If there's one thing I respect about Canadian indie developer DrinkBox Studios above all else, it's that they've tended in recent years to shy away from retreading old ground. Sure, you could point at the studio's first two games -- Tales From Space: About A Blob on PS3 and Tales From Space: Mutant Blobs Attack on Vita -- and find all sorts of similarities. That's totally fair. But after Mutant Blobs Attack, DrinkBox has gone in seemingly random directions, exploring ideas that are entirely unlike ones found in their previous efforts.

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“ What's most special about Severed, however, is its combat, which is entirely conducted on Vita's touch screen.

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“ An interesting component of combat is leveling up your sword in order to execute special "severed" attacks...

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“ There's something special about Severed; it only took me a few minutes of playing it to realize that.

The first random direction they went into was when they decided to make a Metroidvania-style beat-'em-up in the form of the superb Guacamelee! , which is very easily one of Vita's best games, one of PS3's finest downloadable titles, and possibly one of the most charming adventures available on any digital platform in recent years. And now, instead of doing what's obvious -- making a sequel to Guacamelee! (which I hope we still get!) -- the small crew at DrinkBox has gone in yet another direction with its new title Severed Severed, which is a PlayStation Vita exclusive, is, for lack of a better term, a first-person dungeon-crawling RPG. It's instantly recognizable as a DrinkBox game due solely to its art style -- indeed, it could very well take place within the same universe as Guacamelee! for all I know -- but that's where the similarities end. While Guacamelee! was all about side-scrolling precision and the execution of flawless combos, Severed is a more pensive and seemingly thoughtful affair.What's most special about Severed, however, is its combat, which is entirely conducted on Vita's touch screen. Now, I'm not one for touch games generally -- though there are exceptions -- but Severed uses Vita's touch screen logically, therefore avoiding the frustration oft-encountered with games that take your hands off of the analog sticks and face buttons. Indeed, once the main character receives a sword early in the demo -- a sword given to her upon gazing in some sort of mystical mirror -- Severed's combat unveils itself as something tactical and strangely satisfying.The idea is basically to slash away at enemies you encounter, which is, as you'd imagine, easier said than done. At first, you'll encounter nothing but fodder, but eventually, you'll run into enemies that fight back. Slashing away does damage, but some enemies can block, and most of them can also counterattack, which requires different types of swipes on the touch screen in order to parry and, if you'd like, to return with some assaults of your own. Each enemy has a different cadence, different attacks, and different defenses, and you'll have to figure out how to take each down as you move through the game.In this build of Severed, upgrading is fairly limited. You can upgrade Health, Damage, and Sever Time using the monster hearts, hands, and eyes that you grab after battle (you grab these items by touching them on-screen). However, a representative from DrinkBox assured me that there will be many more upgrade options, both in terms of actual upgrades and the items you use to achieve those upgrades. There will even be a full arsenal of weapons and other gear that you'll find as you move through the adventure apart from the standard sword received in the demo.Severed is due out exclusively on PlayStation Vita in 2015.Colin Moriarty is IGN’s Senior Editor. You can follow him on Twitter.