First things first, Candle Knight is a gorgeous game. The central character being a literal candle means that light is a key factor in the gameplay and aesthetic, and Candle Knight excels here. Call me shallow but it was the graphics that first attracted me to the game and now that I’ve played a pretty decent slice of the game in a preview build, let me enlighten you as to what works and what needs a little more attention.
Aesthetically, Candle Knight is like a mixture of semi-obscure Saturn platformer Clockwork Knight and Dark Souls. Whereas Clockwork Knight went for a bright and colourful approach that really shone on Sega’s short-lived console, Dracma Studios’ upcoming title is a dark and oppressive experience, owing more than a small debt to From Software’s style guide. This darkness does, however, mean that light sources really pop.
You play as an anthropomorphic candle in the shape of a medieval knight but the preview build gives absolutely nothing away in terms of narrative or backstory. All I know is that, in true old-school platformer fashion, you have to go right and navigate enemies and obstacles to make your way through each level. This is all carried out in a striking 2.5D perspective that mostly makes things clear, with very occasional shifts to a top down perspective for specific encounters.
Combat is a key focus here alongside the jumping, and this is promising but not quite there yet. Attacks have a decent heft to them and enemies do offer a decent challenge. You begin unarmed but soon pick up a sword and then a shield to enable basic attack and defence options. As you progress further you obtain a projectile attack as well as traditional dashes and double jumps. These mechanics blend together to create some good platforming sections and this aspect was just coming into its own as the preview ended.
The key unique selling point here is a built-in risk and reward mechanic in which attacking enemies or unlit candles in the game world increases your ignition status. This increases your attack power at the cost of taking an equal amount more damage. You can burn off ignition either through using the projectile attack or by venting, but the latter leaves you vulnerable so isn’t advisable in combat. It’s a neat idea but can lead to instant deaths when your ignition is full and you nudge into a spike or the collision detection lets you down.
So far so encouraging. However, though I definitely enjoyed my time with this preview build there’s still some work to do if Candle Knight is going to reach its full potential. Controls are fine but jumping is quite clunky, especially when you unlock wall jumping later and there are currently too many blind jumps for my liking. The boss battles I fought here were also underwhelming with a snake/worm one in particular just not feeling like it came together properly. Some better signposting is needed too as in one area I entered a painting and found myself warped back to near the beginning instead of just walking past said painting. Many chests (and there are lots hidden around the levels) also don’t seem to actually contain anything and there was one section climbing up some shelves filled with breakable jars where the walls seemed to be invisible.
These complaints are hopefully all fixable before release, though, as is the game’s optimisation. I don’t think a relatively straight forward 2.5D platformer (albeit a beautiful one) should have my RTX 2060 at 100% with the fans going haywire. This is even more egregious considering that it performs perfectly well on my Steam Deck too – and is actually probably a better fit for the handheld rather than sitting at a desk. I’m still very much looking forward to checking out the final release later in the year though as Candle Knight has all the necessary components to shine.
