Penny Blood: Hellbound Is the Roguelite Spinoff You Didn’t Know You Wanted

Die-hard Shadow Hearts fans received a surprise treat last year when Penny Blood, a spiritual successor by several of the original staff members, hit Kickstarter in a double campaign with Armed Fantasia. While the team at Yukikaze/Studio Wildrose are still hard at work developing the game, they have teamed up with Natsume Atari (Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising) to make the wait less grueling. Similar to Kickstarter campaigns for Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes and Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, a bonus game is currently in beta titled Penny Blood: Hellbound!

Check out the announcement trailer below:

Penny Blood: Hellbound is a departure from the main game, being a “roguelite companion title based in the Penny Blood world.” While Natsume Atari did the heavy lifting here to give Yukikaze time to work on the main game, the concept and creative direction were provided by the core team. In this companion game, you play as the antagonists from Penny Blood, the Hellhounders, as they try to escape a magical dimension they are trapped in by a group of witches.

About Penny Blood: Hellbound:

・Play as the Hellhounders – the rival group of baddies that try to thwart Matthew and friends at their every turn in Penny Blood.

・Roguelike gameplay where each run provides a plethora of unlocks, power-ups, and new skills as you march forward towards the final confrontation.

・The Malice System where the more blood you spill, the more currency you earn for unlocks

・Blood spilt also allows for better mobility via “bloodsurfing” where you can unleash stronger momentum-based attacks and skill-based upgrades

・Strategize your run well by choosing the best pair of Hellhounders out of a total 6 selectable characters that you can swap between in real-time

・Music by Yoshitaka Hirota with guest composer Noriyuki Iwadare of Lunar and Grandia fame

Penny Blood: Hellbound is currently in closed beta on PC via Steam. According to the Kickstarter announcement, they “currently have no announcement about a console version.” If you contributed to the Penny Blood Kickstarter campaign, you can purchase Hellbound early at a reduced cost through BackerKit and take part in the beta. According to their roadmap, Natsume Atari plans to move the game into Early Access in February 2024 with the final launch planned for summer 2024.

Penny Blood: Hellbound Screenshots

Stay tuned to RPGFan as Penny Blood: Hellbound develops and we learn more about the base game!