This time the spotlight will be shining on Frayed Knights: The Skull of S’makh-Daon, an old-school dungeon crawler with a tongue-in-cheek theme and the most unlikely of heroes. Let’s see if we can’t help it escape the cold emptiness of Greenlight limbo, where it’s been since 2012!
Adventuring is always a dangerous profession, but recently things have gotten bad. Very bad. Teams of expert fortune-hunters are getting “morted,” suffering great losses against enemies that are better prepared than ever. In the taverns and Adventurer’s Guildhalls, whispered rumors speak of the return of an evil that once all but destroyed civilization. But as many great and famous adventurers fall to this growing threat, perhaps this bunch of losers – called “The Frayed Knights” (but never to their faces) – might just be the heroes the world really needs: The wrong people at the wrong time.
I wouldn’t say they’re what the world needs, although they just might be what fans of the genre need – those who don’t mind a less-than-serious take, anyway. That’s not to say the gameplay is as silly as the characters or plot though. Quite the opposite, as it pretty much checks off every box on your typical first-person dungeon crawler feature list, complete with a slew of monsters, spells, loot, character customization and a wealth of dangerous dungeons. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your preference), these hearty adventurers aren’t exactly the brightest – or most seasoned – bunch. But that, along with all the comical nonsense, is in my opinion exactly what makes the experience so much fun! While the likes of Legend of Grimrock and Avadon: The Black Fortress are also great RPGs, sometimes… ya just need something different, ya know? Oh, and work has begun on a sequel, which is to carry the name Frayed Knights 2: Khan of Wrath (I see what you did there…).
So riddle me this, dear reader: why is Frayed Knights: The Skull of S’makh-Daon still struggling to get through Greenlight? It’s been out for a while (since October 2011), so lack of availability is certainly not the reason. If you haven’t done so already, might I recommend visiting its Greenlight page and handing over a ‘yes’, if you like what you see? Remember, your vote matters!
Frayed Knights: The Skull of S’makh-Daon is available for Windows from Desura and directly, priced at $14.95 and without DRM.
