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People of Note Demo Impression The writing is self-aware and the game isn't afraid to throw out plenty of music -- and other -- references in conversation, item names, or small touches in the world. While it isn't the first game to combine musicals and role-playing in recent years, Annapurna Interactive and Iridium Studios's People of Note appears more than happy to get up on stage. Taking inspiration from classic turn-based RPGs and orchestrating its gameplay with plenty of musical flair, the game aims to deliver an exciting performance. RPGamer was able to get an early look at a demo of the game ahead of its public release and April launch date announcement . People of Note is set in a world driven by music, with various lands built around different genres. The 90-minute demo lets players go through its second chapter, which sees protagonist Cadence having just set out on her quest to form a band so she can try and win the Noteworthy music contest. Her quest leads her to the Rock City of Durandis, which is currently fractured into metal, grunge, and other sub-genres, while coming under attack from the country-based Homestead. Here, she encounters guitarist Fret and swiftly tries to get him on board while becoming a bit more involved in the world's power struggles than she'd like. [caption id="attachment_176971" align="aligncenter" width="640"] The demo sees Cadence visit the Rock City of Durandis.[/caption] The writing is self-aware and the game isn't afraid to throw out plenty of music -- and other -- references in conversation, item names, or small touches in the world. The conflicts in the demo are solved rather quickly, though there's not really enough of a sample size to suggest whether that ends up being to the game's benefit at this stage, but what's there is entertaining, and it promises plenty of fun interactions between the cast at the very least. The game's turn-based combat has a straightforward base, but enough bells and whistles to help distinguish itself. Each turn, or stanza, is divided between player actions and enemy actions according to the current time signature, which indicates the number of actions each side has. For the battles in the demo, it generally gives players one action for each character and enemies one or two actions per fighter, and defeating an enemy permanently reduces the enemy side's actions by one. The party can go in any order, and players have a regular set of actions available: attack, abilities, and rest. Abilities use BP, with one BP restored to each character every turn, but in addition to providing a bonus to defence for that turn, resting also immediately grants two BP. Abilities can get boosts depending on when they are used; for example, one particular offensive ability does more damage if used before any other action. In addition, each stanza takes on a different musical style, indicated in the game's UI and its background music. Any character who plays that style of music during a turn gets a boost to their actions, helping to make smart use of abilities and managing BP an important part of the game's strategy. In addition to their HP and BP, each character has a mashup meter that fills as they take damage. When two characters have a full mashup meter, they can perform a powerful joint attack. [caption id="attachment_176966" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Combat is based on a standard turn-based template, but has enough to distinguish itself.[/caption] An optional setting allows players to be able press a button in time with audiovisual cues to slightly boost attacks and skills. In addition, boss fights bring their own extra element, with bosses gaining crescendo as the battle goes on, powering them up and encouraging players not to act too defensively. In addition, the game features puzzle battles where players have to find the correct order of actions to defeat foes within a turn limit, which help introduce some of the strategy and skill synergies, as well as trivia encounters that test in-game knowledge/memory to receive bonus rewards. In addition to equipping an instrument (weapon), armour, and an accessory, players are able to choose their party's abilities by equipping songstones. These can be bought from shops and found in treasure chests, with further customisation coming from remix stones that add extra effects to certain songstone slots. The game also features some of the traditional RPG puzzles that are notably less common nowadays, with the demo chapter featuring a set where they have to get a beam to hit the required triggers. The game has some player-friendly difficulty options, with players able to readily get through puzzles and/or combat without trouble if they wish. The puzzles in the demo are straightforward to get to grips with but decently engaging, and their inclusion will be very pleasing for a certain group of RPGamers. [caption id="attachment_176975" align="aligncenter" width="640"] The musical element is covered with in-story song performances and a dynamic soundtrack.[/caption] People of Note' s musical focus means that the soundtrack is expected to play a big role, and the demo offers a strong initial showing, including a full in-story musical performance as Cadence persuades Fret to join her cause, ably performed by LEXXE and Jason Charles Miller. The game's battle themes all have multiple versions for each potential genre, and the demo showcases this nicely with some strong early tracks that showcase the soundtrack's dynamic nature. An early battle themes against the forces of the Homestead has plenty of country twang, but switches to Cadence's pop and Fret's rock as their genres take over in any combat stanzas. Multiple genres can even combine to further increase the musical offerings. The game's voice acting is certainly enjoyable, working with the game's nicely distinct art style to create some memorable characters. The environments are nice to look at and provide a good flavour to Durandis, while the UI is pleasingly eye-catching, even if everything leaves zero room for doubt that the game is all about music. There's a lot to like about the demo for People of Note . The gameplay is strong, the character interactions certainly appear entertaining, and the musical portion of the game is clearly in safe hands. The true test will be whether the game can hold up for its full length; early signs are of a very pleasing title with plenty to recommend if it can pull it all off. RPGamers won't have too long to wait to find out, with the game arriving on April 7, 2026, for PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch 2. Disclosure: This article is based on a demo build of the game provided by the publisher. The post People of Note Demo Impression appeared first on RPGamer .

