The Ascent Is A New Co-op Dystopian Cyberpunk ARPG Launching This Year

If you just can’t get enough of cyberpunk-themed games set in a dystopian world, then The Ascent will probably be right up your alley. The game is being developed by Neon Giant, a Swedish studio founded in 2018 by Wolfenstein devs, and published by British video game publisher Curve Digital. Here’s a brief summary of the game’s storyline:

“Welcome to The Ascent Group arcology, a self-contained corporate-run metropolis, stretching high into the sky and filled with creatures from all over the galaxy.

You play as a worker, enslaved by the company that owns you and everyone else in your district. You get things done, whatever menial task is given. One day, whilst sent on a routine assignment to make use of your skills with a cyberdeck, you are suddenly caught in a vortex of catastrophic events. The Ascent Group, the largest mega corporation on the planet, shuts down for unknown reasons, causing the automated security systems to go haywire.

The survival of your district is threatened: rival corporations are trying to force appropriation and crime syndicates are looking to boost their black-market augmentation trade. You must take up arms to stop them from seizing control and embark on a new mission to find out what started it all.”

The Ascent will feature both solo or co-op play with up to three other players. Players will be able to fully-customize their characters with a variety of skills, abilities, weapons, gear, and augmentations to tailor-fit them to their playing style.

The game is scheduled for release on the Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S sometime in 2021 and will be offered as part of the Xbox Game Pass. The game will also be launching on Steam and is now available for wishlisting on Valve's game distribution platform.

Check out the pair of trailers below for more info on what the upcoming game has to offer. Hopefully, this one does better than a certain other dystopian cyberpunk game.