The Knight Witch is Super Mega Team’s fifth project, and only the second to be released on PC and consoles (though Xbox and PlayStation skews were delayed until Friday). Art director Enrique Corts was one of the studio’s founding members over a decade ago, and said The Knight Witch’s fairy tale aesthetic is a natural extension of his personal style. However, Game Rant spoke to Corts, director Kevin Sarda Perez, and programmer Jorge Fernandez Sanchez about how that style underlies an ecological story with an anime-inspired morality system at its core.
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Defining The Witch Queen’s Look Came ‘Organically’
Corts loves capturing a “whimsical” look, The Knight Witch taking after the simple, cartoon-y CalArts style of Cartoon Network series like Steven Universe. It’s what comes naturally when he puts pen-to-paper, a style developed alongside Super Mega Team co-founder and senior concept artist Mar Hernandez over 20 years. The two have worked together at various companies including Team17, Kuju Entertainment, and Tragnarion Studios, and they’re currently in a relationship. “Like peanut butter and jelly,” Corts said. “Goes really well together.”
Hernandez handled much of The Knight Witch’s background art, which Corts credits for adding layers and depth. According to Perez, the game’s story bloomed from that art. The world of Dungeonidas was coming to life during its earliest days when Perez saw a demo created by just three people. Prior to picking up funding through publisher Team17, The Knight Witch was little more than a flying twin-stick shooter, and one aspect of its growth was building upon the demo’s design pillars.
Super Mega Team’s main pillar is discussing ecology and the environment. Perez said a nature-versus-technology theme underlies its design, playing into the “epic” nature of the fairy tale. Corts said it has become a strange blend of different influences.
The Knight Witch’s World Keeps it Simple
A modern demo for The Knight Witch released as part of Steam Next Fest in October 2022, giving players a taste of Corts and Hernandez’ artwork for themselves. It acts as a prologue set 14 years prior to the main game. “What you see in the demo is just the tip of the iceberg,” Perez said, and the team is excited for players to see how its story unfolds in “unexpected ways” looking at how characters and Dungeonidas’ society have been impacted by the War Golem invasion.
Super Mega Team’s latest venture blends metroidvania world design, shoot ’em up combat, and deck-building mechanics, optimized to give players as much freedom as possible while exploring the mostly linear, “streamlined” environments. Perez said one of the main drawbacks is a game focused on exploration and shooting doesn’t mesh well with heavy dialogue, leading to less of a focus on sweeping narratives. Most of the storytelling is included through optional NPC interactions in the hub -.a city confined underground that channels the anxieties of working amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
None of the game’s content is blocked if players decide to focus on combat rather than narrative elements, or if they don’t find everything in an area on their first go, but saving NPCs is one way of accruing experience in The Knight Witch. Super Mega Team built the title to dole out experience during narrative beats to avoid grinding, and Perez said it’s always possible to reach max level regardless of how players interact with its morality system.
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Truth and Lies Underpin The Knight Witch’s Potentially Expanded Universe
Knight Witches work under the same principle as Goku’s Spirit Bomb from Dragon Ball Z: they receive power needed to save people through the trust and belief of others. However, Super Mega Team examines the “shady” side of an otherwise affirming trope. In The Knight Witch, protagonist Rayne has to save the world in-part by dealing with a PR agent from her marketing department. Between missions, she’ll be thrust into interviews and must decide whether to boost her image or be completely honest - even when it comes to unsavory details.
Perez said the developer doesn’t take a stance on what is “right” or “wrong,” players must decide what kind of hero they want to be (partially judging by how much experience they’ll gain through public opinion). NPCs around the hub area react differently to each choice, encouraging replayability, and there are “other gameplay implications” - Super Mega Team even teasing the possibility of multiple endings.
Corts feels the game’s unexpectedly deep story and magic as a correlation for social media influencer culture is going to be its main selling point. Prior to launch, he said projections pointed to a modest hit “that could change pretty fast.” Sanchez agrees, saying he was afraid of negative reactions to his “first baby” in the industry before praise began to come in for its art direction and narrative. People have particularly latched onto Rayne being a strong female lead in a happy, healthy marriage, Sanchez said.
If The Knight Witch is a success for the devs and publisher Team17, Corts said they would be happy to produce more content. Perez even hopes to bring back all the worldbuilding ideas they ditched through future games, an animated series, or even novels; the Spirit Bomb-inspired magic system has “so much more” to offer. The team is proud of the work put into this project, but it also knows success depends on a lot of outside factors.
So Super Mega Team is going to take some time off and see if its game finds a place alongside blockbuster releases such as God of War Ragnarok. “Like Knight Witches, we get stronger when people believe in us,” Perez said. “If you play the game and like it, recommend it to your friends
The Knight Witch is available now on PC and Switch. PS4, PS5, Windows 10, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S versions are scheduled to release December 2, 2022.
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