It ain’t easy being a hero in a videogame. First of all, you’ll probably start your journey with no memory of who you are. Moreover, you’ll almost always begin at the end of the world. As much as we whine about either of those things being cliché, it’s a compelling way to tell an interesting story: forcing us, as the protagonist, to piece together the past to confront an unknown future. As you do so, you become increasingly invested in your character’s fate and that of the world crumbling around them.
So we can’t blame indie studio Supergiant Games for taking the familiar route in its XBLA debut Bastion. As an unnamed, wordless warrior known simply as “The Kid,” you wake to discover that everyone you once knew or loved has been reduced to piles of stony dust in an extinction-level catastrophe known as The Calamity. Now, your only instincts drive you to collect crystal-like artifacts that have the power to restore order to the world of Caelondia and drive back an unfettered influx of weird, feral, gloppy beasts.
How do you know all of this? Bastion delivers its seemingly standard post-apocalypse yarn in a unique way — through an omnipotent narrator named Rucks. As you hammer, slash, and shoot your way through delicately hand-drawn environments packed with destructible objects, Rucks serves as your guide and, perhaps, your conscience. The Kid never talks — he just silently cuts a mad swathe of crate- and stone-smashing destruction through Bastion’s lovely world.
Ruck’s twangy, world-weary voiceover not only breathes personality into the action-RPG gameplay, but also gives Bastion a sense of nonplussed humor. If you roll off a platform and plummet to your death, he’ll comment on it. Smash something enough times with a specific weapon (you’ll find 11 upgradable weapons in all, equipping two at a time), and he’ll say something funny about it. Even when you encounter some Calamity survivors and bring them back to the Bastion — the game’s hub area where you can build shops that sell items, forge weapons, and more — Rucks speaks for them. (Well, at least until near the end of the game’s six- to eight-hour run.)
As entertaining as Rucks is, we actually missed varying voices, though. At times, it’s too easy to mentally gloss over his chatting, which, with only one constant voice, sometimes borders on white noise. But that’s only a problem with story-related bits, and if you’re more riveted by the gameplay than the story, you can always just turn on the subtitles.
We wouldn’t blame you for being absorbed by the gameplay: Bastion’s classic-style smash, slash, and shooting action is fiercely addicting. Besting hordes of dastardly squirts, anklegators,
and other Caelondian wildlife requires you to juggle everything from flamethrowers to special weapon-specific attacks like your Mancer Missile. The game offers enough incentive to keep sniffing out weapon upgrades or items that’ll coax just a bit more story info out of the hub’s inhabitants.
The difficulty skews a bit on the easier side through the game’s 20-plus areas, but the option to activate collectible “idols” at the Bastion’s shrine can up the challenge significantly, and you can also tackle some rather tough survival-type maps and weapons-related Proving Grounds. Though we found ourselves wishing the gameplay and story had just a little more depth and variety, the game’s definitely captivating. Carefully crafted and full of charm, Bastion is irresistible.
+ Drop-dead gorgeous with plenty of imaginative visual touches.
+ Unique storytelling; great music; “New Game+” mode is a nice touch.
- Constant narration can lessen the impact of story segments; gameplay can feel same-y at times.
? Will Zia’s song win our Best Videogame Song of 2011 award? It’s definitely in the running!
