Sunless Sea’s “Steel” update is now live for all players, and brings a major change to the game’s combat. The roguelike seafaring RPG previously featured turn-based combat. As demonstrated in a video provided by Failbetter Games, the Steel update brings combat out of the game’s menus and into the same top-down overworld in which players pilot their ship.
The new real-time combat system still relies on players charging weapons and keeping enemies within range, though the latter is now represented by a red arc that circles their ship. Failbetter also “made some changes to the way the map is laid out in terms of balance and variety” and recommends that players start the game over with a new captain and chart to get the most out of the Steel update. The update entered a beta phase late last month. Sunless Sea is available through Steam Early Access and DRM-free on the developer’s site for $18.99.
