Some new gameplay footage has surfaced for Neostream’s Kickstarted adventure game, Little Devil Inside. The video previews nearly six minutes of gameplay, where we see the main protagonist chopping down a cactus in the desert, siphoning water out of said cactus, and hydrating before continuing his perilous journey.

The kid you play looks a lot like the Hokutomaru from Garou: Mark of the Wolves. He gathers firewood in one sequence by using his axe to chop up the log. The firewood is then used to make a campfire for him to rest during the night in a makeshift tent.

The game seems to be a real hardcore adventure game. There are no on-screen prompts. In order to get to where he needs to go a compass is used. You can see how it all works with the video trailer below.

Things finally pick up after the protagonist encounters a traveling caravan of merchants. He manages to fight off some desert bandits, commandeer a donkey, and give chase in a fairly epic looking showdown using fireballs and rifles.

What really stands out with the game is the use of global illumination for the characters and objects, while the art-style itself seems to mirror marionettes, so they have this really distinct look, with lots of self-shadowing and multi-directional lights passing across characters, even though the characters themselves are somewhat simplistic in their design. It’s a really nice contrast that makes the game stand out as its own thing.

And speaking of lighting, the day and night shifts are captured wonderfully, along with the dynamic wind effects that shift shadows across the sand.

The game has such an enchanting design, especially when you see how weather affects the character, and how fluently animated everything is.

This could end up being one of those breakout hits of the year when it comes out… assuming the gameplay is as solid as it appears in the trailer and the story is compelling enough to nudge players along toward the end.

In time they plan on updating the official website with more info. Until then you’ll just have to keep an eye out for Neostream’s upcoming open-world adventure game.