Void Soul Awakening vs BLACKWOOD

• Perspective: Third-Person
• Multiplayer: Single-Player Only
• Setting: 2012 Brooklyn, New York
• Platforms: PC
• Release Window: Q3 2026
• Unique Feature: A unique dual-life gameplay system that blends life simulation as a DVD store owner with a brutal, cinematic, John Wick-inspired third-person shooter.

• Void Sprite Familiar: Hovers around the player, automatically siphoning distant Soul Energy orbs and firing suppressing energy bursts at approaching threats.
  Arcane Entity
• Spectral Scout Raven: Flies through locked chamber doors to reveal enemy compositions, elite spawns, and trap placements ahead of time.
  Phase Corvid

• Memory Shards: Found hidden behind destructible walls in non-linear sector branches; unlocks lore logs revealing the origins of the Cube.
• Cursed Void Relics: Awarded in optional timed combat challenge arenas; provides massive offensive boosts balanced by severe survival debuffs.
• Archon Core Sigils: Dropped by the four sector bosses; unlocks permanent class skill trees and weapon customization tiers at the central hub.

• DVDs: As the owner of a DVD store, players can buy and sell films, which may function as a form of collectible.
• Lore Items: The detailed world is filled with environmental storytelling (ads, tattoos, posters) that piece together the game's narrative.

• Action
• Thriller
• Third-Person Shooter
• Hitman
• Dual Life
• Crime
• Narrative-Driven
• Beat 'em up

• Eclipse Katana: Melee (Blade)
  High-agility curved blade that executes rapid slashing combinations, flash-step gap closers, and parry counters that refund Soul Energy.
• Cerberus Hand-Cannons: Dual Firearms
  Twin heavy-caliber semi-automatic revolvers firing void-infused explosive slugs that juggle enemies in mid-air.
• Abyssal Greatsword: Heavy Melee
  Colossal greatblade capable of charging heavy sweeping swings, crushing heavily armored foes, and generating kinetic blastwaves.
• Voidlance Railgun: Precision Firearm
  Long-range anti-materiel rifle that charges high-velocity void beams, piercing through multiple enemies and terrain barriers.
• Reaper's Scythe: Polearm / Melee
  Sweeping curved polearm specialized in crowd control, pulling groups of corrupted souls into range for massive harvesting strikes.

• Firearms: Varies
  A diverse arsenal of over 30 unique weapons for fast, stylish, and unforgiving gunplay.
• Hand-to-Hand: Melee
  A core component of combat, used in the game's extensive and brutal takedown system.
• Environmental Weapons: Improvised
  Players can use the environment around them to eliminate enemies with precision and style as part of the contextual finisher system.

• Shrouded Void Vestments: Evasion Speed +30%, Soul Energy Regeneration +25%, Physical Defense -15%; grants phase-dash invulnerability frames.
• Iron Warden Plate: Damage Reduction +40%, Stagger Resistance +50%, Dash Distance -10%; provides super-armor during heavy melee charging.
• Archon's Relic Harness: Gun Damage +20%, Spell Power +20%, Shield Capacity +35%; balanced combat rig forged from conquered guardian alloys.
• Kinetic Kinetic Deflector Shield: Block Efficiency +60%, Perfect Parry Projectile Reflection; converts blocked ballistic fire directly into Soul Energy.

• Echo Wanderer's Tattered Cloak: Tattered, flowing travel cloak with billowing void particles, customizable with midnight black, royal purple, and crimson dyes.
• Cyber-Occult Visor: Luminescent optical headset displaying enemy health telemetry, with adjustable neon glow colors.
• Duelist's Armored Longcoat: Reinforced leather and steel trench coat with engraved arcane runes that illuminate during max Style Rank.

Progression is built around the Soul Energy System, Echo Matrix, and Void Sorceries. Players manage Soul Energy, an active combat gauge consumed by shooting and casting spells, which can only be recharged by landing precise melee strikes. Equipping Echoes of fallen warriors fundamentally alters player classes, passive perks, and mobility skills (such as aerial dashes, phase teleports, and kinetic deflects), while Sorceries allow players to cast black-hole singularities, spectral lightning storms, and blood-sacrifice damage surges.

The game incorporates light RPG elements to make Anton's dual identity feel more tangible. While specific skill trees have not been detailed, progression is tied to mastering the combat system, which includes fluid movement (dives, rolls, slides) and a vast arsenal of over 30 unique weapons. A key part of the gameplay is mastering the game's 30+ contextual finishers.

The Abyssal Cube is divided into four non-linear, procedural sectors that shift in architecture with every run: Sector I: The Obsidian Bastion (towering neo-gothic battlements and clockwork crushing corridors), Sector II: The Sunken Core (submerged crystal caverns filled with void cataracts and toxic spires), Sector III: The Shattered Crucible (fractured floating platforms suspended over gravity wells requiring grappling hooks and wall-runs), and Sector IV: The Keeper's Sanctum (a mind-bending metaphysical nexus where gravity and geometry warp in real time).

