Spearhead turns a potentially tedious affair into something addictive and challenging in a different way.Ĭlearly this isn’t going to match up to the “butterfly effect” of our beloved multi-choice games like Until Dawn but it did a damned good job at it. Let’s face it, the combat is unsubstantial and hardly ground-breaking, yet it’s the fluidity of our movements and the minimal time it takes to defeat an enemy that makes it enjoyable. But this is the area where a lot of similar games go wrong. It’s like watching a very satisfying, very aggressive ballet… with swords. By relying on countering it creates an almost rhythmic display as you jump from one enemy to another and rack up a hell of a combo score. The game relies much more on counter-attacks than something more offensive and the longer you play it, the harder the combat gets. On the outside it appears more of a button-bashing hack-and-slash fest as opposed to something that requires strategy, but it’s got more class than that. To look at the mechanics of Stories initially players may not be very impressed by its repetitive controls. Some people may disagree but it certainly hits a soft spot for me. The fact the narrator is the only voice in the game is a very nice, personal touch. Where Stories: The Path of Destinies comes in is in its wonderful narrative that reignites that memory of loved ones acting out characters of a bedtime story. I’m very fond of interactive fiction in all forms and have very good memories of bedtime storybooks when I was a child. Yes, there are occasions where the dialogue feels a little bit forced in areas but not so much for it to be distracting or irritating. When referring to its script I can also let my criticisms lay dormant. The same can be said for its choice in colour to reflect mood and urgency, using warm and cold contrasts to switch us from excitable green landscapes to dark, crumbling cities. Each different area and level brings out its own personality despite the short gameplay per run. With airships, floating cities and a wonderful eye for architecture, Stories is widely imaginative and brilliantly thought out. Like games such as Bioshock: Infinite, Bastion and Dreamfall: Chapters, what’s equally as important as a good story is good setting and this game certainly sits alongside such titles. As an enormous fantasy lover, when it’s evident that equal amounts of effort have gone into the design as well as the mechanics it makes this humble reviewer very giddy indeed. His major problem is that, not only is he torn by different decisions to defeat the mad monarch that risks his friends and loved ones, but he also has a ton of terrible ways to mess things up and fewer to be successful.įirstly, I’ve got to try and dull my excitement at this game’s beautiful design to get words out cohesively. We follow the story of Reynardo, a clever, anthropomorphic fox with a bit of a hero complex and a touch of bad luck as he gets sucked into a rebellion against the emperor. Originally named Stories: The Hidden Path, Stories: The Path of Destinies is an action/adventure RPG built in the Unreal engine by Montreal-based indie developer, Spearhead Games.
Beneath its cliché exterior is something that brings a new light to that age-old classic: choice-oriented storytelling, and jeez does it come in with bells on. However, I implore you not to judge a book by its cover – or rather in this case, a game by its title. Upon hearing the title: Story: The Path of Destinies, many gamers alike may roll their eyes and tut at the unartistic name.
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