RPGamerFeb 18

People of Note Arriving in April, Demo Released Publisher Annapurna Interactive and developer Iridium Studios announced that People of Note will release on April 7, 2026. The turn-based RPG musical will be available on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch 2, priced at $24.99, with a 10% launch discount. In addition to announcing the release date, the companies have also released a Steam demo for the game. People of Note follows pop singer Cadence after she is shut out of the Noteworthy Song Contest. In an attempt to improve upon her solo act, she ventures between locations such as the Rock City of Durandis and the EDM City of Lumina, looking to fill out a band. The game features full-length cinematic musical sequences across a variety of genres, as well as turn-based combat with rhythm elements to deal additional damage, with players able to customise the experience with options such as turning off environmental puzzles or bypassing its combat. Those looking to read more about the game can check out RPGamer's impression from early access to the demo. The post People of Note Arriving in April, Demo Released appeared first on RPGamer .

RPGamerFeb 18

Ariana and the Elder Codex Demo Impression The demo of Ariana and the Elder Codex seems promising, providing an easy, charming, and engaging sidescrolling action RPG experience, with solid but clean combat, visuals, and storytelling. As a librarian, I don’t often see my profession broadly represented in media, let alone in video games, so Ariana and the Elder Codex immediately piqued my interest when I learned it featured a magic-wielding librarian girl… count me in. Developed by Compile Heart and HYDE and published by Idea Factory International, Ariana sees the eponymous main character set out to repair the Seven Hero Codices, as their alteration has caused magic to disappear from the world. Only with her magical librarian skills and ability to enter and repair the codices can she restore their magic. With the demo recently released, I decided to put on my best reading glasses, hop into a codex, and see if Ariana promises to be a real page-turner. From the outset, the demo is quite light on story detail, featuring just one of the many codices Ariana can enter; in particular, it has players explore the Codex of Earth. In this zone, earthquakes shake a mountain, and the local village, and a shrine maiden confers with the local gods about these ominous rumblings. As players progress through the level, interspersed cutscenes and story elements gradually reveal more about the world. All in all, it gave a fairly cute impression, even if the plot was quite simple. Notably, the demo was light on details about Ariana herself, although one scene featured her interacting with a friendly but suspicious fairy with whom she seemed familiar. Unfortunately, not much more could be gleaned about the overarching story, which was a bit disappointing, but the storybook theme for the world inside the codices seems encouraging. [caption id="attachment_185125" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Ariana, you’re not hallucinating; this fairy is very, very real. Trust me.[/caption] On the gameplay front, Ariana primarily fights with a host of magic spells, six of which are assignable at any given time. Each spell has a certain level of power, cast time, and cooldown, along with different elements to consider: earth, fire, water, wind, and neutral, the latter of which applies to her sword spell, a blasting spell, and a regeneration heal. When spells are cast at enemies, a meter indicates the level of elemental buildup, and once this is full, depending on the element, the enemy becomes stunned, allowing for massive damage. Using the elements in tandem against the right enemies is the key to success. Additionally, through the use of non-neutral elements, Ariana gradually builds up an elemental meter, which allows her to switch into a toggleable elemental form. Indicated by her dress changing color, this grants her sword that elemental affinity and empowers the accordant spells. Ariana ’s combat is engaging, but also not particularly complex or challenging. The wind spell in particular, which empowers Ariana’s sword and grants it range and penetration, felt a bit overpowered relative to the other spells, raising some concerns about balance and spell interplay. With that said, the level design and enemy placement did offer some nice incentive to mix up her arsenal. As Ariana progresses through the codex, the overarching goal is to defeat enemies in the level, which causes Altered Points to appear. In these, players are tasked with either quickly defeating enemies or quickly platforming to a point, and succeeding allows Ariana to repair the codex. Both the level design and combat feel like a light, easier Metroidvania, and the Altered Points do their job well, encouraging aggressive fights or providing pleasant platforming opportunities. [caption id="attachment_185127" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Empower the sword with wind to cut through enemies like a book opener through pages.