Dragon’s Fury: The Lost Legacy of AionGuard

The Lost Fantasy Open-World Game That Could Have Been like Crimson Desert

In the late 2000s, Avalanche Studios, known for the Just Cause series, faced a setback with their fantasy open-world game, AionGuard. The game never saw the light of day, but former Avalanche CCO Christofer Sundberg believes it could have been similar to the popular Crimson Desert we know today.

Sundberg claims that AionGuard had all the elements that make Crimson Desert a success. While he hasn’t played Crimson Desert extensively, he states that their plans for AionGuard included many features present in the current hit game.

AionGuard’s concept revolved around a fantasy world where players, as sorcerer-knights, had to defeat evil by capturing strongholds, disrupting supply lines, and garnering support from locals. Instead of the aerial stunts and car chaos of Just Cause, players would have ridden dragons and transformed into giant golems, among other magical abilities.

The similarities between AionGuard and Crimson Desert lie in the power fantasy and exploration opportunities they offer. Both games allow players to roam freely in vast open worlds, engaging in various activities and quests. However, the balance between free-roaming gameplay and a compelling narrative may differ between the two.

While it’s intriguing to imagine how AionGuard could have resonated with players back in 2009, the game never secured a publisher and eventually got shelved after two years of development. The team behind AionGuard later worked on another project, Arcardia Rising, set in a steampunk version of London, which met a similar fate.

Christofer Sundberg has since moved on from Avalanche Studios and founded Liquid Swords, which recently released the urban brawler game Samson on April 8th.