Experience life on the rail in Railroads & Catacombs while collecting loot and fighting enemies in turn-based combat.
Railroads & Catacombs is the debut solo release from developer Felipe Aullo and was published by IndieArk. IndieArk focus on independent titles in a range of languages and genres, making sure they have to partner with and assist in funding new projects from various developers. Felipe Aullo made this game mostly through crowdfunding, however, with backers being updated on the project very regularly as it went through each stage of development. This active community has remained by Aullo’s side as he had created the game with a discord that sends constant opinions and assistance in the creation of the game.
The prologue for Railroads & Catacombs came out earlier this month, with the full game coming out later in the summer. The strategy game will be released on PC only, although a port to other platforms would certainly be possible with the simplicity of the UI that can be very controller friendly. Railroads & Catacombs was built in Unity and is categorised as a strategy, adventure, role-playing game.
The story of Railroads & Catacombs is very simple. The player is travelling on a train through an unforgiving environment, as they travel they will occasionally have to stop and explore the desolate landscape, searching for supplies and defeating sometimes unpredictable foes. Most of the RPG elements are included in the character and train upgrades as a player can choose both how they build up their train and in what ways they grow and develop their character.
The gameplay in Railroads & Catacombs keeps to a simplistic style. It uses simple tools that work together and build on one another to create gameplay that becomes surprisingly dynamic by the time all the elements have come into play. In order to introduce the player to the adventure they are about to take part in, the game starts out very easily. The protagonist is already on the train. While the player won’t know this at the time, this train becomes a safe space for them as the challenges they face become harder and the world around them is far less forgiving.
At this point in Railroads & Catacombs the train is a minimal part of the gameplay elements. This is because the player has not yet collected the supplies and experience they need to improve upon and make additions to the train. The player will instead jump down from the carriage and start exploring the world around them. While the game won’t hold the player’s hand, they are encouraged to move around the space using the map provided. The map sits in the corner of the screen and allows the player to have some idea of what lies in the spaces around them.
The player cannot see what they are on the verge of running into as the game implements a tile based moving system. This means that what lies within the unknown will always come as a surprise. I enjoy the use of this tile based movement as it helped keep the environment a mystery as well as making the combat always come as a surprise. This was particularly effective as it meant Railroads & Catacombs had the player in a state of constant worry about whether or not they will be able to make it back to the train.
There is also a mini-map that can allow the player to see if there is combat around the corner. This allows the player to determine if they will be able to travel back to an area without being in too much danger. However, should the character’s sanity get too low the mini-map will become less accurate, with question marks taking the place of the information that should have been. This, of course, adds an element of additional difficulty to the game and means that not being aware of the sanity meter can add a lot of tension to Railroads & Catacombs.
The player will use this time exploring the environment to collect supplies they can then use to customise the train they travel on. Choosing how to advance the train and make the central hub as good as it could be was one of my favourite parts of Railroads & Catacombs. It made my journey feel unique, another thing that helped with this was the differing paths that the player could take when upgrading their character. This was achieved through the combat system implemented for the player.
The combat in Railroads & Catacombs is an encounter based system. The player will move into certain tiles and a mist takes over the screen and the combat encounter has begun. Starting with easier enemies means the player has a good opportunity to get used to this combat. Railroads & Catacombs uses a deck-type combat system. The player begins with some basic moves they can add to and grow over time. I found that Railroads & Catacombs was actually a really good introduction to this style of combat in games, as the tutorials and hints in the game allow those unfamiliar with turn based deck combat to learn a completely new type of action.
The combat takes place on a grid that ensures the player knows the distance each character is from one another. The player has to use this grid and the cards to defeat the variety of enemies that can be in each battle. Every player will start out with some basic moves. These include a short ranged attack, a longer ranged attack that allows the player to push an enemy back, two movement abilities and armour that can be equipped.
