This big-eyed pyramid dude watches over your progress in the Necropolis and doles out sarcastic commentary after you complete every level. He also gives you perks on occasion. (credit: Harebrained Schemes)

KIRKLAND, Wash.—As I made my way out of Harebrained Studios’ modest, Seattle-area office on a gray June afternoon, I heard a shout: “Hold that elevator!”

Studio co-founder Mitch Gitelman was running in my direction, the way someone might dash if a visitor left a wallet or set of keys behind, but it wasn’t that. “Now do you see why we left permadeath in our multiplayer mode?”

You’re stopping the elevator for that question? Actually, what sounded like a generic, nerdily phrased exclamation was pretty important in this case. An hour earlier, Gitelman had sat me down with my second-ever demo of Necropolis, a Dark Souls-inspired dungeon crawler, and I went into that playtest with raised eyebrows and low expectations. The single-player demo I’d played at a press event in Santa Monica a few weeks prior was fine enough, and I asked for a studio visit and a little more gameplay, having not been entirely sold by my first session. I thought to myself, maybe I’d write the game up soon, but certainly not during my busy E3 schedule.