[/caption] Exploration and combat through Altered Points provide experience, upgrades to Ariana’s power stat, or items that alter or empower her magical spells, though the demo was too brief to really gather much about the character growth systems or RPG mechanics. What can be said is that they seem rather straightforward, but again, pleasing and easy to understand. Ariana can equip various items to change her spell power or interact with the level in various ways, which provides good incentive to fully explore each area; knowing enemy locations or having that extra power bump helps in some of the more chaotic fights. The only real issue was that holding the dash and run button causes Ariana to run even when standing still, making dodging and moving a bit troublesome. On the visual front, Ariana has a light, charming, and attractive visual style, looking like a cute, flat storybook. The spells all have colorful, entertaining animations, and Ariana herself beams with magic, style, and a little bit of pizzazz with her idle animations. Sonically, the demo was less interesting, featuring only one or two tracks, which were fine but ultimately unremarkable. Voice acting was notably absent for all but Ariana and the fairy, and what’s present is quite good, though the scenes with the shrine maiden and inhabitants of the codex notably lacked voices, and it felt like the scenes’ drama would benefit from their inclusion. [caption id="attachment_185126" align="aligncenter" width="640"] The visuals, especially Ariana herself, are super adorable![/caption] The demo of Ariana and the Elder Codex seems promising, providing an easy, charming, and engaging sidescrolling action RPG experience, with solid but clean combat, visuals, and storytelling. Clocking in at about two hours, the demo doesn’t offer enough to comment on the story in depth, but I ultimately found myself engaged and interested, wanting to learn more about Ariana and excited to see what the other codices and the world outside of them might offer. For players interested, Ariana and Elder Codex will release for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch in North America and Europe on March 24, 2026, with a PC release following later in the spring. The post Ariana and the Elder Codex Demo Impression appeared first on RPGamer .

RPGamerFeb 18

Magical Princess Releasing in Spring, Demo Updated Publisher MAGI Inc. and developer Neotro Inc. have announced that daughter-raising life sim RPG Magical Princess will release in spring 2026. The game will be available for PC via Steam , where a recently-updated demo is currently available. A new trailer for the game can be viewed below. Magical Princess sees players raise their daughter while she attends a magical academy. Players choose what classes to attend, part-time jobs to take on, and various other actions, including engaging in turn-based battles against monsters. It features a cast of over 30 characters with over 50 possible endings. The post Magical Princess Releasing in Spring, Demo Updated appeared first on RPGamer .

RPGamerFeb 18

Eldritch Horror Roguelite Dive or Die: Children of Rain Announced Developer Drop Rate Studio and publisher Dear Villagers have announced Dive or Die: Children of Rain . The game is a "2D Lovecraftian underwater roguelite" and is planned to release on PC in Q2 2026. A demo is available to try out now on Steam that lets players experience the game's tutorial and first ten in-game days. Dive or Die: Children of Rain is set after years of “Black Rain” drowned the world. The few survivors are thrust into a race against time, as the eldritch Rainmaker has given humanity the task of recovering sacred idols hidden deep within the "Abyssal Pool" within forty days, or to be made extinct in the final Flood. Players will need to manage their camp of survivors while undertaking dives in the depths, where they will need to overcome limited oxygen, potential injuries, and madness. [foogallery id="185169"] The post Eldritch Horror Roguelite Dive or Die: Children of Rain Announced appeared first on RPGamer .

