Release Date:
July 28th, 2020
Switch: September 10th, 2020
Genre: Strategy RPGPrice: $34.99 USD
Player(s): 1
Format: Digital
Developer: Lightbulb Crew
Publisher: Focus Home Interactive
Size: ~6GB
What is Othercide?
Othercide is a turn-based strategy game that brings in Rogue-lite elements such as a run-based (each attempt is called a "Recollection") approach to gameplay. You'll command a squad of warrior sisters as they battle against the forces of the Suffering and reset the world each time you fail.
Character progression?
Daughters will level with experience and be able to gain new skills as well as earning character-altering traits based on their actions in combat. You can also modify stats by using essence and memories (the former being a currency you also use to create new Daughters and the latter being items found from defeating enemies).
Permadeath?
Yes, when one of the Daughters under your command runs out of health they are dead. Health not restored between battles aside from the mechanic of sacrificing a Daughter of equal level to replenish the health of, as well as adding a new trait to, their wounded sister.
What elements carry over from run to run?
You will be able to resurrect a fallen Daughter with all of their experience and traits with a rare consumable you can find during a run (you are also given 1 of at the start of every run). These will allow you to bring high-level characters into early stages to upset the power curve of the game. At the start of a new run you will also be able to allocate shards that you previously unlocked to give yourself new advantages in the fights to come.
How does combat work?
Turn order is based on a timeline shown at the bottom of the screen and a character's placement on that timeline is based on how many actions they performed in their last turn. For example, if you used more than half of the allotted 100 action points the Daughter will become fatigued and need to wait a bit longer before taking another action.
Is the game enhanced on PS4 Pro and Xbox One X?
It doesn't appear so.
Metacritic
Xbox One | PC | PS4
Opencritic
IGN 9/10
Some parents are really invested in their kids' report cards or success in extracurricular activities. Othercide offers a different kind of parental pride as you command a small army of warrior Daughters armed with giant swords and sleek revolvers they can use to slice, bash, and blast through a menagerie of Lovecraftian horrors. But this is more than an outlet for such dreams of blood-drenched parenthood, though. Othercide is also the best turn-based tactics game of the year so far.
PlayStation LifeStyle 8.5/10
Othercide provides a challenge without breaking the player's spirit. It hits on all the right notes of an engaging turn-based game, accentuated by the integrated roguelike elements, and an artistic beauty. Add in the lore and you have a pretty solid title worth checking out.
DualShockers 6/10
The end result is that Othercide just failed to land for me. It's entirely possible that the developers are able to adjust numbers and patterns a little to make something more enjoyable, but until that time? I struggle to see myself recommending it to most people. Give it a shot if you're a devout fan of the genre or really revel in the graphical style, just don't expect anything too significant.
Official Site
Review Thread
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