Summary
Indie developer Eric “ConcernedApe” Barone is keeping a tight lip on his latest gameHaunted Chocolatier, with the latest major updates being a progress report and a look into its combat system. While the game does feature the same top-down view as Barone’s previous title,Stardew Valley, he assures fans that theHaunted Chocolatiercombat system will be vastly different. This is apparent in its new battle mechanics and animations.
The first and only gameplay trailer forHaunted Chocolatierso far was released way back in October 2021. It seems to feature a similar premise,life simulation gameplay, and art style to ConcernedApe’s previous game,Stardew Valley. However, the trailer shows a few important aspects that setHaunted Chocolatierapart from its predecessor.
Haunted Chocolatier’s Combat Will Likely Revolve Around a Shield/Stun Mechanic
The latest update aboutHaunted Chocolatier’s combat was posted just a few weeks after the game trailer. While it’s getting a bit long in the tooth, it still sets expectations about how players will interact with the game’s rogue creatures and villains. With the pivot to a more combat-focused experience, ConcernedApe wanted to makeHaunted Chocolatier’s battle system more satisfying and fun compared toStardew Valley. Therefore, he added a classicshield stun mechanic toHaunted Chocolatier.
How Does Haunted Chocolatier’s Shield Stun Mechanic Work?
Barone shows offHaunted Chocolatier’s shield stun combat using a four-second clip posted along with the blog entry. Here, the player is about to be dive-bombed by a bee-like enemy, but they manage to block the attack with a shield. This action also stuns the opponent as an added benefit, which lets the player get multiple attacks in without retaliation. This will likely be the core battle mechanic of the game, and it will reward players who approach combat with careful planning and patience.
Haunted Chocolatier’s Combat Will Accommodate Different Playstyles
ConcernedApe stated in the blog post that shield/stun isn’t the only effective way to approach combat inHaunted Chocolatier. After all, its cautious and repetitive approach might get monotonous for some players. Apart from shields, Barone is also designing different off-hand items to accommodate a variety of playstyles. This way, those who like full sending into battle can still have their aggressive combat tactics rewarded. However, players should expect a more classic action RPG experience instead of the frantichack and slash mechanics in games likeHades. The combat system blog also mentioned updates to the sword swing animation.
However, ConcernedApe also stated that this could still be subject to change, as is every element in the game during the development process. Everything aboutHaunted Chocolatieris written, developed, and drawn from scratch, according to Barone. Even the engine is different. As such, it might still be ways away before players can expect to dive into the game and test out its brand-new combat mechanics.
