Enshrouded Early Access Review In Progress

Enshrouded is an interesting title that has been hovering on my radar since it was first announced. The action survival RPG from Keen Games, Enshrouded, aims to slot itself right in amongst others in the survival MMO genre, taking cues from games such as Minecraft, Valheim, and more. It offers enough, though, to shake up the formula and make Enshrouded feel wholly distinct and, at times, even better than some of its predecessors.

Enshrouded’s main conceit is that you’re what’s called a Flameborn, a survivor who finds themselves exploring the ruined continent of Embervale. The continent is broken, with vast ruins of a lost people dotting the landscape and skyline, while the depths hide something more sinister: the viscous Shroud.

It’s an old adage in gaming, it’s dangerous to go alone, so Enshrouded allows up to sixteen players take on the dangers of Embervale and The Shroud together, whether on a privately hosted server or through a rented dedicated server. However, you can indeed tackle it solo, should you choose, though in my experience, it’s much more enjoyable with a few friends. 

I Was The First To Arrive

From its opening moments, it’s clear that Keen Games are onto something very different here, yet still very familiar. Enshrouded follows the typical route of awakening in an empty land, ready to be rebuilt by its new residents. You’ll uncover the perfect plot, start building tools and a small shelter, all while trying to keep enemies and wildlife at bay. 

The early moments are spent hunting down wooden twigs and stone to build humble pickaxes and stone hatchets to fell trees, while early quests also saw me search high and low for materials to build some exciting traversal items: a grappling hook and a glider.

Given the amount of sheer cliffs that criss-cross Embervale, I’m thankful for both as I’ve explored. Falling down the side of a cliff covered by the misty veil of the Shroud wasn’t nearly as disastrous, knowing I could spread my wings and float safely to