History VideoGame / PortalKnights

A WideOpenSandbox[=/=]WesternRPG game in a similar vein to games like ''[[{{VideoGame/Minecraft}} Minecraft]]''. Taking place in a world that has been disrupted by an event called The Fracture, landmasses have taken to floating in the sky connected only by portals, each "island" in the sky representing a single biome or biosphere. Your mission as a Portal Knight: to reunite the world while crafting a variety of cosmetic and functional items gleaned from materials mined and gathered from these diverse environments.

Gameplay is very similar to other sandbox/building style games such as ''{{VideoGame/Terraria}}'' and the above mentioned ''{{VideoGame/Minecraft}}'', and will draw similiar tropes. The "voxel" look of the graphics is very familiar, as is the inventory and gathering mechanic used by the player. One of the key differences is the use of RPG elements, such as stat increases, skill lines and healing item mechanics.

The game was developed by Keen Studios, and distributed by Creator/FiveZeroFiveGames. It was released on May 18, 2017 for [[UsefulNotes/IBMPersonalComputer PC]], May 23rd, 2017 for UsefulNotes/Playstation4 and UsefulNotes/XboxOne, on November 22nd, 2017 for UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, and on December 6th for [[UsefulNotes/IOSGames iOS]].

** Changed and arguably averted in the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch Switch]] edition, where it takes three Ores and an increasing number of Coal Blocks, and even then, four at most.

* DoesNotLikeShoes: A few of the [=NPCs=], most notably in Fort Finch, lack footwear, player characters also start with nothing on their feet, but they gain shoes when equipping any piece of leg armour (excluding a few vanity items).

* TheRemnant: The player character(s) are the eponymous Portal Knights, but every other Portal Knight before them were wiped out while trying to fight the Hollow King's legions during the Fracture. [[spoiler: There are surviving Knights in the Portal Knight's Sanctuary, but they are technically ghosts and can't leave the Sanctuary, so the player character(s) are stated to be reviving the Order]].

* SequelHook: After defeating the Hollow King, [[spoiler: visiting the Portal Knight's Sanctuary reveals that the King was taking orders from an unnamed BiggerBad, and that the player needs to rebuild the Portal Knights in order to fight this force]].

A sandbox/RPG game in a similar vein to games like ''[[{{VideoGame/Minecraft}} Minecraft]]''. Taking place in a world that has been disrupted by an event called The Fracture, landmasses have taken to floating in the sky connected only by portals, each "island" in the sky representing a single biome or biosphere. Your mission as a Portal Knight: to reunite the world while crafting a variety of cosmetic and functional items gleaned from materials mined and gathered from these diverse environments. The game is made by Keen Studios, and distributed by Creator/FiveZeroFiveGames.

Gameplay is very similiar to other sandbox/building style games such as ''{{VideoGame/Terraria}}'' and the above mentioned ''{{VideoGame/Minecraft}}'', and will draw similiar tropes. The "voxel" look of the graphics is very familiar, as is the inventory and gathering mechanic used by the player. One of the key differences is the use of RPG elements, such as stat increases, skill lines and healing item mechanics.

There is a [[UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch Nintendo Switch]] edition, which makes considerable changes

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** [[AvertedTrope Largely averted]] in the Switch version, unless there is an obvious source of shade, such as inside a tunnel.

* CrapsaccharineWorld: Yes, the environments are bright and cheerful (at ''first''), but the stark edges of the broken terrain and endless sky below the main islands reminds the player that this is a shattered world. Later stages will often have remnants of the people who lived there, such as melted helmets and journals, that makes it clear that a whole lot of people died in the Fracture, and that the surviving humans are far and few in between.

A sandbox/RPG game in a similar vein to games like ''[[{{VideoGame/Minecraft}} Minecraft]]''. Taking place in a world that has been disrupted by an event called The Fracture, landmasses have taken to floating in the sky connected only by portals, each "island" in the sky representing a single biome or biosphere. Your mission: to reunite the world while crafting a variety of cosmetic and functional items gleaned from materials mined and gathered from these diverse environments. The game is made by Keen Studios, and distributed by Creator/FiveZeroFiveGames.

