This article originally ran in Back Alley Games Issue 21, December 2025

RPGs have historically been the realm of destined heroes prophesized to save the world from some kind of all-powerful villain and rescue requisite maidens. That stuff’s all overrated, though.

In upcoming card-collector RPG Sudden Soul, players take control of a party of civilians that have woken up with powers after a blackout in the city of Oasys. None of them are supposed to be heroes, but they just might become them in order to save themselves and their city.

In the aftermath of the sudden blackout, turn-based battles make use of elemental spell cards that synergize with one another; water spells lead to more powerful electricity spells, and so on. Mixing and matching these cards is most of the strategy and half the fun.

Outside of battles, players can expect an F-Zero style racing game, fishing, light platforming, and sock-stealing slugs.

According to the project’s director, Nikodile, Sudden Soul has been in development for years, but the team has ramped up production in the last year in the hopes of releasing a public demo in the next few months.

“The biggest challenge has been the slow development time affecting schedules for a lot of the crew,” he said. “Sudden Soul is moreso a passion project that will release when it releases.”

Nikodile’s passion is clear, with him citing inspirations across all eras of gaming and as diverse as his own childhood imagination. He said that the goal has always been to make something that feels familiar yet new.

With modern-feeling character art and retro, low-poly 3D environments, the project evokes its inspirations handily, while still maintaining the marks of each of its team members. Nikodile said that this is intentional, as he believes that games as a medium are uniquely shaped by each person who works on a project.

“One thing I enjoy about video games is that they’re not just one person’s vision,” he said. “They are experiences that are affected by every hand that have touched them, even if it was for a small bit.”

The humbling experience of being a small part of a whole, whether that be on a moderately-sized team like Croc Byte or in the larger gaming space, is something that inspires Nikodile to keep developing. Though Sudden Soul isn’t out yet, it’s definitely one to watch.

Wishlist Sudden Soul on Steam here to keep up with development: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3109460/Sudden_Soul/