Everwind Hands-On Preview: A Fresh Take on Voxel Adventures

Initially, my interest in Everwind was a blend of genuine curiosity and a degree of skepticism. Having witnessed the rise and dominance of Minecraft and countless voxel-based imitators aiming for a slice of its colossal success, any new game centered around mining and crafting usually elicits a slight eye-roll from a seasoned critic like myself.

However, Everwind immediately presented itself as something distinct and far more ambitious than "just another Minecraft clone." Fortunately, we had the opportunity to sit down with Enjoy Studio S.A. to delve into the game and experience it firsthand. It's been quite some time since a game has captivated me in this manner, primarily because it possesses the same inventive spark that Minecraft first ignited upon its debut.

What truly set Everwind apart was its pronounced lean towards an RPG experience rather than a mere survival crafting one. Players aren't simply dropped into a randomly generated world; instead, they begin in a small dungeon that serves as a tutorial. As they progress, they master the fundamentals of combat and crafting, eventually venturing out to uncover the world's overarching objectives.

Unlike many traditional Minecraft-like games that plop you into a sprawling landmass, Everwind's world is a vast ocean peppered with numerous small islands. The primary goal is to ascend, seeking out floating islands where more valuable resources and loot await. One might assume such an expansive watery world would feel empty, but the development team clearly put significant thought into its design.

During our digital preview, Marcin Olczak, Senior Publishing Producer at Bohemian Interactive, emphasized a core design philosophy: "Something that was very important for us from the get-go, back when the game was initially being designed, is how to make sure the open world sandbox is not empty when you’re traveling from one POI to another." He elaborated, "this was achieved by first having hundreds of different unique points of interest and also varied landscapes. So right now in-game, there are seven biomes, and each biome has three to four sub-varieties of it."

Players will undoubtedly perceive this diversity, both on a grand scale and in intricate details. From the seemingly endless ocean dotted with resource-rich islets, the contrast intensifies dramatically as players take to the skies, leaping between floating islands amidst a sea of clouds. Each island often presents a split of biomes; a colossal stone mound might offer a small forest sanctuary, or a barren desert patch could lead into a marsh. As Olczak mentioned, the presence of unique Points of Interest, discoverable and markable with a spyglass, ensures a constant stream of new adventures. Once an adventure is found, Everwind's distinct gameplay, though clearly inspired by Minecraft, truly sets it apart.

Players engage monsters with varied weapon types, a range of offensive abilities including light and heavy attacks, blocks, parries, and even magic. This provides a broad spectrum of engagement for different players and playstyles. As characters level up, they unlock a diverse set of skills spanning combat, exploration, and engineering. This experience, during my playthrough, felt remarkably akin to playing The Elder Scrolls, but within a Minecraft aesthetic.

Both Enjoy Studio S.A. and Bohemian Interactive are evidently committed to crafting a deep and comprehensive game with Everwind. Addressing the decision to launch in Early Access, Olczak stated, "we wanted to deliver a game which is going to be in as good of a technical state as possible for an early access game," acknowledging, "We of course are expecting that there’s going to be bugs in a game that has so many systems that are interacting with each other."

Crucially, the team is dedicated to refining the game and adding content based on player feedback. Olczak highlighted how numerous combat mechanics were tweaked and reworked following insights from an earlier demo, leading to more diverse attack and movement options for both enemies and players.

While some minor refinements are still needed, Everwind is rapidly shaping up to be something truly extraordinary. It takes the foundational concepts pioneered by Minecraft and builds an incredibly unique experience upon them. I honestly can't recall the last time I became so immersed in a game of this genre and felt such a strong desire to immediately jump back in after playing – and that includes the very game that served as its inspiration.

Everwind is slated for an Early Access launch on March 17th, 2026.