Timemelters, the delirious real-time tactics game, has a new demo Eurogamer.net If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. Timemelters, the delirious real-time tactics game, has a new demo And it's on Kickstarter. Feature by Christian Donlan Features Editor Published on 22 Sep 2021 13 comments One of the most charming things about Timemelters, and about the new Timemelters demo that has just hit Steam, is how eager it is to apologise for itself. It apologizes for all the normal stuff you get in a pre-release demo - no key-binding yet, but it's coming, not everything is fully optimised. But then it keeps on apologising. Or explaining itself, in a distinctly apologetic manner, anyway. Listen: it's meant to be tough, you're meant to die a lot and iterate on a plan. You're meant to be a bit overwhelmed, and the final game will lead you in much more carefully. Promise. Timemelters Developer:Autoexec Games Publisher:Autoexec Games Platform: Played on PC Availability: Coming to PC, with a demo out now None of these things should be apologised for - or even, as is probably the case, gently explained away. Timemelters, formerly called Wicca, is so exciting precisely because it's overwhelming - it gives you so much to think about! And it's so exciting because it's hard, not for the sake of being hard, but to push you to embrace all of its systems, to plan and plan and see a plan fail and come up with a new plan. Iteration! This is perfect stuff for a real-time tactics and strategy game, which is, I guess, kind of what Timemelters is. It's the spiritual sequel to another tactics game that was wonderfully characterful, and wonderfully hard to pin down, Sang-Froid: Tales of Werewolves. That game is an all-timer for me. I have never found a game's atmosphere and mechanical mind more fascinating. And I think Timemelters is up there too. But I'm probably confusing you at this point. Apologies! Timemelters casts you as a Scottish witch, back in the days, firmly, of yore. Monsters are invading the highlands, and you use your witchy powers to do them in when they attack en masse. Oh yes, and you're a glass canon. A single HP, so if a monster gets to you it's game over. But those witch powers, oh boy. First off, you have a fairly weak attack that uses a pool of recharging mana. You can get a few baddies this way, but you back up and fire and eventually they catch you and eat you. So how about teleport? Pick a spot on the map, and then when the mob get you, you instantly teleport to that spot. Maybe - hopefully! - it's a long way away, and so you get more time to whittle down their numbers. Maybe you flank them, confuse them! Maybe it's enough. If it's not enough, do not worry. How about a mass knock-back, on a separate cooldown? How about the ability to draw in energy from downed foes and use it to play really big spells? Bring live to a tree and have it attack any baddies nearby. Freeze baddies in place. Summon a monster that shoots fire and also draws aggro. Reader, it keeps coming. My favourite aspect is rifts - standing stones on the map that allow you to chain together distant parts of the landscape in a sort of witchcraft subway system. But what about that cloning thing, Echos, where you attack the mob and then sort of rewind time and attack the mob again, alongside the deadly echo of your last attempt? After a while there's a mob of them, but there's also a pre-recorded mob of you! All of this comes across beautifully in the current Steam demo. Yes it's a lot to take in, and yes you'll die a lot. But you'll think a lot, learn a lot, do an awful lot of plotting. Ultimately, Timemelters becomes a kind of ingenious, dynamic spin on tower defence. But even that isn't quite right, because it never stops with the ideas, never stops piling on a sense of character and weirdness and intricacy that has me seriously excited. Play the demo! And die and plot and fume and enjoy it. Oh gosh and there's co-op too. I forgot to even mention that. My apologies. Timemelters is currently on Kickstarter. Become a Eurogamer subscriber and get your first month for £1 Get your first month for £1 (normally £3.99) when you buy a Standard Eurogamer subscription. Enjoy ad-free browsing, merch discounts, our monthly letter from the editor, and show your support with a supporter-exclusive comment flair! Support us View supporter archive More Features Digital Foundry Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090: a new level in graphics performance The Digital Foundry video review - and how the new GPU champion delivers for 4K 120fps gaming. Feature Evercore Heroes wants to wind people up the right way "There's less rage at them, because they didn't end your fun." Feature What games get wrong about horses And what they could do about it. 28 Feature Shout out to all the Overwatch supports - where would we be without you? Merci. 55 Latest Articles Digital Foundry Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090: a new level in graphics performance The Digital Foundry video review - and how the new GPU champion delivers for 4K 120fps gaming. Google announces cloud gaming Chromebooks less than a fortnight after Stadia shutdown GeForce Now preinstalled. 4 Feature Evercore Heroes wants to wind people up the right way "There's less rage at them, because they didn't end your fun." Genshin Impact Path of Gleaming Jade dates, login event rewards Including other anniversary rewards and how to claim them. Supporters Only Premium only Off Topic: Take a minute to appreciate Cookin' with Coolio's incredible scallops recipe. What a great book. Premium only Off Topic: Reading City of Glass in comic form "Where exactly am I going?" Premium only Off Topic: Il Buco is a transporting film about a really big hole Underlands. Off-Topic Netflix handled Sandman brilliantly It was Dreamy. 9 Buy things with globes on them And other lovely Eurogamer merch in our official store! Explore our store