The game takes place in the open world of 2012 New York. The city is designed to be a living character, with every detail carrying meaning. The core gameplay loop is split between managing Anton's DVD store in Brooklyn during the day and exploring the city's criminal underworld on contract kills at night.

• Abyssal Gravity Hook: Kinetic Traversal Apparatus
  Arm-mounted energy winch that latches onto floating cosmic debris to catapult the player across massive chasms and vertical arena shafts.
• Phase Rail Transit Car: Sector Rail Transport
  Magnetic levitation transport capsule utilized to travel between the four shifting sectors of the Abyssal Cube.

• Voidcrawler: Abyssal Insectoid
  Fast-moving multi-legged swarming beasts that skitter along ceilings and leap down onto players in tight corridors.
• Grave Golem: Crystalline Construct
  Heavily armored mechanical construct powered by soul cores, delivering ground-pound shockwaves and deploying projectile shields.
• Warp Strider: Eldritch Aberration
  Tall, slender monstrosity that phases through reality, teleporting behind the player to execute lethal surprise ambushes.
• Corrupted Seraph: Fallen Celestial
  Winged guardian hovering above the arena, bombarding the battlefield with homing energy spears and laser grids.
• Obsidian Archon: Cosmic Sector Boss
  Towering four-armed titan that wields dual greatswords and arcane plasma cannons, testing mastery of parry mechanics.

• The Void Soul: Immortal Protagonist
  A wandering, amnesiac warrior soul endowed with the ability to reincarnate upon death and wield weapons from past eras.
• The Whispering Entity: Eldritch Patron & Guide
  A primordial cosmic consciousness trapped within the Cube who grants dark sorceries and urges the player to destroy the Keeper.
• The Keeper: Supreme Warden
  The enigmatic cosmic entity governing the Abyssal Cube, wielding absolute authority over time, geometry, and eternal incarceration.
• The Soul Smith: Weapon Artisan
  A spectral blacksmith found in respite chambers who fuses harvested enemy essence into permanent weapon modifications.

• Shatter the Obsidian Gate: Sector Gateway Mission
  Traverse the labyrinthine halls of Sector I, survive waves of clockwork horrors, and defeat the Obsidian Archon to breach the inner core.
• The Sunken Trial: Boss Encounter Expedition
  Navigate the crystal caverns of Sector II, cleanse three corrupted void wells, and eliminate the Leviathan Guardian.
• Overthrow the Keeper: Campaign Climax
  Ascend to the metaphysical summit of Sector IV, survive an escalating bullet-hell gauntlet, and defeat the Keeper to break the reincarnation loop.

• Main Story Quests
  A cinematic, slow-burn narrative campaign that follows Anton Blackwood as he carries out his contracts and gets pulled deeper into a web of conspiracies, questioning if he is truly in control of his own life.
• DVD Store Management
  A life simulation gameplay loop where players must run Anton's business by buying and selling films, decorating the shop, and interacting with customers.

The core game delivers a pure, focused single-player character action roguelite experience. Asynchronous competitive elements are integrated through Global Leaderboards for speedrun clears, highest combo style ratings, and weekly seeded dungeon runs where all players compete using the exact same room layouts and gear drops.

Void Soul Awakening is scheduled for release on Steam in 2027 at a base price of $19.99 USD. A Deluxe Supporter Edition will be available for $29.99 USD, bundling the complete digital soundtrack composed of industrial synth-metal tracks, an interactive digital art book detailing the monster design of the 80+ enemy variants, and exclusive void-infused weapon skins and Echo visual trails.

The development roadmap outlines extensive post-launch support, including an endless Boss Rush arena mode, an Ascension difficulty modifier system allowing players to custom-tune enemy aggression and hazard modifiers for greater rewards, and seasonal content updates introducing new Echoes, weapons, and biome variants.

• Q: What is Void Soul Awakening?
  A: Void Soul Awakening is a hyper-fast action roguelite developed by VisRay Studios blending character-action hack and slash combat, third-person shooting, and dark void sorceries.
• Q: When does Void Soul Awakening release?
  A: Void Soul Awakening is planned for release on PC via Steam in 2027, with public playtesting active in late 2026.
• Q: How does the combat system work?
  A: The combat utilizes a hybrid Soul Energy system: firing guns and casting spells consumes Soul Energy, which can only be replenished by engaging in close-quarters melee strikes.
• Q: What engine is Void Soul Awakening built on?
  A: The game is built in Unreal Engine 5, featuring advanced lighting, Niagara particle effects, and high-framerate action responsiveness.
• Q: How many bosses and enemy types are in the game?
  A: The game features over 30 unique hand-crafted boss encounters known as Guardians and Archons, along with more than 80 evolving enemy types.