The short ranged attack is a simple strike with a sword that deals damage and can be upgraded to do more. The long range is a blast that allows the enemy to be pushed back or sideways if they are already at the back of the playing area. The movements are a “Move Away” ability that lets the player move one square up, down, left, or right. Jump lets the player leap over an enemy or move multiple blocks in one direction. And the armour obviously is a shield for the player for incoming damage from enemies during the next round of combat.
The decks to start also come with a “Draw” card that can be used to pull another card from the deck in case those already in hand don’t work. This is a risk, however, as it uses a point of stamina, essentially losing the player a move within that turn at a significant gamble. Railroads & Catacombs uses a stamina system that shows the player how many moves they have left in each round. At the start of the game, when the player has only 5 cards in their deck, the stamina seems overpowered as all 5 cards can be used thanks to the 5 points of stamina.
As the player gets more cards in the deck, each hand holds less of the available skills making the “Draw” card both more useful and more of a gamble. This is a very interesting addition to the game, particularly once some cards have been levelled up more than others, so a powerful card can be hidden within the deck. Supplies and loot from winning combat encounters can be used to level up and eventually choose a warpath that allows the player to adopt different play styles. These help with adding some variety to additional playthroughs of the game.
A player’s health can be found at the top of the screen during the combat in Railroads & Catacombs. In addition to this, residual damage and incoming damage can be seen from previous attacks that have long lasting effects. This allows the player to plan for the next round of combat, whether they want to move into a more defensive position or attempt to equip armour before they face the incoming damage. This combat system is complex enough to remain interesting and dynamic as a variety of enemies are faced. It is also laced with enough simplicity that a new player to the genre can have a chance to explore a new type of combat in an entertaining way.
Railroads & Catacombs is graphically a very interesting game. The artwork is two dimensional, with the characters sitting on top of the background that is painted behind them. This is implemented in such a successful way. The character design is never lost to the background, with their features being striking and interesting enough to help them stand out from the environments. However, it is not done in a way that makes the character feel out of place. The sprite used fits into the surroundings seamlessly without being overwhelmed by the interesting backdrop.
The backdrops are also very interesting and add to the unique design choices of the game. My favourite of these environments is the train. As you can add your own carriages, it starts to feel really personal. Each compartment is set apart from those around it and makes for an interesting hub space to have to continue returning to. The land around the train is also very fun, although there are many repeated tiles. While I liked the lost feeling this gave me, especially as I tried to find my way back to the train, I do understand why the repetition could be frustrating to others.
While the sprites of the enemies in Railroads & Catacombs followed the same artistic style as the player sprite, I found these to be less successful in selling their role in the game. Rather than jumping out from the background I felt many of them leaned into the colour scheme, making them somewhat difficult to discern from the environment. While the unity with the background could be fun for some, it could affect the accessibility of Railroads & Catacombs as people with colour blindness could have a real struggle identifying these enemies. I could not find an option to change this in my time playing.
Beyond this, the simplistic graphics and creative art style were actually highlights of my time playing Railroads & Catacombs. They also worked perfectly with the sound design within the game. The ambient sounds that play as the player explores perfectly match the intensity of the environment. While there is definitely some repetition in this soundscape, the player will often move so swiftly from one combat sequence to the next that the loop cannot be noticed while playing.
The higher intensity of the music while in a combat sequence lends itself well to adding a sense of urgency to the rounds, which do not have a time limit, so this is an excellent addition to Railroads & Catacombs. Other sound effects in the combat are less seamless. The combat sounds are rather generic; most feel as though they have been taken from an online library rather than curated for Railroads & Catacombs specifically. While they help the combat feel a little more dynamic, I do wish they had more variety to them.
Only the prologue of Railroads & Catacombs is available to install at the moment. It is an entertaining addition to the genre that has a fun and dynamic art style. There is a beauty in its simplicity, with the 2D artwork being an interesting way to develop a world. There is some repetition in the gameplay that can cause boredom for some. The environments are interesting, with upgrading to the train being an engaging element, although there is a lot of repetition within other locations.
