Miasma Chronicles interview: achievements aim to avoid "mindlessly grinding"

We spoke to developer The Bearded Ladies for more info on its upcoming action-adventure game Miasma Chronicles, which takes us far into the future after an event known as the Collapse has brought the world into chaos.

Miasma Chronicles is set to launch for Xbox Series X|S in 2023. We reached out to developer The Bearded Ladies to find out more about this intriguing game, with studio lead Mark Parker having been kind enough to answer our questions.

What is Miasma Chronicles?

Miasma Chronicles is a post-apocalyptic action-adventure game about two brothers and a strange force called the Miasma. It’s in development from The Bearded Ladies and published by 505 Games.

When does Miasma Chronicles launch?

We don’t yet have a specific release date for Miasma Chronicles, but we do know it’s set to arrive for Xbox Series X|S in 2023.

What’s it about?

Miasma Chronicles is set in a post-apocalyptic future, and tells the story of two brothers: Elvis and Diggs. Miasma Chronicles has played its cards close to its chest so far with regards to details about its story and world, so we asked Parker for more info. “The game is set quite far into the future, after a period of peace and stability known as ‘The Great Stability,’” Parker says. “At some point everything goes wrong. An event known as the ‘Collapse’ takes place and the world falls into turmoil. The collapse was triggered by a mysterious force known as the ‘Miasma,’ which has the power to transform things. This is the setting for our story, the story of two brothers trying to find their lost mother.” Elvis has come into possession of a strange glove that helps him control the Miasma. He was given it by his mother, “a mysterious woman named ‘Bha Mahdi’ on the night she left town. With instructions that when he was able to master the glove and break through a barrier called the ‘Miasma Wall,’ they would be reunited.”

How does Miasma Chronicles play?

Miasma Chronicles combines exploration and tactics with turn-based combat and RPG aspects. “We have always liked turn-based combat and we feel that it’s a great fit within an RPG setting. Tactical encounters are very ‘puzzle like’ in their construction and it all blends together well,” Parker says. “We took the things that we (and the players) enjoyed the most from our previous games and expanded on them quite a bit. For example, you can have conversations with many of the characters you meet; there are optional side quests and some puzzles to solve. We also added a lot of new combat options, with customisable Miasma skills playing a central role in tactical gameplay.” Parker explains that a lot of the characters we’ll come across will help us out with advice, items, a bit of backstory, or side quests. “As you play through the game some characters will join your cause — they will be key players in the story. We wanted the game to be full of interesting people, machines, and creatures to meet.”

What’s the world like?

It’s an interesting decision, to set a fantasy story within a post-apocalyptic environment. “The post-apocalyptic setting of Miasma Chronicles gives us a lot of freedom to make interesting, almost otherworldly environments and characters, but with just enough familiarity to ground the player’s understanding of things,” Parker says. “The mix of fantasy and futuristic technology works well within this strange place.”

According to the Miasma Chronicles Steam page, we’ll explore “rich beautiful environments meeting outlandish characters,” and Parker elaborates on this for us. “Besides making a compelling story, we wanted to make a world that will draw the player in. As you explore, you’ll discover more about New America and its history — you’ll find cool items and you’ll meet interesting characters, some may even have a quest or two for you. The environments will vary as you travel deeper into the story; some places are full of life and still have hope, others get very creepy indeed.”

Any news on the Miasma Chronicles achievements?

We don’t yet have the Miasma Chronicles achievements, but Parker gave us an idea of the team’s process when it comes to designing them. “We aim to make achievements that enrich the player’s experience, rather than mindlessly grinding for the sake of it,” Parker says. “Achievements should help the player learn more about the game. They should also feel natural to unlock, although we do like to make people try different ways of playing through. We’ll also add in a few ‘Easter egg’ achievements as we love to see the community work together to figure those ones out.” As for what makes an ideal achievement list: “That’s a tough one, but I think an ideal list is a mixture of the standard progression related unlocks and some which cater for those who like to explore every nook and cranny of the game world. Lastly, there should be a bit of intrigue and mystery with some of them, to make the players and the community think a bit.”

Out of all this, what is Parker most excited for players to experience when Miasma Chronicles launches? “Everything! It's very hard to lock down one specific element. We have a pretty hefty game with a lot of things to see and do! We are very excited to see people playing the game out in the wild.”

So, what do you think? Will you be checking out Miasma Chronicles when it launches for Xbox Series X|S sometime next year? Let us know in the comments, and don't forget to check out Tom's thoughts after his Miasma Chronicles hands-on!

More Miasma Chronicles stories:

Interview Xbox Series X|S

Written by Heidi Nicholas

Heidi tends to lean towards indie games, RPGs, and open-world games on Xbox, and when not playing Disney Dreamlight Valley, happily installs every new wholesome game that appears on Xbox Game Pass, before diving back into favorites like The Witcher 3. She's looking forward to Age of Mythology Retold, Everwild, Fable, and Avowed on the Xbox horizon. Heidi graduated with an MA in English Literature before joining the TrueAchievements team.