Eydigard

Eydigard is interesting. At a glance it appears as a rather simple open world RPG game, but it hides so much more behind a bit of investigation.
Make no mistake, this is an early access game. It has a certain yankiness to it, which the devs are going to have to work on before this becomes a full release. This is kind of to be expected at this point for an early access game and I'm happy to report that I have not have had any major bugs or crashes while playing it. Tiny bit of lag and some issues with meshes not loading fast enough, but this seems fixable.
General gameplay:
You explore, find enemies, loot, discover new places and crafting recipies. You can cleanse Eydigards if you follow along with the main quest line. I still havent gotten too far along with this, but the concept of having these farms as your bases is interesting. There's also a number of underground caves to explore and there's also some mysterious doors I've spotted that I'm not sure how to access yet. The mysterious aspect is something I do really like though.
Combat:
The combat is pretty straight forward, with a simple attack and block system. You can perfect parry and you have various abilities that you can use. There are different shapeshift forms which offer different roles in combat. These will probably need some extra polishing and tuning to make them feel truly distinctive, but I must say I have a lot of fun with the added mobility of the lynx.
Crafting:
I like crafting in game. Eydigard does something which I haven't had in a game in a while, which is to make me wonder (in a positive way) about the possibilities of the crafting system. What recipes are available in the game? Where do I discover these and how do I learn them?
Graphics:
Visually the game looks pretty decent. There's some really cool moments where the fog gets rather thick and there's some really nice contrasts, shadows and colors going on. It can be a little bit dark during the night or in some caverns, so I hope some possibility for the player to light up his or her surroundings a bit is implemented. Dark vision for the lynx perhaps?
The music is really nice too! I hope they add some more of this, just to have the music even more custom for the places you go to.
Closing words:
Where Eydigard comes through for me though, is when I play it with friends. The world is quite large, but having a few friends to explore it with really just enhances everything. The mysteries the game presents are just so much fun to explore together, finding the hidden away things. That sense of wonder and exploration is something that not every game manages to have.
Grab some friends and explore!

