EverQuest creators’ new RPG hits Steam Early Access

The next game from EverQuest creators John Smedley and Bill Trost is now available on Steam. Hero’s Song, an “open-world, roguelike, fantasy action-RPG” that tried its hand at crowdfunding earlier this year, is playable in an Early Access state for $19.99.

Hero’s Song is being developed by Pixelmage Games, a studio composed of “nearly 20 seasoned industry veterans,” including the former president of Sony Online Entertainment and EverQuest’s lead designer. The developer promises that the Steam Early Access release will “offer different experiences within the game nearly every day as updated builds are added regularly with new features, abilities, progression paths, characters, navigation improvements, bug fixes and more.”

Pixelmage says it’s being “fully transparent in its approach to early access for the game and will share roadmaps with the community that define what the team is working on.”

Hero’s Song is being billed as a “hardcore action-RPG for hardcore gamers.” The 2D game offers back-to-basics fantasy fare; according to the game’s Steam description, players can “become a legendary hero in a dangerous and mysterious world of magic and monsters” and “explore endless dungeons and ancient cities in long-forgotten lands in search of knowledge, treasure, and the power of the Gods!”

Smedley and his crew unveiled Hero’s Song earlier this year, hoping to raise $800,000 to fund development of the game on Kickstarter. The independent studio canceled its Kickstarter campaign a week after launch, having raised just $136,849 of its intended goal. Pixelmage then took the game to Indiegogo, where it raised $94,216. Backers on Indiegogo receive early access to alpha builds of the game.

Initial response to the Steam Early Access version of Hero’s Song has been mixed to mostly positive. Early adopters have praised the core gameplay elements, though they caution the game is, as promised, a work in progress and players should expect to do plenty of bugtesting.