Dismantle a False Paradise: 2.5D Time-Bending ARPG Retrace the Light Launches Today
GUANGZHOU, China – Nov. 20, 2025 – Retrace the Light, the time-bending 2.5D action RPG from developer XiaMing Game and publisher GlintForge, launches on PC via Steam and Epic Games Store at 7:00 PM PT / 10:00 PM ET today for $17.99 with a two-week 10% launch discount. PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S versions are currently in development.
One thousand years into the future, the almighty artificial intelligence known as Primus maintains societal order by miraculously altering the minds of any humans deemed “unstable.” Citizens potentially unfit for day-to-day life can have their brains digitized and cleansed of destructive thoughts with the help of Primus’ Enforcers.
After a failed mission, Enforcer Decem — Primus’ own creation — suffered a memory wipe. Now he journeys onward to relearn his life’s purpose. Enter mirrormazes filled with paranoid thoughts in need of purging, and collect memory fragments along the way that unveil sinister truths hidden behind a utopian facade.
Dive into disturbed individuals’ brains, then hack and slash through digital manifestations of their thoughts. Ascend above the laws of physics and teleport to previous locations with Decem’s Retrace ability. Turn back the clock to dodge enemy attacks, solve fourth-dimensional puzzles, and set up time-traveling attack combos. Become electricity itself with his Volt Dash ability, enabling lightning-quick travel to far locations.
Unlock Decem’s full potential with all seven Primary Combat Modules and modifiable Secondary Modules to create custom playstyles that prioritize area-of-effect damage, agility, counter-attacks, stances, charging heavy strikes, and much more. Meet other Enforcers, explore a beautifully hand-crafted world, and uncover unsavory truths across six chapters and five different endings.
“Retrace the Light tells the story of a confrontation and dialogue between the rationality of AI and human emotions. As a researcher at a university AI institute, I hope this work will spark in-depth public discussion on the future applications of AI,” said Guo Lei, Producer, XiaMing Game. “Development has been a labor of love, and there is a certain magic within gameplay that feels both new and nostalgic at the same time. We’re excited to launch today on PC, and we can’t wait to bring the experience to consoles very soon.”
Retrace the Light will be available at 7:00 PM PT / 10:00 PM ET today on PC via Steam and Epic Games Store for $17.99 with a 10% launch discount for two weeks. The game will launch later on PlayStation and Xbox. Language support includes English, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, with both English and Chinese voiceover. To learn more, join the community on X, YouTube, and Discord, and search #Retracethelight on social media.
About XiaMing Game
Guo Lei, a famed teacher at the China Academy of Art, founded XiaMing Game with a group of his newly graduated students. Xiaming means the buzzing cicada, which reflects the studio’s mindset — burning themselves for years to create a short but sweet game they love, echoing a cicada’s life cycle. Currently, the team is dedicated to bringing their debut title, Retrace the Light, to players around the world.
About GlintForge
With a pure passion for indie games, Jason (Wang Ziqiang) established GlintForge to help Chinese indie studios bring their creative ideas to life. Following the thrilling success of Chinese premium games in 2024 such as Black Myth: Wukong, and in the hope of releasing another remarkable Chinese AAA game in the future, Jason stays firm with his vision and aims to collaborate with more passionate indie studios.