Yes, I highly recommend this game. I think this game may be a little misunderstood or perhaps misrepresented, be it intentionally or unintentionally. Great game, nice devs, they've been responsive on the Discord too. I've asked some questions about the game when I'm stuck and provided a bunch of feedback and they've been kind enough to respond and they're still working on fixing bugs and adding more content.
What is this game?
This is NOT survivalcraft game. This is a very oldschool RPG with some crafting involved. Eating/drinking is far less important in this game than what is typical in survival games and there is no building system - rather it has villages that you rescue and unlock. Eating/drinking gives you a small convenient buff but you don't even need to do it. Oldschool RPG style, you're thrown into this world without too much of a guiding hand and any quests that you take on, you receive no exact quest markers or pointers to where to go, but instead you get rough directions and then you get to explore the game world as you look for the quest objective. The game is you, an adventurer and the game is an oldschool RPG experience, circa early 2000-2005 ish style I'd say.
The game reminds me most of the games Valheim and Outward, with the combat being that of a druid in World of Warcraft and I think the whole shapeshifting thing is a big sell of the game's niche. It was the reason I got this game.
The game looks most like Valheim than anything else, that with the Norse theme but that's kind of the end of it. Otherwise it's not anything like Valheim. What I really like is that the game is set in the real world of Norway and there is dialogue that references Sweden and Germany (Lubeck, the Hanseatic league etc) while also incorporating Norse mythology. Thematically, the game is quite like Valheim, but in gameplay it is not really like Valheim at all.
The gameplay is more akin to the game Outward. It's an RPG, it gives you a narrative to follow, quests, you can craft stuff, explore the world, kill stuff, do dungeons, talk to people in the towns for some cool lore and a good idea of how the world here functions. I LOVE that you can just ask random people "what's life like on this farm?" or whatever and they'll give you some dialogue based on their personal experience, what is their trade, how hard is their life, what is their leader like etc that is a really nice touch.
The actual gameplay loop is that you will cleanse old villages from a special kind of corruption that I won't spoil and you can claim these villages for two different factions that are competing with one another and you also gain reputation working for each faction. Each of these villages will provide improvements to the way you play the game with better gear upgrades or food and more.
The two factions are:
-The Sjur family who are a type of aristocratic bourgois, or merchant family who look to invest and expand their wealth by claiming more land, paying mercenaries from Germanic lands and grabbing hold of these old villages and employing more people and let 16th century capitalism do its thing.
-<I forgot this faction's name lol sorry> these are more inwards looking and care more about what they already have than to expand. They are traditionalists in that they have their village, their traditions, their way of life, they're essentially a tribe of Norsemen who are indiginous to this land. They are only looking to reclaim the old villages because they know that the Sjur family are here to, in their eyes, ruin the lands.
There's also a pseudo faction of Sami people, who today are kind of known as the last indiginous people of Northern Europe and if you've not heard of these guys, do read about their history and culture, it's extremely interesting. Again, I love that this game is actually set in a real world setting.
Combat:
You're a shapeshifter, at the moment you can turn into a bear and a lynx (looks like wolf form will also become a thing according to some UI elements) and if you've played World of Warcraft, you know what these two forms are for. Lynx moves fast, can sneak attack, cause bleed, best form against 1-2 enemies and also just for fast travelling. Bear form is tanky, slower, strong, very useful when there's more than 2 enemies. Combat is not that hard, bosses can be tough. It's actually really well balanced because you do have to keep on your toes once you get past the first troll enemies, but it's not dark-souls-difficult.
You can also do some fighting in human form. You have your staff that you can use, it's not as good as the animal forms, but in human form you can also use ranged weapons which are good enough that you can kill enemies with it albeit not as fast as in animal forms - but they're also good for just pulling enemies if you want to single them out.
The game has a block-parry-dodge system. It's actually really well made, it only needs a little bit better feedback which the devs said they're working on. During combat you want hold down the right click button to stay in this combat stance and block attacks, but you can also click it the second before an enemy hits you to parry it entirely and take no damage. There's also a dodge function to quickly shift out of the way of an attack. It looks like some people didn't realise that this whole parry system existed.
Some in-game NPCs try to explain this but they're trying to not break the 4th wall. I think if the devs don't want to break the 4th wall, the game should in addition, explain it with a UI or tutorial pop-up or something because I think it's important to inform people of this. The game isn't about trading hits with enemies like some people seem to think, you have to determine when is a good moment to block/parry and when to strike. If you master this system, you don't need to use healing salves in this game ever.
A few cons
Some consider this game to be janky but it's honestly not any more janky than the likes of Valheim or Outward. There's like 4 people in the dev team, that's just the way it is.
The game economy, that is to say, the item values in the game are kind of messed up for the time being with some really common items selling for more than some rare items and some beginner mobs dropping higher value loot than higher level mobs etc. The devs have said they're working on this.
Great game, love it. I hope I have explained the game well enough to perhaps have people reconsider some of their opinions because some of the negative reviews are based on incorrect information due to them either missing out on certain game mechanics or because the game just didn't do a good enough job of explaining it.
I imagine this game has about 50 ish hours of gameplay and the devs have said they want to add even more content so I look forward to seeing more.

Quick Review
Gameplay: 7/10
Super fun, especially when exploring and fighting in dungeons. Combat feels heavy and you have to plan fights.
Animations: 5/10
Some of the attack and movement animations look a little stiff. Not bad, just needs more polish over time.
Graphics: 8/10
Stylized and atmospheric. Not trying to be realistic, but it looks great in its own way.
Story: 8/10
You are not some big hero saving the world. Even with shapeshifting, it feels like you are just another part of the world, shaping things your own way. The Tusse parts were especially cool and made everything feel more mysterious.
UI: 5/10
Basic and a bit rough in places. Works, but definitely could use more polish later.
Co-op: 7/10
Absolute blast. Planning dungeon runs, hunting moose together, splitting tasks.
Music: 9/10
Great atmosphere. Fits the world perfectly and makes exploring even better.
Sound/Voices: 5/10
Sound effects are decent, but voice acting is not in yet. Some areas could feel more lively if they add it.
Performance: 5/10
Mostly smooth, but loading new areas cause stutters. Hoping they fix that as development goes on.
Overall: 7/10
If you like slower-paced RPGs where exploration and teamwork matter, Eydigard is absolutely worth checking out. Already has a lot of heart, and it looks like it will just keep getting better.

