On the 5th, Hound 13 released a demo for its open world action RPG, 'Dragon Sword: Awakening,' on Steam. Originally scheduled for the Steam Next Fest from the 16th to the 24th, the demo arrived about 10 days ahead of schedule.

While the developer claims to be refining the live version previously introduced via Webzen last January, the backstory is fraught with complications. After Hound 13 announced the termination of its publishing contract on February 19th due to Webzen’s failure to pay the remaining balance, Webzen retaliated on the 20th by revealing that Hound 13 had demanded management rights at face value, leading the developer to pursue a standalone package release starting in April. Webzen responded by issuing full refunds to all users who had made purchases in Dragon Sword and warning of stern legal action. Although the balance was paid on February 27th, the conflict persists, with Webzen filing for an injunction against the game on April 21st.

Given these circumstances, the rapid release of a demo—despite the existing foundation—is commendable. However, the real question is how well the game is being polished. Specifically, 'Dragon Sword: Awakening' is transitioning from a live-service model to a package game. The challenge lies in how the developers address elements that were tolerated in a live-service environment but may not be well-received in a standalone package game.

Action with Depth and 'Hand-Feel,' Now with Controller Support

Hound 13 is a developer widely recognized for its unique action style, dating back to 'Hundred Soul.' Unlike the core mechanics of typical mobile action RPGs—which rely on just-dodges, counters, and tag attacks—the studio differentiates itself through diverse QTE (Quick Time Event) actions that trigger based on accumulated status effects. In 'Hundred Soul,' players could launch enemies into the air to trigger aerial combo QTEs or mount staggering large monsters to unleash devastating finishing blows.

That DNA lives on in 'Dragon Sword' and 'Dragon Sword: Awakening.' Instead of a single ultimate skill, each character has two active skills, each assigned a specific status effect, allowing players to chain combos by swapping between characters. From the start, the synergy between Lute and Castella—using stuns and tag-based QTE combos to wipe out groups of goblins—was immensely satisfying. Later, with Aria’s addition, the tactical depth increased: Aria could trigger bombs during combo gaps, which could then be ignited by a switch, neutralizing enemies and allowing Lute or Castella to jump back in once their cooldowns refreshed.

The removal of the gacha system in this demo, which provides a wider selection of characters from the start, highlights these strengths. 'Theresia,' a character not previously playable, was introduced, and her exhilarating action—swinging a chain with iron balls at both ends to rapidly overwhelm enemies—was impressive.

With her bleed and stun traits, she creates a high-tempo tag QTE action loop when combined with Roxy and Castella. While neither Castella (with her battle axe) nor Roxy (with her bow) are particularly fast-paced, Theresia accelerates the team's combat speed, adding a new layer of fun. It makes one look forward to the potential combinations as more characters are added.

The demo also adds controller support, which was previously lacking, offering a different experience from keyboard and mouse. While there are many buttons used for combat, most are tied to QTE-triggered skills, making them intuitive to learn. Although the use of combo keys like LB+X or LB+Y for active skills felt unfamiliar at first, it quickly became second nature during combat.

However, the controller experience revealed issues overlooked with a keyboard and mouse. Since there is no lock-on feature, players must manually control the camera, which is challenging given the frequent, rapid character movements during QTEs.

Status effect attacks triggered by QTEs often target the affected enemy rather than the one currently in the player's view, frequently snapping the camera toward minor mobs during boss fights. Adjusting the camera back to the boss using an analog stick is slower than with a mouse, highlighting a discomfort not felt with keyboard and mouse controls. Additionally, UI key-mapping remains underdeveloped. While the combat is fun, the technical implementation of these controls still needs work.

Traces of Preparation for a Package Release: Reducing Repetitive Content and Adjusting Pacing

The demo covers Chapter 1, ending after Lute joins the Johnny Mercenary Group, completes his first requests, and retrieves an artifact for the Organa Order from the Dragon Cultists. The main quest takes about an hour, and world exploration is limited to the area around Orbis Castle.

In a typical package game, this hour would leave players eager for what's next. Unfortunately, the 'answers' for 'Dragon Sword: Awakening' are already largely known. The story, direction, and content structure do not deviate significantly from the original 'Dragon Sword.' Players will likely follow the main story, grind levels and gear when hitting difficulty spikes, clear the main quest, and then cycle through high-difficulty challenges and growth content while waiting for DLC.