RPGamerFeb 18

Elemental: Reforged Fully Launching in March Stardock Entertainment announced that its fantasy 4X strategy RPG hybrid Elemental: Reforged will exit Early Access on Steam and fully release on March 17, 2026. The game looks to combine the previous three Elemental games -- 2010's Elemental: War of Magic , 2012's Elemental: Fallen Enchantress , and 2016 spin-off Sorcerer King: Rivals -- with a 3D engine as well as remastered visuals, features, and content. Elemental: Reforged sees players creating their own character and building up their own civilisation while facing off against opponents and seeking to controls shards of magic that grant new powers and abilities. The game includes three story campaigns, the ability to create hereditary dynasties; a crafting system; numerous storylines, quests, and dungeons; twelve distinct civilisations; and Steam Workshop support. [foogallery id="185159"] The post Elemental: Reforged Fully Launching in March appeared first on RPGamer .

RPGamerFeb 18

Adventure Corner ~ Dungeons of Dreadrock Welcome to Adventure Corner, a column where members of the RPGamer staff can give their thoughts, impressions, and pseudo-reviews for various adventure titles that don't come under our usual coverage. Adventure Corner is aimed at delivering opinions on a wide range of titles including visual novels, point-and-click adventures, investigative mysteries, and so forth. In this edition of the column, we take a look at Dungeons of Dreadrock (Switch version). Dungeons of Dreadrock Platform: Switch (also available on PC, iOS) Release Date: 01.31.2022 Publisher: Prof. Dr. Christoph Minnameier / PigKnight Games Developer: Prof. Dr. Christoph Minnameier / PigKnight Games Official Site Back in December, I received an alert from Nintendo encouraging me to use some points I had left on the e-store before they expired, so I did what I always do: trawl the discount bin to see how many little things I could get with whatever I had on hand. One of the two items I pulled out this time around was Dungeons of Dreadrock , originally for iOS and Steam, and also available on Switch. Somehow, I had never heard of this title ere now, though it earned itself accolades the year it was released. One of the reasons I grabbed it was because its design aesthetic resembled the top-down view of many Zelda games. When the heroine gets her sword at the start, the combat feels similar to the bump-hit style of Ys games. However, it was quickly apparent that neither Zelda nor Ys provide the bedrock for this dire dive to dungeon depths. No, this game feels like a good portion of its DNA is owed to The Tower of Druaga —but in a good way. Just as that infamous piece of gaming history presented an edifice of maze piled upon maze, so too does Dreadrock provide one hundred floors of dungeon with a dread master at the bottom. Some floors may require monsters to be slain, often in specific ways or in a certain order, while others have strange interactions of levers and traps. A few require back-and-forth with previous floors and their denizens. Every level is a puzzle to figure out, and while they generally are not so obtuse, the existence of a hint feature is welcome. [caption id="attachment_184707" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Live fast, fight hard, and leave a trail of re-dead-inated corpses[/caption] The story is simple enough. The titular Dungeon of Dreadrock is home to the Dead King, and every year a young man from the surrounding villages is chosen to be the Hero who must venture into the depths and destroy the Dead King once and for all. None have ever returned from this quest, and this year, the job falls on the shoulders of the younger brother of a certain young lady who is not willing to let things go as usual this year. Defying tradition and risking divine wrath, she takes up a blade and follows him into the depths before the worst may come to pass. Graphically, Dreadrock mimics the palette and style of an SNES game while featuring much cleaner spritework. The dungeon floors are replete with minor visual cues, such as loose bricks that might provide material assistance or items that are just enough out of place to be significant. While everything is sized appropriately to fit within the bounds of a single screen, the pieces fit well together, and all feels like it is the proper size. [caption id="attachment_184709" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Get the feeling they don't want any visitors...[/caption] The musical arrangement provides a nice background to the exploration, and the final battle is appropriately portentous. There is minor voice acting, mostly in the narratively styled descriptions of certain items or the reading of hint-providing scrolls. The main story segments, provided at regular intervals via resting points, are not voiced, but nothing is lost by keeping the text moving quickly. It is a stretch to call Dungeons of Dreadrock an RPG, as it lacks most of the basic mechanics associated with one—not even hit points, a fact that it jokes about from time to time. In its essential motifs and style, however, Dreadrock is a quintessential product of someone who grew up alongside the genre and wanted to play with the imagery while hewing to a somewhat different genre. As I learned after writing all this, the developer is a fan of old CRPGs and adventure games, rather than my initial impression of Druaga , but it all comes together into a thing of its own. The final product has its ups and downs, but the ups are all good and the downs take the player further into the dungeon, so it's still all good. For a short, fun, puzzling adventure, RPGamers are well served to look no further. And as a further bonus, there's a sequel that I need to look into, sometime soon... [caption id="attachment_184708" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Silly elder; heroines wait for no one![/caption] The post Adventure Corner ~ Dungeons of Dreadrock appeared first on RPGamer .

