Welcome to our review of Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess, a game that can best be described as a trippy live tower defense game.
A new tale of the Kami awaits… Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is a unique Japanese-inspired, single player Kagura Action Strategy game. The game takes place on a mountain covered by defilement. During the day, purify the villages and prepare yourself for sundown. During the night, protect the Maiden against the hordes of the Seethe. Repeat the day and night cycle until you cleanse the mountain of defilement and return peace to the land.
Unique Japanese-inspired World: The setting is Mt. Kafuku—a mountain covered in defilement. The game offers a taste of Japanese culture, including Kagura dance, masks, as well as the music that plays in the background. The Seethe emerge from the Torii Gates to the other world when the sun sets. This enemy, which has a variety of different abilities, attacks at night under the cover of darkness, targeting the Maiden. The director’s ideas and attention to detail have been packed into the design that presents the setting of this game.
Exhilarating Sword Dance Action: The main character, Soh, wields a sword to protect the Maiden of the mountain, Yoshiro, as she confronts the Seethe. Do not be intimidated by the enemy’s array of attacks, and slay them with dance-like sword attacks! Soh’s battles are not fought alone, but with the help of villagers who have been bestowed roles. What placements and roles will be most effective? Where will the villagers fight? And which enemies will Soh focus on?
Constant changes during battle will test your strategy and tactics. Purify the Torii Gates of the Defilement. If you can survive the Seethe attacks until dawn and lead Yoshiro to a Torii Gate while the sun is still up, you can purify it with her Kagura dance. Restore peace to the mountain villages! This game will test not only your actual battle skills but also your ability to plan ahead or adapt in the middle of combat.
From suddenly having to move a sumo wrestler that does massive damage to a location close to the gate or put an archer up high so he has a higher reach, at times the possibilities are pretty much only limited to your imagination. The majority of levels are pretty much easy to get, outlast the enemies, and find the easiest way to cleanse the level. The premise of the game is really pure and simple, survive in any way you can. Use and abuse the villagers, the more the merrier and as you progress the game, you can make them stronger.
Like take the thief for example, a villager that does disappear for the fight, I basically only select one when I am running low on rations. That way I keep my army as prepared as possible. Even during the “boss battles” after purifying a level, you can command your army to instantly attack the big boss or to keep defending Yoshiro from all the grunt that come in and try to take her down. While you may occasionally bork out on a level, you are just as easily restarting it to make your army all archers so those pesky flying Seethe are more easily taken down. It is a ton of planning, but once you get the hang of it, this is a very fun game to play.
Even the weirdness of the dancing and the impressive graphics all just fit this game, it is like a perfect blend of a genre you did not know you want and the obscure and occult feeling Seethe. It all just makes sense in this game, it kinda makes me wish we had more games like these.
In conclusion, Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is honestly one heck of a game. Once you get used to its mesmerizing vibe, this game only has a direct road into your GOTY list. By far the most unique game I played in years!
