The Indie Informer

It was not hard to tell, when my time to play Sulfur came around at Day of the Devs, that the stylized action-adventure was in its alpha stage. Not because it seemed unfinished or rough around the edges — the game was actually remarkable well-oiled. Rather, it was because the dev showing it off, Perfect Random’s Anton Albin, spent the first several minutes after our introductions updating the build right there on the show floor.

There is no smoke and mirrors to the indie festival, just small teams working throughout the day to give their games the best possible showing. Which makes Sulfur’s achievements all the more impressive. The game kicked off with one heck of mystery grabbed ahold with wonderfully satisfying gameplay.

Behind me is a totaled car and farther beyond that a burning church. In my hand is a sentient amulet — with a bit of an attitude to be honest — urging me to follow a witch into Sulfur, a place beyond death but not quite the Afterworld proper. And I don’t remember a single thing about what lead up to this moment.

Unarmed, I head into the forbidding cave entrance. I, the player, walk through the gloomy world with almost as much trepidation as my protagonist. Before stepping up to play, I watched the person before me fall off a cliff to his death. So, I knew the game wasn’t going to be super forgiving. I also noted the only current options for controls was mouse and keyboard — not my strong suit. And to top this all off, hanging in the booth was a prize t-shirt for defeating the demo’s final boss. It was unclaimed.

But I grew braver as the tutorial directed me to platform from mushroom to mushroom, pick up a melee weapon that let me barrel through enemies and barricades alike, and finally delivered me a much-appreciated gun. Combat felt excellent, even with my limited keyboard skills. It was quick and decisive, with either my foes dropping rapidly or my hero being summarily cut down.

I don’t make it out of the cave alive, but that’s part of the game too. Death leads me to a character called The Gravedigger. The nickname is well earned, as he frequently shovels my body out of a shallow resting place. His helpfulness extends to giving me a little more context for what’s going on. He explains that, in life, he attended my congregation — the now flaming church from the opening — and appreciated everything I did to help even the less savory members like himself. Now in this Limbo world, the legal-adversed among my past flock have joined together to help me accomplish my, still hazy, quest.

The Gravedigger points me to a building that’s part saloon, part chapel. It houses several vendors boasting skills ranging from weapon repair to alchemic potions. But they aren’t good Samaritans and the work cost money, which I can find scattered around the cave as I adventure through it breaking boxes.

I can see how irresistible the pull of this loop could become for me. Given a little more time and controller support, it’s possible Sulfur could become one of 2024’s stand-out gems.