Justdan is more known in these parts of the world as a physical games distributor for Asia, and also the team behind the last two Capcom Pop-Up Store events in Malaysia, but the Chinese company is also a developer of their own original games.
Justdan’s first self-developed game is called Dinghai: The Ocean Pillar and is set to release soon. It’s action-RPG roguelike and a demo is now available on Steam.
In Dinghai: The Ocean Pillar, you play as Yi, godson of Yu the Great who fatally injured until the Abyssal Dragon seized his body and saved his life. But now the Abyssal Dragon has taken control of Yi’s body, and Yi’s soul is then transferred to a hatchling of an ancient mythical bird, Yujia. So now the Abyssal Dragon, a legendary general who fell out of favour and was previously killed yet its soul lived on, is now on an epic adventure to reverse destiny and “resolve the regrets of his past life,” while accompanied by little birdy whose the original owner of that body.
If the story feels very poetic, well, the world of Dinghai: The Ocean Pillar is based on Classic of Mountains and Seas, a classic Chinese text that doesn’t necessarily tell a story per se, but a collection of mythic beasts and geography. In a modern lense, think of it as a worldbuilding compendium.
Gameplay-wise, Dinghai: The Ocean Pillar has you control the Abyssal Dragon from a top-down perspective. Think Diablo, or Furi. You have access to two different weapons at a time, a melee and a ranged option, and of course, you’ll be collecting randomised Relics that bestow different enhancements that includes stacking buffs and weakening enemies.
There is now a demo for Dinghai: The Ocean Pillar with an expected 2 hours worth of content to try out which covers two stages: Huxiu and Buzhou Mountain.
If you like Chinese myths and have a penchant for roguelikes, Dinghai: The Ocean Pillar might be something up your alley.
Dinghai: The Ocean Pillar is expected to release sometime this year for PC (Steam). A demo is available.