I hate survival crafting games but an upcoming PC exclusive has changed my mind

ALMOST every new release these days seems to have some element of survival crafting to them.

After all, Palworld is just Pokémon but with survival crafting, while Enshrouded is an RPG with survival crafting.

If we liked picking rocks and punching trees, we would leave the house, and we clearly don’t do that because we’re professional gamers.

However, we still decided to give Nightingale a go because, as professional gamers, it’s our job.

Our distaste for survival crafting has come from years of cheap asset flips that are drab, lack coherency, and have few original ideas.

We played Nightingale for a number of hours, and we were hooked by the sense of exploration.

A lot of thought has clearly gone into the setting, which is honestly refreshing for the genre.

It’s set in an alternative history and filled with famous historical figures in a world inhabited by interdimensional creatures called Fae.

They induced magic to humanity, and as such, the population became more focused on the supernatural than on industry.

You start out being able to do the basics, like your rock picking and your tree punching.

However, this soon elevates to conjuring fire from your fingertips, crafting spells, and making potions that move you at superhuman speed.

You can explore more worlds through portals, and tweak them to your needs, thanks to a clever system with realm cards.

Combining these cards in a particular way creates a new realm that contains the exact resources you require.

Biomes can even be tweaked as you explore them, changing the weather and atmosphere to suit your mood.

Portals can also be used to visit others’ home planets, and you can access them anytime, whether online or offline.

There is also an impressive sense of freedom: with the ability to glide and climb, you can go anywhere your stamina will allow.

This was only a brief look at everything that Nightingale will offer, but it is definitely a promising sign that survival crafting could be making a comeback.

If you want to read more about gaming releases, check out our Deep Rock Galactic: Survivors review.