As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that several of my gaming tastes have changed. More specifically, I’ve found myself gravitating more toward action RPGs, and even more specifically, Souls games and Soulslikes. Which is why I wanted to check out ProbablyMonsters’ Crimson Moon, an upcoming action RPG that immediately caught my attention once I finally got my hands on it.
To be honest, I knew about the game, but I didn’t follow it too closely because I wanted to be surprised. During Summer Game Fest 2026, I finally got the chance to go hands-on with Crimson Moon, and after spending some time with it, I can only say that I was both surprised and impressed with what I played.
Getting Acquainted With Crismon Moon
Jumping into Crimson Moon, you pick your character and build before being sent into a level where you’re tasked with clearing out enemies and taking on the boss at the end. The first thing that stood out to me was that this is both a single-player and co-op title, which will instantly appeal to those who enjoy these sorts of games with friends.
I immediately turned to the ProbablyMonsters staff on hand and told them this will be a hit for people who enjoy Soulslikes but hate dying and being sent back to their own worlds. And if you happen to be playing solo, the game scales accordingly, so you don’t need to worry about it kicking your butt because it was overtuned for co-op.
Pairing up with Scott, who was also on hand, we attempted our dive into the game while scouting for a variety of creatures. Some were simple to dispatch, while others were much tougher, including a few that felt like mini-bosses. However, as we continued clearing out the level, I started realizing that Crimson Moon also shares some similarities with games such as Diablo, with nearly every enemy dropping some sort of gear. This ranged from weapons, potions, armor, and shields, all with different abilities and perks, such as adding debuffs to enemies when hit, or giving you stacking buffs. This, however, did cause me to pause every time loot dropped, because I was constantly checking to see if something was better than what I already had or if it benefitted me in some other way.
Gameplay
While the demo didn’t dive too deeply into the story, Crimson Moon sets players loose in a dark fantasy world filled with dangerous creatures, loot, and boss encounters. The focus of this Summer Game Fest 2026 demo was clearly on combat, co-op progression, and how the game’s roguelike structure works.
The gameplay of Crimson Moon felt familiar to me, and it will likely feel familiar to anyone who enjoys action RPGs. You have access to a light attack, heavy attack, dodge button, and yes, a jump action, which I used a lot. Circling around enemies also gives you access to a backstab, which was really useful, while the parry mechanic was so easy to pull off that it almost felt like cheating at times.
However, the game also features another mechanic where, after building up enough meter by killing enemies, pressing the L3 and R3 buttons transforms you into a massive angelic character that dishes out increased damage and becomes invincible until the meter runs out. This feels like something that should be reserved for boss fights, but the game does let you trigger it whenever you want.
There are also useful mechanics in place, such as being able to track down enemies when the objective tells you that you still need to finish off the remaining threats. That came in handy, because there were moments where we were running around blindly trying to figure out where the last enemies were hiding.
Being someone who has played nearly every available action RPG, Souls game, and Soulslike, Crimson Moon instantly clicked with me. At times, I was charging in without waiting for my partner, which led me to understand another important mechanic: death. You’re given four lives that let you respawn before your run is over, but your partner can also revive you, assuming they can reach you and perform the required action.
Then there’s the roguelike aspect. Once you complete a level, you’re given a choice of three perks that stack with your existing perks as you continue progressing through the levels and work your way toward the final boss.
Rounding out the demo, we made it to the level’s end boss with a few minutes to spare, and it was anything but easy. Apparently, developers are falling in love with poison, because this boss featured plenty of it. At first, it seemed manageable enough, as I moved in and out to avoid the nasty green stuff and figured that was all there was to it.
Except I was wrong.
Once we got the boss near the halfway point, it changed up its tactics. Not only did it use even more poison, but it also started doing a ground slam that produced a poison ring that expanded toward the outer edge of the arena. Of course, it also randomly shot poison in an arc that could land right on top of you if you weren’t paying attention.
Sadly, just as we were getting closer to possibly taking down the boss, the demo ended.
This Is A Damned Good First Effort
Sadly, I only had about 20 minutes with Crimson Moon, but while I was playing, I was completely locked in. From what I played, the combat felt great, the enemy variety was plentiful, and the levels had enough verticality and surprises that I actually wanted to explore them instead of rushing straight to the end.
It’s clear that ProbablyMonsters did its homework on not only what fans of this genre want, but also how to make all of those pieces come together. While Crimson Moon was already on my radar, this hands-on experience solidified that this could easily become one of my most played games whenever it gets released.
Crimson Moon is currently in development for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
