Pyre

Prevaling on the Liberation Rites stills hit me. I can help to be mesmerize by what Pyre is and how elegantly Supergiant Games did it. It shouldn't be this good. I love the Rites. I find them mecanicaly fun and every single one of them is important to the story and characters. When your ennemy enters your pyre, it really raises the tension.

I am a narrative game designer myself, and usually, I am fairly jaded when it comes to games that 'make me feel things' - but Pyre made me feel things. It is a game that blends mechanics with narrative so perfectly, it's hard to write a review without it sounding like you're being paid for it. Pyre should be studied for its narrative game design, pacing, art-style and worldbuilding, and I am in awe of the folks at Supergiant for creating it. So yeah TLDR buy this game, it's amazing. PS: Don't be put off my the 'fantasy sports game' moniker - it truly isn't 'that kind of game'..

What an incredible game. Just get it, Reader, the Nightwings are waiting for you.

There's something to be said about being a sports game, a visual noval, a choice based adventure, and mixing them all at once with a solid vision. Pyre is not only SuperGiant's most strange game, I'd say it's their best, for what game competes for what Pyre is?

Maybe I should have read the reviews? I got it on sale so no big whoop. In any case the story and setting are far too good for what the game is otherwise, which is a convoluted mystical rugby sort of thing. Or is it lacrosse? I don't know how to describe it. Kudos to SuperGiant for finding a way to resolve conflicts in-game without any killing, even if the Rites seem a bit violent with all the banishing. Sadly the core game loop is just not that satisfying. I turned difficulty down to low (because why bother with the higher difficulty settings) to neuter the AI as much as possible, which admittedly didn't do much vs normal difficulty. Also one gets the impression that you're meant to lose every now and then. In any case, Bastion and Transistor felt more fun to play. For whatever that's worth.