Move over Temtem — there’s another Pokemon clone coming on Kickstarter. Kindred Fates is a game like Pokemon with some notable changes from its spiritual predecessor. Oh, and your creatures can die in Kindred Fates.
ResetEra highlighted this first Kickstarter campaign by Skymill Studios. It has 29 days to go and it’s already raised $17,707 at the time of writing, nearly 40% of its $50,000 goal. Something in this game appears to have grabbed people, and that’s probably the way it seems to advance the monster battle RPG formula.
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First off, Kindred Fates has many of the things you would expect from a monster battle RPG. The game’s monsters, which are called Kinfolk, have different types, and these types give your Kinfolk various different abilities. Battles can take place out in the wilderness and in arenas… and that’s where the similarities largely end.
One of the key differences in this upcoming game is that the battles are not turn-based affairs like in the Pokemon franchise; rather, they take place in real-time with third-person shooter mechanics. Player skill will definitely be a factor in how well you do in combat. (Optional turn-based combat is one of the Kickstarter campaign’s stretch goals.)
Another equally-important (and much darker) difference is that your Kinfolk can die. There’s no “fainting” if they fall in battle; lose, and they’re dead. Well, you’ll be able to retrieve their “flame” (effectively their soul) after they’ve been defeated, but you only have so much time to get to it. Fail, and your Kinfolk dies and is gone for good.
Also shaking up the formula are the type differences. There is no “fire is better against grass” kind of mechanics here. Rather, each of the game’s various types are more like fighting styles.
The presentation of this game looks pretty neat for something that probably won’t be completely finished for another few years at least. If Kindred Fates seems like the kind of game you’d like to play, you can pledge to their Kickstarter and (hopefully) get to see the first parts of this game in the Alpha Combat Arena in August 2020.
