MyACG Studio, in partnership with publisher NPC Entertainment, has released Cinderia in Early Access on Steam. The game places players in a kingdom reduced to ashes after a witch's flame consumed the world. Taking on the role of one of the rare survivors capable of absorbing dark magic without losing their sanity, the goal is to uncover the collapse of civilization. The story adopts environmental storytelling, scattering clues throughout the scenery, artifacts, and dialogues, without direct explanations.
The game's main differentiator lies in the depth of its combat system and build creation. The title offers four playable characters, each with their own mechanics: Lu (an assassin focused on melee combat with daggers and throwing knives), Rivet (a long-range specialist with cannons and turrets), Uma (a druid who fights alongside animal summons), and Isdara (an ice knight).
Combat Rework and Over 180 Skills Per Hero
In a recent update, the ice knight Isdara received a complete rework of her mechanics. Previously focused on blocking attacks with a shield to counterattack, the character now uses quick dashes to pressure enemies directly. Her resource system now uses a Defense bar, consumed when blocking and automatically regenerating outside of combat. This allows for variations ranging from explosive damage with precise blocks (Just Guards) to builds focused on crowd control with ice.
The developer confirms that each hero has a catalog of over 180 individual skills and access to more than 130 pieces of equipment. The combinations work through the fusion of Cursed Embers (passive skills), magic cards (active skills), and items. As a result, the same cannon skill from the character Rivet can be configured for either direct high-damage fire or as a tactical unit deployed on the field as a support turret.
Contamination Mechanic and the Current State of Early Access
To balance the accumulation of power, Cinderia implemented the Contamination system. Choosing stronger skills increases the character's contamination level. If the value exceeds the tolerated limit, permanent penalties in the form of a curse are applied until the end of that run. This dynamic forces the player to manage the cost-benefit of each reward while navigating the scenarios.
The game supports 11 languages in its interface, including Korean and English. The minimum requirements listed on Steam require an Intel i5-12600KF processor, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 (6GB) graphics card, and 16GB of RAM. Recent updates, such as patch V0.6.10, have fixed optimization bottlenecks and crashes reported in the initial weeks of the launch.
MyACG Studio plans to keep the game in Early Access for about a year. The update schedule includes the addition of multiplayer modes, new playable characters, new bosses, endgame challenge content, as well as improvements to text localization and expansion of the main campaign.