• Q: What is BLACKWOOD?
  A: BLACKWOOD is a single-player, third-person action thriller about a man living a double life as a DVD store owner by day and a professional hitman by night. It is known for its John Wick-inspired combat and deep, cinematic narrative.
• Q: What is the gameplay like?
  A: It is a blend of life simulation and third-person shooting. By day, you manage a DVD store. By night, you engage in fast, stylish, and brutal cover-based gunplay and hand-to-hand combat, with a focus on over 30 contextual takedowns.
• Q: Who is making the game?
  A: The game is being developed and published by AttritoM7 Productions, the studio behind the tactical FPS, Zero Hour.
• Q: When will it be released?
  A: The game is scheduled for release in the third quarter (Q3) of 2026 on PC via Steam.

Crafted in Unreal Engine 5, Void Soul Awakening boasts a striking visual style that marries dark fantasy architecture with vivid neon-purple and crimson void VFX. High-speed chromatic aberration, dynamic motion blur, physics-based cloth simulations, and volumetric light shafts streaming through the prison's iron grates deliver an overwhelming sense of kinetic spectacle.

The soundscape is driven by an energetic, adrenaline-pumping blend of aggressive heavy metal guitars, industrial synths, and dark ambient choral voices that dynamically intensify as the Style Meter climbs. Weapon impacts resonate with bone-crunching clarity, complemented by spatial 3D audio cues for projectile parries and off-screen teleporting enemies.

Features a slick, high-contrast cyber-gothic HUD displaying real-time health, Soul Energy reserves, active weapon heat, and an adrenaline-fueled dynamic Style Meter (ranging from D to SSS) inspired by classic character-action games. A quick-swap weapon wheel and intuitive spell-binding menu allow seamless mid-combo transitions without interrupting combat momentum.

Includes an extensive accessibility suite: full controller remapping with adaptive trigger support on DualSense, configurable input buffering and auto-combo toggles, toggleable screen shake and flashing effects, scalable UI elements up to 200%, colorblind visual presets, and adjustable game speed sliders (from 70% to 100%) to assist players with reaction time barriers.

• Built in Unreal Engine 5 leveraging Nanite geometric virtualization, Lumen dynamic global illumination, and Niagara particle systems for fluid bullet-hell effects, dynamic sword slashes, and void magic. Fully optimized for high-refresh-rate displays up to 240 Hz.
• Laptop Performance Note: Rapid multi-directional dashing, particle-dense bullet storms, and real-time volumetric lighting demand robust thermal dissipation on mobile setups. Gaming laptops should target at least 75W-105W TGP and run on elevated stands to sustain 60-120 FPS during dense Guardian boss encounters.
• Laptop Consideration: G P U T G P: A discrete mobile GPU operating between 75W and 115W TGP is recommended to maintain locked high frame rates during high-velocity hack-and-slash bullet-hell barrages.
• Laptop Consideration: Cooling Thermals: Extended roguelite runs place consistent multi-core stress on mobile CPUs; enabling aggressive fan curves prevents thermal throttling during intense horde clears.
• Laptop Consideration: C P U Power Limits: Set Windows power profiles to High Performance to prevent single-core clock drops during rapid animation cancels and iframe dodges.
• Laptop Consideration: M U X Switch Optimus: Direct GPU display routing via MUX switch eliminates input lag, crucial for tight parry timings and trajectory aim.
• Optimization Detail: Upscaling Tech: Supports NVIDIA DLSS 3 Frame Generation, AMD FSR 3, Intel XeSS, and Unreal TSR with dynamic resolution scaling.
• Optimization Detail: Key Settings Impact: Niagara Particle Density, Volumetric Fog, and Screen-Space Reflections have the highest impact on rendering performance.
• Game Name: Void Soul Awakening

• Upscaling Tech: Supports NVIDIA DLSS 3 Frame Generation, AMD FSR 3, Intel XeSS, and Unreal TSR with dynamic resolution scaling.
• Key Settings Impact: Niagara Particle Density, Volumetric Fog, and Screen-Space Reflections have the highest impact on rendering performance.

• G P U T G P: A discrete mobile GPU operating between 75W and 115W TGP is recommended to maintain locked high frame rates during high-velocity hack-and-slash bullet-hell barrages.
• Cooling Thermals: Extended roguelite runs place consistent multi-core stress on mobile CPUs; enabling aggressive fan curves prevents thermal throttling during intense horde clears.
• C P U Power Limits: Set Windows power profiles to High Performance to prevent single-core clock drops during rapid animation cancels and iframe dodges.
• M U X Switch Optimus: Direct GPU display routing via MUX switch eliminates input lag, crucial for tight parry timings and trajectory aim.