It's been a month
And what a month it's been. I've finished 0 games and 0 books. Personally and professionally it's been very busy, but things seem to be slowing down and I'm finally getting a chance to play games again. The most recent one I've been able to put a lot of time in is RPG Time: The Legend of Wright.
This game came out in 2022 but it flew under my radar. The game is played more as a visual novel, with choose your own adventure style pathways, despite being called an RPG. There are beautiful hand-drawn graphics and very impressive "cardboard" elements as well. The main idea is that Kenta, a young friend of yours, has created this elaborate game using the tools available to him: cardboard and notebook paper. The player character, Wright himself, must battle various monsters and explore exotic locations on his way to rescue the Princess of Light.
Overall the game is very simple. There are a few button commands you can enter during battles, and some light exploration, but the strength of the game is on its feeling. It feels like something a kid could create over a summer break. For example, the health bar is a tape measure and your sword is a pencil with a cardboard add-on. The plot is hammy, as any story written by a kid will be, but the world building is top notch. If you play through the tutorial you'll learn all about the in-universe games that inspired Kenta and why he chose the music he did.
It was a lot of fun to explore in small doses. The game was clearly interested in achieving a specific aesthetic and it did so. What impressed me most with the game is how I thought, "I could make something similar to this" whenever a new element was added to the game. Because of this game I'm going to spend some time making pencil swords with my kids this weekend. I can't think of a more positive review than that.
If this feels like something you're interested in, at the time of writing it's on sale on Steam and the eShop for less than $10. It's also available on Xbox and PlayStation.