Developer: Obsidian Entertainment, South Park Digital Studios
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platform: PC, 360, PS3
South Park: The Stick of Truth – Review
South Park, a cult series that has been around since the late nineties has already produced several titles in the past, which weren’t that good. With ‘The Stick of Truth’ they hope to right all the wrongs of the past. This game, which is also a critique on the society we live in, aims to become a comeback in the gaming world and might be one of the biggest turning points we’ve seen in the gaming business.
Story
You play the role of a young boy who just moved to the quite mountain town that carries the name ‘South Park’. It seems you have had several issues in the past and your parents decided it was time for you to start anew. Also the fact that you don’t seem to remember your own past comes in handy to take a fresh start. Your parents will force you to go out and play and find as many friends as possible. Surely, not such an easy task for such a young boy.
Soon you will find Butters, a young and noble ‘Paladin’ fighting an Elf on the street. Thus you bravely decide to beat up the nobleman’s foe and as a reward you are kindly invited to the ‘Kupa Keep’ to join the human alliance. After some basic training you learn more about the war between the humans and the elves and you find out about ‘The stick of truth’. He who holds the stick, controls the universe. Soon after the stick has been taken by the Elves and your quest for retrieving it begins.
Of course the game offers more storylines other than this one. You’ll be presented with loads of references to the original series as well as loads of not so subtle winks to famous game franchises and movies. You’ll see a lot of the characters from the original series doing what they do best and almost each of them will offer you something to do.
Even though the main storyline is all a role playing game for the boys, it will in its own absurd way feel like a tale of epic proportions. This epic tale of war will get boosted with the intertwining storyline that runs a bit later in the game as well as the side quests give it that extra edge. In short, the game will offer you a lot, especially for those who are already familiar with the South Park series as well as some other games and movies.
Graphics
Prepare yourself for a trip in to the world of South Park. The game looks exactly like the series and the animations are done accordingly. There is not much more to be said than that the game is an interactable version of the series itself.
The designers made sure that everything was kept true to the original versions of all characters, houses and even the city. Nice and simple: The game feels as if you’re watching a very long movie of South Park.
The game will contain loads of obscenities which the South Park users are used to. Seeing this is a game that aims itself at those gamers, it’s given these animations are not a bother. Europe decided to censor the PS3 and XBOX 360 versions for a few scenes, namely a few anal probing scenes and an abortion scene. After having looked up the censored scenes, it can easily be said that this is one of the most idiotic decisions in the gaming industry ever since the game E.T. was released on the Atari 2600. The game will show you a lot ‘worse’ than the censored scenes.
Sound
As with the graphics, the voice acting is an authentic South Park experience. The original cast is present to present you with quests, stories, one liners and of course to cuss you at any given time. A feature such as this makes it pleasant to talk to all the inhabitants of the town, just to hear them out.
The music in South Park The Stick of Truth is a soundtrack that matches the original fantasy tale that the game is offering you. Some themes often make you feel as if you’re playing an actual fantasy RPG game, whilst others just set the mood. When roaming around the town, you will again notice a lot of ‘themes’ that are referring to the original series and thus, for one who watched the series they will truly be appreciated.
Gameplay
You start of the game by creating your own South Park character, with a decent amount of customization options. During your playthrough you will find many more to create your own fairly unique character in the South Park universe. As with other RPG games you’ll be able to choose your class short after the game tells you the overall storyline. These classes are Fighter, Mage, Thief or Jew.
South Park: The Stick of Truth is a typical turn based RPG games with a combat system that is fairly familiar to the Paper Mario games. This means you’ll have to do more than just choose your desired action (magic, melee, ranged, …) but you’ll have to do some timed button presses as well or even certain combinations in order for your attack to be effective. The same goes for the blocking system. You will need to press the block button at the right time for your block to be effective. Not all damage will be prevented this way, but it will greatly reduce the incoming damage. It’s a fun system that keeps you on edge rather than just select your commands or hold the needed button.
Outside of the regular combat you will also have special abilities which you can use. These class specific skills can be leveled up when you level yourself. This is not the same for your passive perks. These can only be unlocked when you make enough friends in South Park itself. Magic spells are also spells you will receive during the course of the game and these have nothing to do with the class you pick.
The main quest of the story is rather short compared to other RPG games, seeing the main storyline will keep you occupied for around 10-15 hours, but the side quests make up for some of that short time. If you’re a big fan of exploring you’ll have the chance to explore the entire South Park village as well as some extra areas or even an extra country. (You guys know which one I’m talking about.) During your exploration trips you’ll come across all of the houses of the characters from the original series and all of them come with loads of goodies. You’ll have the chance to find a lot of items that were originally shown in the series which make it fun to try and nose around everyone’s house.
As mentioned earlier, there are a decent amount of customization options in the game, not only when it comes to the appearance of your own characters but also for your gear. Most of the armor sets in the game can be dyed and certain upgrade items can be inserted in your weapons or armor. These often give extra damage or healing and damage reduce attributes.
Conclusion
The Stick of Truth is one of those games a South Park fan should have in his collection or games library. The game will keep you occupied for a fair amount of time thanks to the extra quests and the exploring options. The immersion in the South Park universe is strong and it will make you feel as if you’re watching a long movie, instead of just playing a game.
South Park: The Stick of Truth - Review,
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