DokeV developers explain their wild open world creature-collector
Play it with your kids
Imagine a spectrum of videogame trailers, with "meaninglessly vague cinematic trailer" at one end and "explicit and lengthy gameplay footage" at the other. DokeV sits firmly in the latter category, but it's proven no less baffling as someone trying to get a handle on what the game is about.
After a new four minute trailer dropped during Gamescom - with no structure, sound effects, or explanation of any kind - developers Pearl Abyss have kindly followed-up with a developer commentary that talks through what you see in the video.
The video first explains what we already: Dokebi are creatures from Korean folklore, somewhat similar to Japanese yokai. As the player in DokeV, you're collecting the Dokebi and working with them in combat.
There's a lot more explanation about the structure of the game than is apparent from just watching the footage, though. For one, the Dokebi are captured via specific quests scattered around its open world, rather than simply being found in the tall grass. The game is also being designed with accessibility in mind: the developers talk about wanting to be able to play the game with their own kids.
That comes across in the combat, which is designed the follow "the Pearl Abyss style" - aka Black Desert Online - while being more approachable. I love how the combat looks, with particle effects, Ghostbusters-style vacuum packs, and monsters that seem to glitch into digital form. It's reminding me a little of Summer Wars.
Finally, they talk about the different kinds of traversal in the game. The trailer shows miniature cars, rocket-powered skateboards, mountable llamas, sky grappling, jet skis, and umbrella gliding. I want to do all of it.