As gloomy as the ambiance of Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess can be, you’re constantly challenging it with a colorful celebration. Fireworks are a recurring motif, symbolizing the accomplished feats of your journey as you help cleanse villages and shrines from the threat of Yokai-inspired foes — supernatural entities and spirits in Japanese folklore. In combat, each time you set off a cannon, the impact turns the pale creatures into a splash of particles.
Outside of it, fireworks are ever-present when you rebuild people’s homes, as townsfolk jump and scream in joy to see hope restored. The latest from Capcom mixes hack-and-slash action with strategy elements that echo the tower defense genre. Playing as Soh, you wield your sword through a series of increasingly challenging stages to protect the shrine maiden Yoshiro.
She’s the only person who can purify the gates at the end of each level, and ultimately the corruption tormenting the land altogether. But she can’t fight back on her own. As you quickly realize, Soh can’t do this alone either — instead, you recruit the help of the villagers you rescue as different unit types, slowly building a group to stand together against rampant hordes of enemies.
It’s a novel concept, and one that evolves with surprising results. The first few levels of Kunitsu-Gami serve as an extended tutorial that introduces the tone and general structure. After losing an early encounter, Soh is left in a weak state with just a few abil.