Stories: The Path of Destinies

On the surface, the game seems to have it all - beautiful stylized graphics, nice soundtrack, dynamic storyline, and competent narrator. However, the gameplay itself does not match the art assets. You wade through empty corridors with only containers to break (they drop health items - duh), occasionally fighting a group of enemies in a walled arena. The combat system is a clear Batman rip-off, only dumbed down heavily. It lacks depth, and basically consists only of simple button mashing on visual clues. It's a beautiful game to look at, but utterly dull game to play, and since time is expensive and there are so many fantastic game, I cannot rate this game highly.

To begin with i have to say that despite it's repetitive gameplay this game kept me hooked up for hours since i installed it. While being a pretty simple hack and slash exploration game, what "Stories: the path of destinies" really shines for is the narrative. Every single choice you make in the game has a different outcome, and despite it's repetitive nature it's always fun to keep playing and see what your next choice will bring to. Indeed this game not only has multiple paths but also encourages to always try something different, and I admit: i'm never been the kind of person going back on RPGs i've cleared to "experiment" with the narrative, but with this game i just can't stop playing and eagerly wait to see what my next choice will bring to. Stories: the path of destinies is not really a game about combat or exploration (indeed as i sayd those two are very simplistic) but rather focuses on the narrative and makes it the true core game mechanic. If watching the story is like watching a TV show, exploring and slashing the enemies is kinda like keeping yourself entertained while waiting for the next episode, and it's a fun part on it's own as you can't wait to see what's going to happen next while the game keeps you busy with exploration and combat. If you like intricate narratives with multiple paths and choices or narrative driven games, this is a game you shouldn't miss. Otherwise, if you're lookig just for some action and exploration, you'd better look somewhere else Personally, i can't stop playing it @.@

Ok so the games story follows "Reynardo" (A punny name since foxes are called "Renard" in french) who has a magical artifact that transports him back in time every time he dies and the goal of the game is finding 4 "truths" about the world... while dying on the way. But mind you while death does unlock more of the game and you don't lose any progress this is most definitely NOT a roguelite. So the story is fairly nice... if short... kinda. Every attempt is a full 5 act story that takes about 40-50 minutes and there are 25 possible bad endings plus one good/true giving an average of 15 hours of gameplay... however that's only if you want to see all possible bad endings as otherwise you might end up winning the game in about 4 hours. My entire blind playthrough on youtube took 6 episodes around 45 minutes each. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0HMJ7qxHEk&list=PLkCfh8Be7TJHie4JgIjqNKGQtLrt_DK3K&index=1 (Don't watch it. it's boring) The game has a rather primitive crafting system where you can craft a total of 3 swords... and then upgrade them. But the swords differ only in their special abilities that use mana and doors they can open so you pretty much just want a full set of swords to open all extra treasures first and upgrade them second. The weapons look nice and all but it would be better if they had some impact on the fighting style in addition to the triggered spells. Things are a bit better with gems found in red chests but not much. They usually offer some boring stat boosts but there are more interesting ones that affect the gameplay like the ability to hurt grunts with shields with normal attacks. The enemy variety is... ok. 5 types in total. There are a total of 10 levels that don't change much between playthroughs. The chests and enemies are in the same spots and due to the nature of the game you will often replay them. The combat is your typical Arkham style fare. Honestly if the presentation weren't as amusing as it is i'd probably give it a 3.

You're in for a story with many "What if?...". Each choices you make has its outcome. Each path will teach you something new, something you will take into account for the next time you come across that choice. The game is often compared to Bastion (and rightly so) as it is indeed a top-down action , colorful and wonderfully narrated. Stories also offers 3D graphics that are absolutely impressive for a small studio like Spearhead Games. As you venture around, you can contemplate the backgrounds of what's to come. You can see the many floating pieces of land that seem impossible to reach at first but that you will visit soon enough. And fear not if you missed a platform or two, for you will come back... a lot. You will retry, and you will eventually succeed depending of what you have learned. The key feature of Stories is that you play through a short adventure that could as well be told in 30 minutes, but it doesn't end well for Reynaldo, our roguish fox-like character. You will then re-live the adventure from the beginning with what you already know so far from your previous experience. You will discover truths about your friends and foes, you will try to deal with them differently... until you find the destiny that was meant to be! The story is narrated by Julian Casey who each characters as you would do using different voices while telling a story to a child, and it works very well! It contains lots of clever humor, subtle winks to popular cultures (, movies, music). I've had my sides blasting off to a few time at the most unexpected moments. My goes to the music that plays along with your actions, a very rare feature in , of this quality. It will reminds you of John awesome "Conan The Barbarian" soundtrack, as well as most . It makes it all epic, plays well with the situations and emotions. The fights are really fun and harder as you progress into the game. You gain more when performing bigger combos. You spend them in skills that will unlock new way to handle tougher fights, and you craft new weapons that will unlock new doors on your path, revealing shortcuts and more secrets. So many secrets to unveil in a single story with so many outcomes!