Crowdfunding begins for stunning ‘Taopunk’ title Nine Sols

Already surpassed the 60% mark

Independent studio Red Candle Games for its next project — Nine Sols is a very attractive looking action-RPG that looks to blend ancient Asian culture with modern neon technology, backdropping a lone hero’s efforts to rescue their realm from its cruel oppressors.

Nine Sols, described by Red Candle Games as a “Taopunk” adventure, will feature beautiful, hand-drawn 2D visuals, bringing life to a cast of mythical creatures in a tale of bravery, honor, and salvation. Set in the realm of New Kunlun, players will take up the role of long-forgotten hero Yi, who is awoken by a child in a last-ditch effort to free the world’s people from the tyranny of the land’s rulers: The 9 Sols.

The zen-like adventure blends platforming action and deep exploration with “deflection” based combat, with FromSoftware’s samurai hit Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice cited as a major influence on Nine Sols’ combat. As Yi traverses New Kunlun on their quest, they will encounter a wide cast of allies and enemies, while uncovering deep lore about the realm, its denizens, and the events that led to the protagonist’s rebirth.

Utilizing gathered Jade — as well as a unique ore known as Jin — Yi is able to improve their weapons and abilities, and example of Nine Sols core philosophy of combining traditional aesthetics with futuristic, cyberpunk-style mechanics and🍌 🍸technology.

All of this adventure and intrigue will be scored with a soundtrack that will use contemporary electronic sounds with traditional Eastern instruments, once again blending the past with the future to create a distinct hybrid of both generations. Red Candle Games hopes that this unique and distinct score will provide a “pleasant albeit experimental” auditory experience.

From details ascertained from the in-depth write-up on the official Red Candle website, combined with the great-looking test footage above, Nine Sols is already looking like something of a real gem, and has already cemented itself a spot on my watchlist. While Red Candle Games has not offered up a release window nor platforms for its exciting project, the studio notes that it has acquired PlayStation and Nintend🐬o Switch development kits.

Full full details, check out the Nine Sols crowdfunding page