Narrative: Pyre’s whole story is based off of a book. The whole entire game revolves around a bible like manuscript called “The Book of Rites”, which everyone follows without question, it being the perfect guide for civilization. It is to note though that books and reading are against law in the Commonwealth, but ironically, the only people who can lead your team of Triumvarates to victory are the ones who can read the Book of Rites, and those people are far and few in between. This isn’t your modern type of game where you freely control your player in an open world environment. It’s a point and click style (think of early TellTale) game where your wagon goes to whatever province or region you desire, exploring the Downside and becoming enthralled in the games deep lore and characters and depending on how you play will depend on how your story is shaped so the game and it’s characters actually reflect on your own skill as a whole. Beware though, this game is not for readers. The games intelligent writing is also its biggest downfall. By the end of the game, I caught myself skipping dialogue and becoming uninterested as I felt the game was dragging itself out towards the end.

EyeCandy: If you know SuperGiant’s games, then you know they strive for originality, yet familiarity through their titles. If you don’t know, the game has a very comfy and warm style of art that mimics styles of smooth pastels and detailed paints. All of the characters and landscapes are highly detailed, bringing them to life. Every region is diverse and feels like it’s own as even through the artwork you can see the rich history that the Downside has experienced.

SoundDesign: Upon watching the credits (yes, I watch credits, don’t judge me) the sound and music is by none other than our award winning Darren Korb. In all of his mutton chop glory he sticks with SuperGiant and delivers the cleanest and crispest sound design that you’d only expect to come from a AAA type video game. From the different languages and their dialects, to the believable and high fidelity sound effects, and the nothingshort-of-purely-professional soundtrack, Darren Korb hit it out the park, over the river, through the woods, and- you get what I’m saying. For one man to take on the sound AND music for such a big project was something that I found absolutely fantastic. His unusual, but memorable, sense of melody and his always-bending-the-rules type attitude of rhythm creates an unrivaled soundtrack that’s good enough to buy on its own. But not only is the music good, it goes hand in hand with the game itself. Every track has multiple layers, and depending on your actions, will depend on what the listener hears.I can’t describe music through text very well, but at least to give an idea there’s ballads, rock, acoustic, classical, breakbeat, it’s as eclectic as one would expect if you’re familiar with Darren’s work. Oh and by the way, Ashley Barrett returns to the studio as well, lending Darren her voice and creating a flawless duo. Their two voices compliment each other like extra cheese on a pizza. Or in a way that is best since… Since… Well I can’t think of anything right now, but just believe me when I say this soundtrack is damn good. If you care to look it up, the first track, “In the Flame” is my favorite.

GamePlay: This is probably the most unique part of the game. Pyre isn’t your typical Run N’ Gun or Hack and Slash. It’s a sports game. There’s an orb (just like many sports) that appears in the middle of your ‘field’ or ‘court’and your team of three have to seize the orb and douse the other team’s Pyre. What that means is the ball has to be ran to the other teams side to score points. What I found enjoyable was it was like basketball mixed with football, sprinkle in some dodgeball and you got Pyre’s main gameplay aspect. Within that formula the game has a host of players that all have a base of four attributes: Glory, Presence, Hope, and Quickness. Glory is how many points your player can score. Their Presence affects how large their Aura is and how close in proximity your adversaries can come in contact with them before being eliminated, Hope is how long it takes for them to respawn, and quickness is self explanatory. And within that your player can either sprint (or slide if it’s a Wyrm), jump (or glide, maybe even fly), Salute (a polite word for taunt), pass to other players, or cast your Aura which is like a burst of Magic to eliminate your enemies from afar. I say all that and go in a little depth to try and tell you just how deep the gameplay is. With a host of nine characters, all of their abilities are vastly different and their skill trees lead to a unique experience that can truly tailor to anyone’s playstyle as the amount of plays and strategies one can come up with are almost endless. Be careful though, because once a character is chosen for a certain Rite, there’s no going back. I found that frustrating, but I learned to choose carefully pretty quick after that!

Conclusion: Verdict: Pyre is a different type of experience. It’s a novel, it’s a video game, it’s art in its most modern and purest form. The actual gameplay of the rites never feels stale as the game is constantly mixing it up (whether those changes are up to you or not) and throwing the unexpected at you, mixed with superb sound and music make for a type of memory you won’t soon forget. While Pyre’s biggest downfall is its main driving point, there’s not much here that holds the game back, other than minor (or arguably) mistakes. Pyre is a game to play, it’s a game to recommend to others, but most of all it’s a game that’s well worth your hard earned money. Good job, Supergiant. No stone was left unturned and no shortcuts were taken in the production of what might be your best game to date. Hats off to you.