First person whip-based treasure-looting platformer Phantom Abyss has released from early access, bringing its fusion of roguelike and runner to a complete version 1.0 with three separate game modes to play. In Phantom Abyss players are a tomb-delving adventurer challenged to reach the end of incredibly deadly trap-filled dungeons and retrieve precious treasures from the end.
The new Adventure Mode came out in 1.0, and is a non-roguelike set of curated journeys through specific handcrafted temples, a perfect place to learn the game from or just enjoy as a solo experience. Each of them has a unique whip to use, relic to gather, and set of challenges to face.
But one of Phantom Abyss' coolest features is its asynchronous multiplayer in the classic Abyss Mode. The ghosts of other, failed adventurers pop up in the level as you go, letting you see how other people died gruesomely on the way. What really adds to this is how Phantom Abyss does its levels: Once someone wins a particular delve they get the treasure at the bottom and that's it—nobody else can ever play or win it again.
There's also a new daily mode, delivering a steady stream of challenges with specific equipment and conditions to best alongside everyone else. As far as I can tell from reviews and community commentary, these range from "2EZ4ME" to ragequittingly hard which for me at least is the sweet spot of a daily mode.
“Phantom Abyss 1.0 is the result of countless hours of development, meticulous iteration, and unwavering attention to our incredible community,” said Team WIBY creative director Ben Marrinan in a press release. “It’s the game we always dreamed of crafting and we hope you dive into the adventure with as much passion as we poured into creating it.”
Phantom Abyss is developed by Team WIBY and published by Devolver Digital. You can find Phantom Abyss on Steam, where it's $20, but it's $10—50% off—until February 1.
