Othercide Review

Where the gameplay falters, however, is in its variety. There’s only a handful of classes to assign to your daughters, and whilst they’re all badass (the ballsy shieldbearer is a standout) I did find myself longing for a bit of change when I was many-runs deep. Luckily, they all have a bunch of abilities and tactics that can be modified with unlockable upgrades to mitigate this tedium, and your daughters can feel wildly different depending on how you spec them. The timeline at the bottom of the screen indicates turn order, and the abilities that allow you to manipulate this, delay an enemy attack or cut in front of someone to quickly finish them off before they can deal damage is great fun to play around with. It’s well worth experimenting with builds to get the most of out your daughters, and finding teams that synergise well together always feels great.

The maps and enemy types, however, don’t benefit from such mitigation. There’s not many of each, and whilst the game mixes things up by providing different combinations of mobs on different maps, it’s never enough to make you forget you’ve done this all before. It wouldn’t be so bad if the game didn’t have a mechanic built in that ensured you were doing what you’d done before over and over again but… well, here we are. It’s not a fatal flaw by any stretch, but should there ever be a sequel I’d be most hopeful of these features getting expanded.

Presentation:

Othercide is a monochromatic world with a streak of bloody red running through it. Much like the Sin City movies that popularized the style most recently, Othercide looks incredible, utilizing that restrictive palette to present a world dripping in moody atmosphere. The enemies look cool as all hell, and the daughters are stylish and badass. Visually, this game sings, and it really helps Othercide stand out from the crowd.

The audio is also pretty tight – whilst the music is fairly forgettable, the sound effects are as brooding as the visuals. The eerie narration from the Mother, mixed with off-putting tooltips and strange cries in the distance, lend this game a truly otherworldy feel.

Conclusion:

If you’re a fan of the genre, there is absolutely no reason not to grab Othercide immediately. It’s one of the strongest entries I’ve seen in years, and a truly refreshing, ever-repeating take on a type of game that has long struggled with its repetetive nature.

By making that repetition core to the experience, by taking away the chance to save-scum but by narratively, mechanically validating that choice, Othercide seems to have waded in and fixed many of the bugbears that have long hounded the genre.