The days of yore: A quarter century ago, Dark Souls creator FromSoftware released a toolkit with King’s Field so fans could try their hand at modding and level making. It’s hard to believe those tools are still around and cranking out modern classics that will take you back to the late 90s.

In 2023, a little-known indie developer released Lunacid – a retro dungeon crawler that paid homage to FromSoftware games, King’s Field and Shadow Tower – the progenitors of the Elden Ring series. The studio, Kira LLC, just posted a new Steam page confirming it is ready to release a follow-up called Lunacid: Tears of the Moon.

What is interesting about both of these releases is that they were created using FromSoftware’s 25-year-old RPG maker Sword of Moonlight. The developer released the toolkit bundled with King’s Field in 2000, but only in Japan. Purchasing the game granted buyers an unlimited license to use King’s field assets to make homebrewed games with Sword of Moonlight. Creators could even sell their games for profit.

The game maker has since found its way onto the internet in open-source form. Downloads and documentation are easy to find, and a relatively substantial community of enthusiasts exists. However, it is unclear if FromSoftware is entirely okay with this. It didn’t bother Kira when it released Lunacid two years ago, but that game may have slipped under the radar.

The sequel Tears of the Moon is slated for release on April 12, and with increased media focus, we may or may not see FromSoftware take action. We’ll just have to wait and see. The developer is likely aware of the widespread use of its ancient tools (albeit now updated via open-source efforts), so there probably won’t be any issues.

Fans of old-school 3D dungeon crawlers might want to give Lunacid (above) a spin while waiting for its sequel. It’s only about $11 on Steam and has earned rave reviews from critics and players. With over 7,500 reviews, the game is ranked “Very Positive” on Steam. One player review said:

“Lunacid isn’t a game. It’s a revelation. A blessing for those attuned to the forbidden frequencies of old-school dungeon crawlers and analog horror. If someone told me this was a lost artifact from 1998, banned because kids who played it went missing, I’d believe them. I’d also still play it.”

Critics praised the game for its gloomy atmosphere, nostalgic feel, and spooky soundtrack (available as a separate purchase on Steam). Rock Paper Shotgun called it “lo-fi first-person dungeon skulking done right.”

Similarly, PC Gamer said, “[Lunacid] is a perfect example of how to do PS1 nostalgia right … Lunacid quickly recalibrated my rather spoiled ideas of what it means for something to look impressive or beautiful.”