Othercide
By David Chapman,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
If at first you don't succeed, die, die again.
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Othercide
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What’s It About?
OTHERCIDE is a dark tactical role-playing game that finds humanity on the brink of total annihilation. Beyond the boundaries of time and space lies the Veil, the barrier between reality and the realm of the Others, powerful and malevolent godlike entities. Since the dawn of existence, the Mother has defended the Veil, driving back the forces of darkness and keeping humanity safe from their influence. That is, until the Other known as Suffering found a way to corrupt The Chosen One, a child long under the protection of the Mother. With the loss of The Chosen One to Suffering, the Mother was easily defeated and the Veil began to shatter. All hope is not lost though, as the Mother still fights on. Unable to battle Suffering's forces directly, she calls upon her Daughters, fragments of her being and echoes of her past self, to battle in her stead. Guided by the Mother's hand, it's up to you to lead the Daughters as they drive back Suffering and its followers. Mistakes will be made and sacrifice is a certainty. But in the world of Othercide, failure isn't final and death is only the beginning.
Is It Any Good?
Style can be a tricky thing, especially when it comes to gaming, because it's far too easy to put style over substance, leaving players with a nice looking but relatively empty experience. Then there's Othercide, a game that manages to take its unique style and flawlessly marry it to gameplay, crafting a unique world that adds to richness the lore and depth to the package as a whole. The characters move with an almost ghostly fluidity and grace that, combined with the eerie black, white, and red color scheme, give every action a haunting and nightmarish beauty.
Othercide is not an easy game by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, failure isn't just a possibility, it's a certainty. Players are meant to fail missions, reincarnating Daughters and equipping them with special skills and items gained from their previous lives. These "Remembrances" open up new options for players, while replaying the mission helps them adjust their strategies. Unfortunately, this can be a double-edged sword, since constantly replaying failed missions can't help but get repetitive quickly. This is at least lightened by the recent inclusion of the Dream Mode on the PC, which makes some of the gameplay easier by lightening the cost of unit recovery, regenerates character health, and smooths out some of the missions that felt designed to make your squad fail until you were strong enough to overwhelm the creatures in your way. It's great to have the option to play on an easier level, especially if you want a better chance at experiencing more of the story, while facing a lighter challenge. It also gives you a sense of perspective before you dive into the harder (or perhaps better stated, standard) difficulty of Nightmare mode. Overall, Othercide's focus on sacrifice and perseverance make for a challenge unlike any that fans of the tactical role-playing genre have seen before.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the representation of women in video games. What are some of the ways that women in games have evolved from the stereotypical "damsel in distress"? What are some examples of strong female characters in video games?
What are some ways to teach kids to accept failing to reach certain goals? What are some positives that can be gained from "losing" and how can we learn from our mistakes?
Game Details
- Platforms: Nintendo Switch , PlayStation 4 , Windows , Xbox One
- Pricing structure: Paid
- Available online?: Available online
- Publisher: Focus Home Interactive
- Release date: September 10, 2020
- Genre: Strategy
- Topics: Magic and Fantasy , Monsters, Ghosts, and Vampires
- ESRB rating: M for Violence, Blood, Suggestive Themes, Partial Nudity
- Last updated: September 18, 2020
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