Get Your Fairytale On
I love games that have fun and clever ideas. Who doesn’t? Apparently quite a few game developers, because way too many games are retreads and rehashes of the same old ideas. Ravenswatch is a recently released roguelike. In addition to its beautiful art, Ravenswatch’s playable characters are smart riffs on folklore and fairy tales. Ravenswatch was released in September for PC and has recently been ported to consoles, so it’s a great time to look at the roster of heroes.
Especially in single-player mode, Ravenswatch is a very challenging game. Starting with the right character makes the first few hours a little less discouraging. Of course, there is no “right” character, it’s really a matter of playstyle. The game starts with four playable characters — Scarlet (Little Red Riding Hood), Beowulf, The Pied Piper, and the Snow Queen — with five more ready to be unlocked. Each time you beat the first chapter with a different character, a new one becomes available. In other words, you’ll be running through that first level several times.
Scarlet/Little Red Riding Hood
Ravenswatch has a day and night cycle. This is important, because several characters transform at night into entirely different versions of themselves. The first example of this is Scarlet, who by day is a dagger-wielding, swift-striking menace. By night, she transforms into a powerful werewolf with deadly claws, a terrifying roar, and monster-killing teeth. Scarlet is an excellent and well-balanced starting character because she’s both nimble by day and strong at night.
The Pied Piper
The first time I played the Pied Piper, I genuinely laughed out loud. This character fights with music, playing single notes on his flute for an arrow-like ranged attack or playing a flourish of notes for a rapid spread of crowd-controlling damage. His music, which has an Arabic, modal sound, actually musically syncs with the game’s score. Although The Pied Piper has many music-themed attacks, it isn’t the Piper’s only weapon. He can also control a swarm of rats, and the rats are great for both defense and offense. The only downside to the Piper is his slightly low starting health.
Carmilla
Carmilla might be my favorite character. She’s a sexy vampire who can deal damage with her teeth, claws (when in bat form), and blood magic. She can send blood spikes tearing through her enemies and swoop in to bite them on the neck. Being a dhampir, she can be active during the day, but at night she gains a 30% critical chance bonus. In multiplayer, she can heal teammates, and she starts the game at 100% health.
Sun Wukong
This must be the year for legendary Chinese hero Sun Wukong. In Ravenswatch, Sun Wukong is excellent both on a team and as a lone character. He starts the game with 110% health, has some excellent, damage-dealing strikes with his staff, and can buff all his fellow heroes. But that’s not all! Sun Wukong can transform into another, random hero and can transform into a group of 6 monkey clones.
Geppetto
Geppetto starts with only 80% health but is worth playing for his array of abilities. Being a carpenter by trade, his main weapon is a hammer. However, Geppetto’s play is mostly focused on the Dummies he can make. The Dummies are great in a group for crowd control, but they have a wide range of offensive and defensive abilities. Geppetto can also build a Master Puppet that deals massive damage. Like Sun Wukong, playing Geppetto effectively takes some practice, but is worth the effort.
The Other Heroes
All the characters in Ravenswatch have their place as either a solo hero or in a multiplayer squad. The Snow Queen is a great AOE damage dealer, perfect for freezing enemies in place while another hero dispatches them. Like the Pied Piper, the siren Melusine uses music as a weapon, in this case,e her voice. Aladdin does melee damage with his scimitar, can ride his magic carpet and damage enemies while flying, and is a useful healer. Beowulf is a tank, doing damage with a sword and shield. He also has a fire-breathing Wyrm that can access a range of fire-based attacks.
Ravenswatch’s basic premise is an open-ended platform for adding more characters and I’m certain we’ll be seeing them at some point in the future.