Who doesn't love a good top-down ARPG; a solid dungeon-crawler with visceral action and real punchy combat that sticks in your teeth like toffee? Aside from Diablo and Path of Exile, there aren't as many out there as I'd like. But Tarae: The Unbound, from South Korean studio Boundary and publisher Krafton, might help change that. I had a chance to get my hands on an early version during this year's Gamescom, and while it's far from finished, what I played of it showed real promise.

Tarae is an isometric action game rooted deeply in Buddhist mythology, and while its demo might be relatively short, it's immediately clear Boundary understands the most important quality of ARPGs: making combat feel good. That starts with a choice between three distinct classes, and, in the demo, I pick the Samurai; a melee-focused fighter who's all about getting up close and wreaking havoc.

You've a dodge roll, a limited stamina bar, and a few healing potions to see you through the dangerous world ahead. And each swing of your sword comes with satisfyingly hefty audio-visual feedback. But it's more than simple slicing and dicing, and includes an intriguing set of abilities that elevates the experience.

Two in the demo stood out to me as especially delightful. The first is a charging slash that shows Boundary understands the importance of weight in games like this. There's nothing worse than floatiness - letting loose a massive blow only for it to flutter from your hands - but Tarae's animators, visual effects artists, and audio engineers are all working in unison here to get the feeling absolutely right.

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