The existence of Knights In Tight Spaces, sequel to Fights In Tight Spaces, implies the existence of an unknown quantity or perhaps, an infinity of follow-up games that rhyme with both of those. Frights In Tight Spaces is the obvious horror spin-off. Sleights In Tight Spaces would be an urban pick-pocketing sim. Fights In Trite Spaces is about arguing with people on social media. Ah, you could spend a whole article, indeed, a series of articles, just fleshing out the iterations. Fortunately, Knights In Tight Spaces has a new demo to distract me.
I don’t even need to play the Steam demo to endorse it. For you see, I owe developers Ground Shatter and publishers Raw Fury a write-up from a hands-on way back at GDC. I’ve forgotten a lot of the detail and my notes consist entirely of phrases like “Mites In White Laces = insect high school sports day dramedy????” but the summary is: game good.
I didn’t play the original much so can’t draw any granular comparisons, but the basics appear pretty much the same. It’s a turn and grid-based tactical puzzler (hey, I thought people had given up making those?) in which you defeat superior enemy numbers by means of varied ability cards (there are over 300 to unlock), smart positioning and cunning terrain effects. Simply going bevor-to-bevor with opponents won’t cut the mustard; you must delicately work the crowd like you’re setting up dominoes with chopsticks, tricking enemies into bopping their friends and other such comickal shenanigans.
The difference is that this time round, you start with a party of character classes, such as archers and mages. Each has the skillset you’d approximately suspect from the name. This boisterously shoves the game a few grid squares in the direction of non-puzzle tactics RPGs. There’s more opportunity to batter enemies unscientifically, if you think you have the stats for it. But it’s still more of a puzzler than an attritional exchange of blows/fireballs, and the touch of Final Fantasy Tactics suits the choice of a medieval fantasy premise.
“Weirdly, the thing that felt most underdeveloped was the setting,” Jai Singh Bains wrote in our review of the first game. “As integral to the game as it is, there’s not really a story”. It feels like they’ve tried to address that. Beyond the battles, you’ll pick paths through an overworld, undertaking primary and secondary quests and clicking through some sparse but colourful dialogue. They’ve also plumped up the art direction – it’s grittier and slashier of texture than the previous game’s spy thriller whitebox, while still offering up a world of sharp outlines and stark colours.
The Next Fest 2024 demo gives you access to a couple of classes, the Rogue and Cleric, and a selection of weapons and levels, including a boss level. Find the demo on Steam – the full game doesn’t have a release date yet. I’ve been trying to think of an absolutely hilarious rhyming title to end on but urgh, the spark has gone. Please, help me find closure and fill the comments thread with your suggestions – I’m sure the developers won’t find it utterly unbearable in the slightest.