RPGamerFeb 18

Ariana and the Elder Codex Demo Released Idea Factory International has released a demo for side-scrolling action RPG Ariana and the Elder Codex . The demo is available on PC, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch. It gives players a quick introduction to Ariana's quest before putting them into the Codex of Earth in one of the early parts of the game, where they use spells and abilities to take on enemies before encountering the Colossus of Catastrophe. Developed by Compile Heart and HYDE, Ariana and the Elder Codex follows young librarian Ariana, who is tasked with repairing the Seven Hero Codices, which have been altered, causing magic to vanish from the world. Her powers allow her to enter the books themselves in order to mend them and restore their magic. In addition, she also seeks to solve the mysteries of the Library where they are kept, as well as her parents’ disappearance. The game is planned to launch for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch in North America and Europe on March 24, 2026, with a PC release following later in spring 2026. The post Ariana and the Elder Codex Demo Released appeared first on RPGamer .

RPGamerFeb 17

Whispers of the Eyeless Fully Releasing in March Developer Evil Gingerbread Studio and publisher Anshar Publishing announced that dark fantasy strategy RPG Whispers of the Eyeless will fully release for PC on March 17, 2026. The game has been in Steam Early Access since January 2025, with the full version to also be available through GOG.com . A new trailer marking the full release date announcement can be viewed below. Whispers of the Eyeless sees players leading a cult looking to awaken the Dead Gods — Wrath, Desire, and Madness — in the medieval city of Aranthor. The game is billed as taking inspirations from Polish folklore as well as Darkest Dungeon , Loop Hero , and Children of Morta , using a dark comic art style. It features turn-based combat with players able to build customised characters from the nine classes available using hundreds of skills, powers, and upgrades. The game also features base building elements that see the player improving the core sanctum of the cult. The post Whispers of the Eyeless Fully Releasing in March appeared first on RPGamer .

RPGamerFeb 17

Digimon Story Time Stranger’s Third DLC Revealed Bandai Namco announced the third DLC pack for Digimon Story Time Stranger . Part of the game's Season Pass, the Additional Digimon & Episode Pack 3: Anti-ParadoX DLC includes a new story questline transcending time and space, as well as new Mega Digivolution routes. It will released some time in March 2026. Digimon Story Time Stranger is currently available for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, with Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 versions set to release on July 10, 2026. The game begins in a version of Tokyo, where the protagonist is an agent of ADAMAS, which investigates various phenomena. Entering a sealed-off Shinjuku, they encounter a Digimon before being caught up in an explosion. They find themself awakening eight years in the past and must prevent the upcoming collapse. Those looking to read more about Digimon Story Time Stranger can check out Ezra Kinnell’s review of its PC version. The post Digimon Story Time Stranger’s Third DLC Revealed appeared first on RPGamer .

RPGamerFeb 17