on the surface, but underneath there’s so much more to discover. Better yet, it just launched on Steam 1.0 with a sale, with more planned for 2025.

This comparison between Dark Souls and Baldur’s Gate isn’t just me either, because Alaloth developer Gamera Interactive places it at the top of the RPGThe Steam page of. You play from an isometric perspective, but instead of engaging in methodical turn-based combat, Alaloth forces you to fight in real time. This means timing your weapon movements, dodging, and making sure every hit counts, just like in FromSoftware’s library.

But Alaloth also plays like an old-fashioned adventure. There’s a whole world to explore, quests to complete, companions to work with, and an array of fantasy races to choose from, all of which impact how the world reacts around you. Alaloth has the depth of BioWare’s original Baldur’s Gate games and the wildly successful Larian Revival, and takes the isometric viewpoint to match.

If that sounds like a role-playing game to you, Gamera has revamped Alaloth for the launch of version 1.0. For starters, a whole new magic system has been added to FromSoftware-inspired combat, so you’ll have a plethora of spellcasting opportunities during fights. The game now features a variety of magic-focused classes that “integrate into Alaloth’s systems without overshadowing the tactical melee combat the game is known for,” so your combat choices are increased tenfold.

Version 1.0 also marks the introduction of two new Paths of Power – Alaloth’s own skill categories that each offer very different playstyles – in Elements and Arcane. Each of the five Paths of Power includes four professions (instead of Early Access’s three) that you can select for a variety of builds, with melee combat, magic, nature, and the will of the gods among your choice. Gamera adds that Alaloth doesn’t have a mana bar, with update 1.0 instead combining stamina and mana – so you’ll need to tactically balance how you fight.

It’s not just the magic and power path systems that have been massively overhauled, as Gamera explains how he’s adopted a dynamic scaling system for skills and spells, so that everything grows alongside your character. “Key stats like duration, damage, and effects now scale based on your character’s stat progression,” Gamera explains. “When you learn a skill, it scales across three different levels, with options to invest one, three, or five stat points to improve its power.”

“Each profession has a dominant stat that significantly influences its skills or spells, for example the strength of the Path of Weapons, but other stats can also affect skills and spells in various ways.” This dynamic scaling system means you can always focus on a specific profession, but also experiment with other abilities and builds.

Gamera Interactive adds that it will soon reveal a detailed post-launch roadmap for Alaloth for 2025, with “a plethora of free content” coming in version 1.1 and beyond. This will include new modes, monsters, quests and even more NPCs, so you’ll have plenty of reasons to come back throughout the next year.

Alaloth: Champions of The Four Kingdoms 1.0 Launch is available now on Steam, and you can grab the game for 10% off until Wednesday, November 27, so expect to pay $31.49 / 26.55 £ by then. You can find the game here.

If Alaloth makes you want to take a trip back in time, we’ve got you covered. best old games for you to play, alongside some of the best soul games if you want a challenge.

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