South Park, The Stick of Truth sounds stupid, and it is. If you think I am talking about the gameplay though, you would be mistaken. It is actually a really well put together game and quite funny. They even make fun of Skyrim in this game.
Dragon Farts? Really? I laughed hysterically when I discovered this. Yes, instead of the “Shouts” in Skyrim we are familiar with. South Park decided to poke fun at the that most famous RPG and change that to farts. “Cup-A-Fart” was one that I found really funny and actually kind of challenging to use as it involved exactly what you think it would. You basically Cup-A-Fart and steer the fart behind an enemy (or ubstuction) and release. It makes for a great distraction and fire and explosion starter!
If you love South Park then you WILL love this game. It’s all there. Every character, from every great classic episode of the T.V. show. Mr. Hanky, Randy Marsh, Towely, Al Gore, ManBearPig, Butters, The Goth Kids, Timmy, Terrance and Phillip, Tweek (and his parents) The Mongolians, the Chinese Guy from City Wok, etc. etc. They literally missed nothing here. Not a thing. I was even surprised to see many of the “fringe” characters make appearences, from some of the best episodes, in this game. I give them a A+ for staying so very true to the show and making it extremely funny. I even found Jesus!
So how can the gameplay actually be “good” in a game like this you ask? That’s easy actually (although not obvious from pictures) and you will notice it very early in the game. It plays like any other good, modern RPG, that’s why. The interface is easy and clean. The combat, while turn based and kind of simplistic is challenging as well. Some attacks have to be timed just right, like blocking for example. So it is not as simplistic as it might first appear. Not only that, but it is injected with so much comedy, you won’t even notice you are playing a turn based RPG. This game is positively hilarious, even during battle. Be warned though, this game is not for kids! It’s got some really offensive stuff in it and they hold nothing back. True to South Park form.
If you are thinking of judging this game by other, older South Park video game standards, don’t. They were horrible to mediocre games, at best. This one was meant to be bigger and better and it is. As stupid as this game is, I found myself coming back to it time and time again. Especially if I needed a good laugh and something a little more “light hearted” to play, but still very RPG “ish”.
All of the classic (and modern) RPG elements are in here and that’s why the gameplay is actually pretty decent. There are stores to buy, sell and upgrade your stuff. There are many “side quests” too that can get you special loot. The weapons and armour are upgradeable and socketable. So as you can see it plays and acts like any good modern RPG. Certain attacks are effective against certain enemies and some are not.
Story and dialogue wise Ubisoft actually managed to capture what makes South Park, South Park. They must have had a blast making it too! I finished the game despite it having a relatively stupid main story/quest (Stick of Truth? Really?). I guess they had to give it some kind of adventure aspect. It is funny, although weird and childesh too. It is supposed to be a poke at “The Ring” from Lord of the Rings. Except that it is a stick. They could have done better, but they make it work too! Go figure!
What really drives the game for me is not so much the main quest but the the side quests and how true they stayed to the T.V. show authenticity. I had a lot of fun doing those things. For fans of the show, even mild ones like me, this game is worth it just for the laughs. There is a lot of South Park content in this game. Much of it, unexpected and it took me back to those old episodes and made me laugh till it hurt!
