Nexon's South Korean game studio Neople is preparing to launch its highly anticipated hardcore RPG slasher, The First Berserker: Khazan, on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. The official release date is set for March 27, but ahead of that, the development team has shared an eight-minute gameplay trailer that highlights the game's intricate combat mechanics.
The trailer focuses on three fundamental combat principles: attacking, dodging, and defending. Although defending uses substantially more stamina than dodging, executing a perfectly timed block not only reduces stamina consumption but also lessens stun duration. Dodging consumes even less stamina, but it demands precise timing and quick reflexes to take full advantage of invincibility frames during evasion. Much like other soulslike titles, victory in The First Berserker: Khazan depends heavily on the player's ability to manage stamina effectively during combat.
Should Khazan's stamina be fully depleted, he will enter an exhausted state, becoming entirely vulnerable to enemy strikes. Interestingly, this same rule applies to certain enemies with visible stamina bars—players can drain their opponents' stamina before landing powerful blows. For enemies that lack stamina bars, their defenses can still be broken through sustained offensive pressure. These encounters require patience, careful positioning, and flawless execution—though they are balanced by the fact that enemy stamina does not naturally regenerate over time.
