Many forget that Code Vein was quietly a pretty massive seller for Bandai Namco, so it’s a surprise we haven’t seen more anime-style adaptations of the Souls genre. Unending Dawn – announced as part of Sony’s incubation programme China Hero Project earlier this week – fits the bill, with a methodical combat system and a cel-shaded graphics style.

This first direct-feed gameplay, as captured by Gematsu from Sony’s huge ChinaJoy 2024 booth in Shanghai this weekend, proves there’s plenty of potential here – but clearly the experience is still extremely early. The gameplay looks like it’s running in slow motion, as the engine struggles to keep up with the demands being thrown at it. The animations also look unrefined and unfinished.

But to be fair, there’s no release date attached to this game just yet, so it clearly has many months of development ahead of it – perhaps even years. There’s promise in the combat system, which utilises parries and counter-attacks, and we’re quite fond of the vibrant art style, which provides a welcome change from the dark fantasy of FromSoftware et al.

[source youtube.com]