I played this about 8 hours during play testing a couple months ago and now put 5 hours in today at early access release date. This game has an open world with a story and quests with an adventure RPG playstyle.

For me personally, I am forgiving on bugs and whatever on early access games that I enjoy. And with the setting, gameplay and story-progression in this game, I am having a great time despite some bugs and stuff. I am sure this will all be adressed as development continues!

I love the variety between human, lynx and bear combat. Especially when playing 5 people together, kiting enemies around, tanking as bear, buffing your team etc. And I haven't even started working on the talent tree.

We spent 5 hours tonight and it feels like we barely started the game (that's a positive). The world is big and there's a lot of materials, items and stuff+ places to explore and interact with. I would not be surprised if the game in it's current state takes at least 20-30 hours to complete. Suddenly you find yourself somewhere random, exploring, only to find a massive cave system with enemies and bosses - more than in one place.

It's not a fully fleshed out and polished game. But absolutely expect a surprising amount of content and fun gameplay. You don't see a lot of co-op adventure rpg's of this sort.

Eydigard has completely hooked me. If you are a fan of games like Gothic, where the world does not handhold you and exploration is genuinely rewarding, you are going to love this.

First off, the bosses are excellent. I especially want to highlight the Fiddle Boss. It was such a cool, unexpected fight that had both atmosphere and challenge.

The quest design also deserves praise. Most quests have multiple ways you can approach them, whether it is sneaking, fighting, or solving things through dialogue. It really reminded me of the old Gothic games where the world does not revolve around you, but you have to find your place in it. Choices feel natural, not forced.

Visually, the game looks fantastic. The dev team clearly chose a stylized aesthetic rather than chasing hyperrealism, and it absolutely works. The landscapes are beautiful, the lighting is atmospheric, and it gives the whole world a timeless look that fits the setting perfectly.

Performance has been very solid for me. I am running it on a mid-range PC, and everything has been smooth, even when exploring larger open areas or fighting groups of enemies. There are a few small hiccups when shaders load in for the first time, but it never got in the way of the experience.

One of my favorite parts is how little the game holds your hand. You are encouraged to go off the beaten path, and every time I did, I found something. Sometimes a hidden cave, a forgotten ruin, some secret tucked away. It makes exploration feel truly rewarding rather than just checklist-driven.

It is obvious the game is made by a small team, but honestly, that adds to the charm. The world feels handcrafted, the quests feel thoughtful, and the team is very active in improving the game. Some parts are still being developed (like voice acting), but the core experience is already extremely strong.

If you are tired of overly scripted RPGs and want something that trusts you to find your own way, Eydigard is absolutely worth your time.

Eydigard drops you into a hauntingly beautiful slice of 16th-century northern Norway, where abandoned fjord farms and snow-dusted forests feel equal parts historical and mythical. The atmosphere is really good: one minute you’re cresting a ridge beneath an aurora, the next you’re stalking through ruined farmsteads still echoing with plague-era tragedy.​
What I like:
Combat is fun and interesting. Its really fun swapping between the different forms (the Lynx is my favourite).
The game world feels really mysterious and makes me want to explore.
Both crafting and quests are a bit "Old School" The game doesn't hold your hand which lends it self to the mysterious world.
Co-op makes the game even more fun.
Early-Access caveats:
Combat animations and feel could still be polished a bit.
Some performance issues.
A lot of polish needed before the game will feel "done".
Verdict
Eydigard already nails the two hardest parts of an open-world RPG: a setting you want to live in and systems that constantly tempt you off the main path. For anyone who loves folklore-rich worlds, meaningful co-op, or just the chance to roam around as a 600-kilo bear, this is a game I can recommend.

Having followed the game for quite some time I was stoked to get into the thick of it. Yes, this is a early access game which does include some bugs. But the presence of the developers on discord is amazing. And getting almost instant feedback and fixes when you let them know of bugs you found feels so down to earth.
Starting the game I was not prepared really. Having not long found out about my Sami heritage, seeing that there was the option to be sami in the game gave me such joy.
This game has so much going for it and I cant wait to see where it goes from here.