Ahead of the release of The First Berserker: Khazan, we had a chance to talk to the team at Neople about the background and lore of the soulslike title.
The game is based on a long running and hugely popular franchise known as DNF, which hasn’t really reached the West as well as it has done in the East. We wanted to know a bit about the game, but also where Khazan comes from, how it’s linked to the DNF franchise, and what it’s like to bring something to such a different audience for the first time. The team answered these as a whole, so there’s no one person answering each question. Let’s get into it.
What challenges does such a storied series bring to the table. Outside of Korea the franchise isn’t as well known, does that make it harder?
We feel the franchise not being as recognized outside of Korea allows us to introduce the world to a new audience that may not discover DNF otherwise. At its essence, Dungeon & Fighter has always been a series about hardcore action, and with the high interest in games like Dark Souls and Nioh, it is a very fitting genre combination for the universe that allows us to further share a story that millions already know and love.
Does the Khazan Syndrome come into play during The First Berzerker’s narrative? We know it causes negative emotions, but does that manifest in game?
Khazan is the progenitor of the Slayer. Through The First Berserker: Khazan, you’ll learn how the Slayer came to be in the original Dungeon Fighter Online, and how the class of Berserker came to be. Khazan Syndrome is treated as a bad thing 800 years later, but how did it actually come about? Why was it named Khazan? We wanted to convey that through the title and the character of Khazan. The Blade Phantom infiltrated Khazan’s body to take over his mind, but he couldn’t break Khazan, so those are the kinds of descriptions that are involved.
How do the DNF skills come into play for the game. Will we see Hell Bringer, for example?
When you think of Dungeon Fighter Online, you probably think of relentless attacks and flashy skill combos. In The First Berserker: Khazan, powerful strikes, unyielding skills, and explosive action are core elements of the hardcore action RPG we’re aiming for. The story begins at the moment Khazan, once a great hero of the Empire, is falsely accused of treason, falls from grace, and narrowly survives.
Khazan’s skill tree is designed to let players feel the process of this fallen hero regaining his strength and ultimately surpassing his former self. While the Slayer class doesn’t exist in Khazan’s era, the game features prototypes of various skills that would later evolve into Slayer techniques, presented in the form Khazan himself uses. Likewise, the skill names are styled to sound rougher and reflect a time 800 years before the original.
The title of the game suggests it’s a prequel, or perhaps earlier in the lore? Can you tell us about where the protagonist finds himself, and why?
Khazan is not just a standalone title—it is designed as an expansion of the Dungeon Fighter Online Universe (DNFU). To that end, we structured the story to naturally incorporate key elements from the original world while also making it accessible and enjoyable for players who are unfamiliar with it. In the original Dungeon Fighter Online, Khazan defeats Hismar and becomes a legendary hero, but is later exiled by the Emperor and ultimately meets his death. In The First Berserker: Khazan, the entire story is reimagined, beginning with Khazan’s dramatic survival after being falsely accused and exiled, and following his journey of revenge. Depending on how players progress through the game, they’ll encounter different choices, and some of the endings that result are directly tied to the original storyline.
Soulslike stories are notoriously obtuse. How hard was it to bring the rich lore of the world over to a Soulslike setting from an MMO format?
I wouldn’t exactly call it Soulslike—it’s more accurate to say we shifted to a single-player structure. The First Berserker: Khazan is fundamentally a story-driven game. We designed all of the content, systems, and gameplay around the narrative. Khazan is a character with a clear storyline, and his driving motivations are survival and revenge. We felt that a linear progression suited Khazan’s story, tone, and style of storytelling better than the open-ended, free-form exploration that’s a hallmark of Soulslike games. That said, we made a concerted effort to preserve a sense of adventure and exploration, even within these limitations.
This balance was one of the most challenging parts of development. Linear structures come with both strengths and weaknesses, but we leaned into their strengths, like keeping the story immersive and reducing complexity to make it easier for players to understand the core mechanics. At the same time, we introduced exploration elements to prevent the experience from feeling monotonous.
As players grow more familiar with the game, they’ll gain access to more opportunities for exploration and challenge. The structure expands over time, revealing levels filled with hidden paths, secrets, and rewards while maintaining a level of complexity that doesn’t break immersion. We wanted players to go beyond following a fixed path, using diverse combat styles and actively exploring Khazan’s world to earn their rewards.
The First Berserker: Khazan is out now for PC (Steam), PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S|X.
