Hob should be at the top of your watchlist.

About a year ago, I got to sit down and demo an interesting title called Hob. I had been hoping for a speedy release of the full game as it was among my highlights from PAX Prime 2015. Sadly, it’s still in development. On the plus side, Runic Games brought it back to PAX West 2016 with two new areas to play as well as new glove powers. I spent some time with controller firmly in hand exploring the most recent offerings. I’m now more convinced than ever that Hob will be a must own game for me. 

Two demos for two worlds.

First on my demo was the overworld forest area. The vibrant landscape begs to be explored and rewards those that do. Several power-ups were hiding just off the beaten path waiting to be discovered. Following the most obvious path forward isn’t something I’d recommend if you want to be ready for later encounters. As a person who loves to poke around and see if I can climb on top of that thing over there, this is paradise for me. I’m told that if something can be seen, it can be reached. I find the prospect of a world that’s made of real places and not just background dressing to be thrilling.

The second demo I played was in an underground section of the game. Hob treated me to a look at the mechanical core hiding below the organic surface. The world is a steampunk daydream–a series of machines and cogs hiding under everything. With the flip of the right switch, the world rearranges and new passages open. The dark palette provides a notable contrast with the sunny, green overworld. It reminds me of the difference between the overworld and dungeons in The Legend of Zelda; evoking that same sense of delving into long buried secrets.

Art is great, but what about combat?

Hob is not a game full of mindless combat. From my experience with the demo, each enemy encounter feels purposeful and dangerous. There weren’t any mooks to simply smash for the sake of filling space. Some amount of skill is going to be required in any combat situation. Blocking, dodging, and striking at the proper time are all essential to progressing swiftly. Or, if you’re like me, respawning and bashing into a thing until it dies is also an option; it just takes a bit longer. Glove abilities also played a part in combat in the demo and I suspect we’ll see more of that in the full game. There’s even a lock-on option for keeping a specific enemy targeted, though I personally prefer a more freeform approach. On the whole, combat is a fluid, organic, and rewarding experience within the larger exploration of the world.

Obviously there’s only so much I can say about a game from an early demo. What I can say about Hob with absolute certainty is that I want to play more of it. In fact, I want to play ALL of it. For now, it sits quietly on my wishlist waiting for the day that I can hit that purchase button and spend hours discovering all that there is to find in this jaw-dropping game. In the meantime, check out the trailer and then go add it to your wishlist as well.

Hob will be available on Steam and PS4 when it releases.