Launch Trailer
South Park: The Stick of Truth was almost the game that never was. Trey Parker and Matt Stone's adventure into video games came close to being derailed by both a year delay and a change of publishers; issues that could take down a game by themselves, let alone together. But alas, the game survived when it was picked up by Ubisoft, and released in March of this year. Though it hasn't been out for long enough to get a solid number, Ubisoft has said that they did experience "better than expected" sales of the game, along with very successful digital download numbers. When I came across TSOT available on my local Red Box kiosk, it was a no-brainer for a rental.
As the "new kid" in town, you go out to make friends only to be thrust into the gang's game of LARPing: Cartman's human faction is in an epic struggle with the elves for the "Stick of Truth", the owner of which controls the entire universe. It becomes clear very quickly that you are no ordinary new kid... you make facebook friends unbelievably fast and have incredibly good control over the forces of "magic" (farting). Without revealing any more, the story quickly becomes much bigger than just a pretend war of two factions, as a mysterious alien race (along with other enemies) descend upon South Park.
"The Maiden from Stonebury is also your mom"
The first thing you will notice about TSOT is just how authentically South Park it is. This makes a lot of sense considering that Matt and Trey were involved from the beginning, but for all intensive purposes, you are in the interactive South Park that we've always dreamed of. Nearly every local location and character is used, and they all contribute to the hilarity that is this game. I got equally as invested in helping Al Gore find ManBearPig (again) as I was in completing the main story. If you're a fan of the show, you'll be a fan of the game's content and comedy.
Destiny Trailer
Because this is a video game and not a TV show regulated by the FCC, the vulgarity is turned up to 20. Fuck-words are quite abundant, as well as themes that would not even come close to being allowed on television... and all of it was glorious. I can't recall any time in my gaming history while I was hysterically cry/laughing while desperately trying to concentrate on the buttons I was supposed to hit in order to complete the task in front of me. That's a special kind of mix of comedy and game that Parker and Stone completely crushed.
True to South Park style, The Stick of Truth is also astutely aware that it is a video game. As someone who appreciates RPGs that reward the player for exploration, that notion was thrown back in my face within the first ten minutes of gameplay. Upon meeting Cartman and the "human faction" for the first time, I wandered around interacting with everything I could. After finally talking to Cartman to progress the story, he mentions "Wow, you searched everything in this area... hardcore gamer over here".
There is also a moment where you are asked by the rival "elf faction" to go and meet their leader; they tell you that fighting is pointless as you have no chance of winning and will be going with them no matter what, so you might as well not waste the time. Well, my stubborn ass fought them, and I was defeated and brought to the elven leader. This is a situation (un-winnable fights that actually progress the story) I've seen in games before, but the fact that it acknowledges the plot device is both hilarious and wickedly South Park.
"I see you have excellent control over your farts"
Giggling Donkey Gameplay Trailer
At the onset of the game, you get to choose what class to play as: Warrior, Mage, Thief, and Jew. That was an easy choice... I went Jew and was immediately decked out with a Yamaka and Moses Staff. All of my starter Jew equipment gave me extra holy damage on my attacks and defense from some elemental attacks. I started with one special attack: the Sling of David, where I would rotate the analog stick to swing my sock, and then press A to release the rock at my enemy.
However, that's where the uniqueness in the classes ended. Every single weapon and piece of armor is usable no matter what class you are, meaning you can basically change your mind and outfit yourself with whatever you want. All of the armor sets curate towards a certain style of play: the "wood elf" outfit focuses on ranged attacks, the "druid" set was a healer, and so on. This basically meant that outside of the special attacks, it really didn't matter what kind of class you chose. This made collecting different kinds of armor far less appealing since none of the pieces of armor were necessarily better than my Jew equipment (which leveled up and became more powerful as the game progressed), they were simply vehicles to a different combat style.
As an RPG with a turn-based combat system, TSOT plays great. It's very fast paced (the characters on screen will actually taunt you if you take a long time to decide on a move) and has a heavy emphasis on timing for success... attacks and blocks are more effective when the correct buttons are pressed at the right time. You can make two moves per turn: a consumable/special ability, then an attack. Your character quickly becomes a jack of all trades, boasting melee, ranged, special, and magic (farting) attacks. Other special attacks unlock as you gain levels, and before I knew it I was unleashing a farty-Jewish hell upon my enemies. I love how crass this is.
"Now let's see how you like sitting through an entire presentation on global warming!"
E3 Trailer
I can't wait to finish The Stick of Truth. The story so far is hilarious and easy to follow, and there's still a few more characters I'm itching to see (crossing my fingers for Towlie!). Though when I finish the game and clean up whatever side quests remain, I do have to question whether I would play it again. I am fairly interested in the special abilities that the other classes offer, but is that difference alone worth another entire play through? I suppose there is a lot of equipment to experiment with, but I want to see how the game ends before deciding if it's worth playing through again. If you don't want to spend the money to rent it more than one night (me), then definitely look to borrow this game from a friend who has finished it.
Verdict: Borrow
Play if you like: South Park, gratuitous cursing/violence/blood and guts/pretty much everything, Turn-based RPGs, collecting collectables, farts
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