[Introduction]

[Negatives]

[Gameplay]

[Graphics/Art]

[Music]

[Story]

[Conclusion]

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Being honest, Pyre scared me off initially, I had no idea what to think of the ball fighting/sports business. I loved Supergiant’s first two games to death, but I couldn’t get my head around the ideas of this one. Just shortly after release I told myself “♥♥♥♥ it” and just bit the bullet as I trust Supergiant in what they do... and the the game just went ahead and won me over pretty much immediately.As with all my reviews, these are my own opinions and experiences: please check out other reviews too!Only negative thing I could think of would be that the game is rather text heavy. While previous games combined gameplay and story to perfection, this one separates both and forces you to sit there clicking through countless pages of dialog often with no voiceover at all. The game often feels like a visual novel and that might be a huge turn off for people, but I personally had no problem with it.It all begins with an interactive story mode, similar to light novels and you will spend most of the time there, worth noting for people who are against reading. Here you can can hover over world specific words and people to get an explanation for better understanding. During these dialogs, you will sometimes be presented with choices that may might impact the story in not always obvious ways.The other portion is the combat/sports game (kinda like dodgeball mixed with handball) called the trial, in which you have to fight adversaries in so called ‘rites’. Each rite offers a different layout and obstacles that can sometimes be moved around or move on their own. Two teams of three participants each fight against each other through scoring the orb (ball) into each others pyre (goal) until one of them reaches zero. While you can toss the orb to other characters, going in solo is also a viable option in rare situations and the option to toss the orb in any direction certainly helps with that. Choose three characters per match, only one of which can move at any given time, so you coordinate their movements as positioning is key. Be aware though that the character who scores a goal won’t be available until another has scored, and if hit by adversaries, they will respawn with a delay. Characters can pass the orb, attack the opposing forces, stand near the ball or goal to defend it, or just rush in to score a quick goal.Each of the various characters walks, jumps, and sprints in a different way, and features their own unique abilities. They all have four stats (Glory, Quickness, Presence and Hope) that are important and change how much damage you do, how big your aura is, or simply how fast your companions move, and these values can be affected by choices outside of rites as well. Characters can also learn up to four of eight different masteries and equip one talisman, which provide passive buffs to specific aspects of the duels.At the start of each match, you can check out your adversary's stats and gear to plan accordingly. One of the best things of this game is that opposing teams aren’t just random thugs, they are teams with different personalities and moralities; they’re just as unique as your own team.Menus are easy to handle and satisfying to use thanks to pleasant sounds and animations. A wagon is used to traverse the vast landscapes but also to change your character’s gear and skills, but also to speak with them in private. Crank up the difficulty with 12 different modifiers that also give bonus experience and provide a risk/reward element to your play.These matches are also playable in more of a standalone format vs AI or other players locally.You form your teams from all the characters featured in the campaign, and can play using the same 12 challenge modifiers as well as an adjustment for the difficulty of the AI opponent. You’re also allowed to pick the map and song of your choice to play on.Exceptionally well done characters and backgrounds are everywhere in this game and you can just feel the experience behind Supergiant and their improvement over the years. Everything looks so polished and pretty, one could say it fits perfect for what the game is aiming for; there is just so much attention to detail that is rarely seen in games these days.Just like the other two games, the soundtrack is just magnificent and oozes the talent and soul that has been put into it. The songs adapt to the game’s current events and grow both in volume and instrument complexity, or just drop entirely when the action is over. Additionally, each character, landscape, and opponent also has it’s own fitting theme.You are asked to be part of an esoteric sports team of criminals that plans to participate in magical rituals called Trials, in which you participate in Rites to regain their freedom and to be cleansed of their past crimes. To avoid any spoilers, I won’t go into further detail.This takes place in a mysterious world filled with dozens of different creatures and races, each with their own motivations to get out of there. The match narrator (Logan Cunningham from Bastion, but putting on an unusual voice) does a great job, and he intriguingly reacts to decisions made throughout your playthrough.Different from the other supergiant games, you are the still protagonist, but don’t physically control her, just like in Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade. You are present and control your team during matches and converse with them, but you never see yourself, you don’t even have a real name. Additional dialogues with characters will earn you more knowledge about them and down the line may increase your bond. If you want to satisfy your hunger for knowledge about this fascinating world, the book of rites is just the right place for you since it contains pretty much everything one could possibly want to know.Compared to previous games, this is a whole new direction and I fear that it might not be as successful as their first two games. The disconnection of gameplay and story is refreshing but will ultimately lead to angry fans because of unmet expectations. Regardless of that, I greatly enjoyed my time with it and am eager to jump right back in, as there are multiple endings to explore. I recommend it to anyone who enjoyed Bastion and Transistor, and those who aren’t afraid of reading since 80% of the game will be spent in visual novel mode because matches are only three to five minutes long.