The First Templar – Steam Special Edition (v1.00.595)

Thirteenth-century Europe becomes a bruised, suspicious battleground in this story-driven action adventure, where a French Templar and an accused heretic are forced into an uneasy alliance. Celian d’Arestide hunts for answers surrounding his disgraced order, while noblewoman Marie d’Ibelin brings her own reasons to challenge the Church’s persecution. Their search for the Holy Grail stretches from fortified cities and monasteries to dusty Middle Eastern ruins, with royal soldiers, inquisitors, and Saracen warriors closing in from every side. The tone is pulpy historical fiction rather than strict simulation: conspiracies, lost relics, and sword fights carry the campaign forward.

Combat centers on third-person melee encounters against large groups, using light and heavy strikes, evasions, counters, and unlockable combo chains to keep enemies under pressure. Celian functions as the more direct armored fighter, while Marie’s agility and specialized tools make her useful in situations that reward a different approach. Playing alone lets you swap between them immediately, with an AI partner covering the other role; local drop-in/drop-out cooperative play allows another player to take control whenever they join. Progression uses character-specific skill trees and earned abilities, giving both heroes stronger attacks, survivability options, and practical advantages as the campaign moves through its varied stages.

What separates The First Templar from a standard medieval brawler is its two-character structure and its willingness to frame Templar mythology as an adventure-mystery instead of merely a backdrop for warfare. The environments offer a broad tour of medieval Europe and the Levant, though the design remains focused and linear rather than open-world. Its combat has the accessible, combo-driven feel of older console action games, with co-op adding much of the appeal. Fans of straightforward hack-and-slash campaigns, historical conspiracies, and games in the vein of Knights of the Temple or early Assassin’s Creed side stories find plenty to enjoy, while players seeking deep tactical combat or a huge sandbox should temper expectations.