In a free-to-play live service game, players treat daily quests and events as chores to earn currency for gacha. However, this routine is hard to sell in a package game. While exploring after the main quest is familiar to package game players, repeating the same content for potential future DLC is rarely appealing.

Furthermore, the original 'Dragon Sword' made repetitive content quite cumbersome. While the attempt to make dungeon exploration fun was good, the gear farming dungeons felt like a forced way to pad playtime. In this genre, set items are usually farmed in one dungeon, but 'Dragon Sword' required farming individual parts of a set.

If you needed gloves from the 'Life' set, you had to farm a specific glove dungeon, while helmets were in a different one, each with different structures. This was tedious enough, but having to hunt for individual parts made it even more frustrating. Moreover, the inclusion of 'trap' options like Critical Hit Resistance—useless in the absence of PVP—only added to the farming stress.

Hound 13 seems aware of this; the demo groups gear into upper and lower parts for dungeons. While the blacksmith content for gear crafting and options isn't open yet, the fact that items previously used in the blacksmith are now found in field chests suggests a consolidation of farming and an increase in material supply, which should reduce stress.

Additionally, while account leveling previously relied heavily on sub-quests or repetitive farming, the demo increases the EXP and rewards from hidden chests throughout the field. The game now encourages exploration of the open world rather than just repetitive grinding. With various gimmicks like wall-climbing, diving, pushing pillars, and minigames in the small Orbis Castle area, it builds anticipation for what the next fields will offer.

Adjustments to daily routines to fit a package game's play pattern are also noticeable. In the original 'Dragon Sword,' harvesting wheat in town was a daily chore. Since hunting animals was difficult due to the lack of precise aiming, and other crops were scattered, harvesting wheat and potatoes to make health-restoring pizza was the most efficient method. While the potato harvest isn't open yet, wheat now regrows after a set time, allowing for periodic harvesting without waiting for a full real-world day.

Dragon Sword: Awakening' Prepares for a Relaunch: Hoping It Doesn't End as a Fallen Prospect

The current demo is limited to one hour of main story, with many sub-quests closed for readjustment. Nevertheless, I found myself reinstalling the original 'Dragon Sword' to compare them. As a gamer, I couldn't just watch a game that had potential but was stifled by internal and external issues struggle to survive.

I tried to set aside sympathy to avoid clouded judgment, but this demo was a welcome sight. The way it establishes QTE combos and aggressive combat from the start is impressive, even for a package game. While the early story is plain and the self-centered mercenary leader Johnny can be annoying, it's acceptable.

Given the saturation of live-service open-world RPGs in the subculture market, 'Dragon Sword' felt quite alien. However, viewed as a package game, it feels like a classic character-driven title, which is a relief. The mid-game might still feel repetitive due to Johnny's dominance, so the key will be adjusting the tempo and removing hurdles that were originally intended to slow down content consumption.

Players who finished the original 'Dragon Sword' story are likely looking forward to how the orthodox fantasy narrative unfolds. The mid-game began to build a solid foundation regarding the Orbis continent, the history of the six heroes, and the looming threats. The Ninian quest, which balanced emotion and lore, showed promise before the situation soured, forcing this restart.

Dragon Sword: Awakening' still has a long way to go. However, seeing the developers address issues in this early demo is encouraging. Some of my positive impressions stem from having played the original; for new players, the lack of polish in UI and controls might be a significant hurdle.

The action in 'Awakening' is defined by character combinations, and the tempo at which these are unlocked is crucial. Unlike the demo, the full game will require obtaining them through quests or exchanges. Given the original's fragmented acquisition methods, I hope the developers continue to streamline these systems to fit the pacing of a package game.

The demo had a strange, compelling charm that kept me exploring the field. It is harsh to release only one hour of a high-quality open-world action RPG. Just as I was getting a feel for the combat, it ended, leaving me wondering how to optimize my Theresia bleed-team. Since the developers are now dealing with customers who pay for the game, I hope they use this feedback to refine the quality and detail, fully realizing what they couldn't show before and continuing with a successful DLC roadmap.