‘Immortals Of Aveum’ Is A New Magic-Based First-Person Shooter From EA And It Looks Surprisingly Great

It’s not every day that a brand new AAA single-player, first-person shooter comes along. Now take away the guns and make it a magic-based FPS and you have my attention. I remember playing Heretic and Hexen back in the day and having a blast, but there just aren’t that many spell-slinging first-person shooters out there.

Immortals Of Aveum is bucking the trend, offering up a single-player-only magic FPS that looks amazing in its first trailer, which is half-cinematic and half-gameplay. Check it out:

Obviously it’s impossible to say whether this will be good or not, but the trailer has definitely piqued my curiosity. The story/cinematic stuff looks fine, but it’s the gameplay that really looks great. I admit, I’m a big fan of gun-based first-person shooters and, for whatever reason, I think it’s really hard to get magic right in an FPS, but this certainly has potential.

Immortals is being developed by brand new developer Ascendant Studios under the EA Originals label. The developer has ex-Call Of Duty and Dead Space veterans on the team, so no shortage of experience in the shooter genre. The studio was founded by Bret Robbins who worked on both franchises when at Sledgehammer Games, though he’s also worked on titles like 2002’s Legacy Of Kain: Blood Omen 2 from Crystal Dynamics. (I use every excuse I can to include Legacy of Kain games in my posts for obvious reasons).

Immortals of Aveum is set in “an original fantasy universe engulfed in magic, rife with conflict, and on the edge of the abyss. Players experience this visceral and cinematic, story-driven game through the eyes of Jak, as he joins an elite order of battlemages, masters all three colors of magic – blue, green, and red – and decimates legions of enemies with clever chained attacks and well-timed counters. Combining a modern story within a fantasy setting, the world of Aveum is filled with unforgettable characters, fast-paced action and spell-based combat that defies FPS conventions.”

The game summary continues:

“Having grown up powerless and destitute, Jak is what’s known as an Unforeseen – someone who unexpectedly manifests magical abilities later in life. With his newfound potential, Jak is recruited by General Kirkan to join the Order of the Immortals and is reluctantly thrust into mankind’s endless war for the control of magic. With powerful magic-wielders and legions of soldiers on both sides of the Everwar, Jak and his elite order of Immortals must uncover the mysteries of Aveum’s troubled past, if there’s any hope for saving its future. Immortals of Aveum’s cinematic campaign is brought to life by an incredibly talented cast of AAA celebrities like Darren Barnet (“Never Have I Ever,” “Road House,” “Gran Turismo”) as Jak, and Gina Torres (“Suits,” “Pearson,” “Firefly”) as General Kirkan.”

EA has certainly had experience with blue, green and red before, but maybe now isn’t the time for Mass Effect 3 jokes.

From the press release:

“I’m incredibly excited to finally show the world Immortals of Aveum. It’s been a five year journey for us at Ascendant, and I’m so proud of the team and their commitment to making something great,” said Bret Robbins, CEO and Game Director at Ascendant Studios. “We set out to create a cinematic, thrilling shooter set in a new fantasy world, with fast and fluid combat and an epic story. I can’t wait for everyone to play it.”

“EA Originals champions individuals and teams who have disruptive creative visions for their games,” said Jeff Gamon, General Manager of EA Partners. “Ascendant had us hooked when we saw how they had woven magic so seamlessly through fast-paced FPS combat, set against an action packed story we just wanted to keep reading. Bret built an incredibly talented team whose unrelenting passion for creating original, AAA games, deep lore and telling imaginative new stories is on full display in Immortals of Aveum.”

Immortals Of Aveum launches on July 20th, 2023 on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S for $69.99 and on PC via Steam, Epic Game Store and the EA App for $59.99.