* CrapsaccharineWorld: Yes, the environments are bright and cheerful (at ''first''), but the stark edges and endless sky below the main islands reminds the player that this is a shattered world.

There is a [[UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch Switch]] edition, which makes considerable changes

* AndYourRewardIsClothes: Vanity armour, which [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin has precisely zero in-game effect]]; oddly enough, actual armours can also be equipped in the vanity slots.

* DeathWorld: Some of the islands will seem like this, covered in ash/cinders with extremely dark and worn-looking environments. These islands also ''never'' get a daylight cycle, and with the inherent darkness of the game, some [=PCs=] can find themselves hopelessly lost in (if not killed by) a crevice they could not see.

* EssenceDrop: Enemies will drop various orbs upon death, red to restore health, blue to restore magic. Some player skills also cause drops to come from the player, in effect healing the player as they damage an enemy.

* PointBuildSystem: 3 stat points are unlocked with every level, and are able to be spent however the player wishes, though there is a logic with the class system. A Ranger can certainly pump their Strength for a melee build, but as their focus is ranged attack it makes more sense to add points to Dexterity, but again there is no in-game enforcement of this besides lacking enough stats to do decent damage. At 5 level milestones (5, 10, 15, etc.) perks are also gained which are mostly passive buffs.

** [[AvertedTrope Largely averted]] in the Switch version, unless there is an obvious source of shade.

* GameplayStoryIntegration: Unlike with other games in the genre, like Minecraft, the ability to build [[ArtisticLicenseArchitecture physics-defying architecture]] has a ''very'' obvious explanation

!! ''Portal Knights'' contains examples of:

* AdamSmithHatesYourGuts: Invoked, as the higher tier materials require much more effort to make. Three Copper Ores make one Copper Bar, while it takes ''10'' Titanium Ores to make one Titanium Bar.

* CameraLockOn: A gameplay mechanic. Doing so also changes the command to jump into a dodge while locked on. The combat is very similar to TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime.

* DeathWorld: Some of the islands will seem like this, covered in ash/cinders with extremely dark and worn-looking environments. These islands also ''never'' get a daylight cycle, and with the inherent darkness of the game, some [=PCs=] can find themselves hopelessly lost in a crevice they could not see.

* WhoForgotTheLights?: Heavily invoked with the Moon biome islands. The player can craft torches and other light sources, but the range of these is so small, the field of vision barely extends 2-3 blocks. These biomes probably look really neat, but no one can actually see them. Hunting for ores in this biome becomes extremely time-consuming, made all the more glaring as the top-tier materials only appear in these areas.

A sandbox/RPG game that has been called [[{{VideoGame/Minecraft}} Minecraft]] on crack. Taking place in a world that has been disrupted by an event called The Fracture, landmasses have taken to floating in the sky connected only by portals, each "island" in the sky representing a single biome or biosphere. Your mission: to reunite the world while crafting a variety of cosmetic and functional items gleaned from materials mined and gathered from these diverse environments. The game is made by Keen Studios, and distributed by Creator/FiveZeroFiveGames.

* DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist: Mostly invoked. Dying only sets the player back a fraction (less than 10%) of their current total gold. All items, experience, monsters slain and portals opened are kept after death. With gold having so little use (as of the original game, updates may change this), this loss is of little real consequence.

* DeathWorld: Some of the islands will seem like this, covered in ash/cinders with extremely dark and worn-looking environments. These islands also ''never'' get a daylight cycle, and with the inherent darkness of the game, some PCs can find themselves hopelessly lost in a crevice they could not see.

* FetchQuest: Played straight with the NPCs who will typically ask for items contained on that island. The rewards are generally experience and money, but sometimes the rewards can be a little odd. For example, one quest given was to collect 24 Gold Ores, with the reward being experience and 5 Gold Bars. Since it takes 7 Ores to make one Bar, this was quite the deal, but begs the question of why the NPC needed the Ore in the first place.

* CameraLockOn: A gameplay mechanic. Doing so also changes the command to jump into a dodge while locked on. The combat is very similar to LegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime.

* CameraLockOn: A gameplay mechanic. Doing so also changes the command to jump into a dodge while locked on. The combat is very similar to {{VideoGame/LegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime}}.