We got our hands on the PC preview of The Relic: First Guardian, and while it's not a flawless experience, it shows a ton of promise . South Korean indie studio Project Cloud Games is a small team tackling a massive vision, and the rough edges that come with that territory are visible. But here's the thing: beneath every imperfection is a game absolutely brimming with heart, passion, and design ideas that deserve your attention.
The Relic: First Guardian drops players into Arsiltus, a once-prosperous world swallowed by darkness after the destruction of a great relic, and tasks them with restoring the shattered memories of those who came before. The setting draws deeply from Asian folklore and Korean mythology, and it gives the game an identity that immediately sets it apart from the sea of European-flavored dark fantasy that dominates the soulslike space. Combat is where Project Cloud Games makes its boldest statement, stamina is reserved entirely for defense and dodging, while standard attacks carry zero resource cost, creating a system that rewards pure offensive flow and tactical adaptability rather than the cautious poke-and-retreat rhythm most action RPGs default to. Skills run on cooldowns with no consumption costs, five distinct weapon classes offer genuine variety, and twelve individual skill trees let you build hybrid Guardians without rigid class restrictions. Character progression ditches traditional leveling altogether in favor of collectible Relics, fragments imbued with the emotions of Arsiltus's lost inhabitants, each carrying one of over 70 unique passive effects that reshape skill behavior, alter combat tempo, and enhance weapon styles. Every weapon and piece of armor exists only once in the game world as a singular artifact with its own inherited history, and up to 80 tragic bosses as each twisted by curses, starvation, and forgotten memories, await as encounters that feel less like obstacle checks and more like stories waiting for their final chapter.
Is it rough around the edges? Yes. But the designs are genuinely striking, the combat system shows real ambition, and the folklore-driven world has a warmth and sincerity that big-budget studios often struggle to capture. The Relic: First Guardian launches on PC and PlayStation 5 on July 31, with Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch 2 versions following later this summer. We'll absolutely be watching for the full release as this one has the kind of promise that sticks with you after you put the controller down.
