A look at ProbablyMonsters’ promising titles: ‘Nekome: Nazi Hunter’ and ‘Crimson Moon’

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

ProbablyMonsters launched its first two games last year, “Ire: A Prologue” and “Storm Lancers,” and the independent game company is following that up with two more projects that are more ambitious. The first is “Nekome: Nazi Hunter,” a third-person action game about revenge, and the second is “Crimson Moon,” a gothic action role-playing game featuring nephilims.

They’re different titles, but mark another step for ProbablyMonsters as it establishes itself in the industry.

‘NEKOME: NAZI HUNTER’

Game director Jeronimo Barrera said the team wanted to tell a different story about World War II, one that was more personal and settled on Vano Nastasu, a young Romani man who seeks vengeance against the Nazis for killing his family. The idea of fighting World War II Germans is nothing new in video games, so the team wanted to make the adventure stand out and zeroed in on closing the distance in combat.

“Nekome,” which is the Yiddish word for revenge, focuses on hand-to-hand combat. Unlike titles such as “Sniper Elite,” Vano prefers to kill his targets with blades. He’s a silent assassin instead of one who uses a rifle from a distance or blasts them with a machine gun. That means combat is brutal and relies on stealth.

Instead of rushing into the fray, players have to read a level and figure out how to thin the herd before taking out the trash. When engaged in full-blown combat, players have the standard array of moves such as light and heavy attacks along with parries and dodges. Players will have to damage foes to push them into a stunned state so they can perform a brutal takedown.

Like other games, Vano has skills that players can upgrade. A focus meter that builds up with kills gives him access to more powerful moves and abilities like the ability to see where enemies are with an X-ray type vision. The protagonist can also target limbs and other body parts that have an effect on enemies. Striking the legs makes them limp. Hitting them in the head drains their focus.

The enemy artificial intelligence will also have notable touches. Vano must choose his enemies carefully and target captains who call in reinforcements. When the Romani eviscerates a powerful foe, the notoriety system can cause surrounding Nazis to back away in fear and run away.

From the way Barrera described it, “Nekome: Nazi Hunter” will resemble “Sniper Elite” with wide-open levels that give players freedom to explore. It also includes dynamic challenges that players can discover through exploration. It’s setting up to be another fascinating World War II tale that’s scheduled to come out on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Series S and PC.

‘CRIMSON MOON’

While “Nekome” is a single-player campaign, “Crimson Moon” is a more complex title with co-operative play across platforms. It resembles “Diablo” as players take on the role of a half-angel, half-human nephilim, but the developer, Team Metal, said it has more roguelite elements.

Players have to figure out their loadout before entering a dungeon and talk to their co-op partners about their builds before entering the fray. Having two builds that complement and synergize with each other is huge in the game. “Crimson Moon” doesn’t have a class system, but it sounds as though progression will be built on leveling up and gathering equipment through each run.

That’s easier said than done because to keep the loot from each dungeon, players will have to survive it and defeat the boss at the end. If they die, they’ll still gain experience, but lose the gear. What’s more, players will have a limited inventory, so they need to make hard decisions about the loot they find.

The developers said the levels will have some elements of randomization. It’s not ‘Hades” with procedurally generated stages. The dungeons will be handcrafted, but some elements will be different, so that each run should feel marginally different.

As in any RPG, players will level up their character’s attributes, which will help establish a playstyle. The experience points will help players with the difficulty as they grind levels and grow more powerful to take on harder levels.

“Crimson Moon” will be released on the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Series S and PC.