RPGWatch Feature - Ghost of a Tale Preview

Aubrielle checked out Ghost of a Tale, a game that is currently in Early Access on both Steam and GOG. During her play through, she came to like the game quite a bit .

Anyone who's stumbled on the game through Steam or GOG may tell you that the graphics are one of the game's strongest selling points, and I agree that Tilo's world is brought to life with vivid, rich detail. But the graphics are only the sweetener; Ghost of a Tale relies on writing as colorful as its lovingly rendered environments. No game can survive on graphics alone, and Ghost of a Tale stands as a valuable lesson in how good writing and lore is critical in providing immersion.

As the game begins, you find yourself in one of the king's most infamous dungeons, knowing only that our hero has offended the king and his wife is gone. Rescuing his wife is Tilo's only concern, and to do that, he has to escape the foreboding seaside prison. The story is a bit of an open-ended mystery at first, and parts of the picture are slowly revealed through encyclopedia entries and even, in the best reminders of old Sierra games, the items in your inventory. For example, Tilo carries a small figurine likeness of his son; an item with no practical use but with deep sentimental value. For me, it's details like this, laid out through descriptive text and without distracting voiceovers, that tell the best story and give a hint of subtle nostalgia. This is how stories were told back when world-building came first.

More information.

Thanks Aubrielle for this preview.

Thank you for the preview, Aubrielle. This game is already fun.

Thanks, Aubrielle. I'm just curious, as I'm in middle of playing the Dwarves, which feels like a mixture of an adventure game/visual novel cross with some combat thrown in, whether you really feel this game is an rpg. When I read "rpg" I expect both character development and types of interaction (including exploration) that are absent in point and click games. The Dwarves is a nice game, but its not a particularly good rpg (in the way I understand the word) . I understand that Ghost of a Tale is a good game, but I'm not sure how much appeal it would have for me, that's why I'm curious what makes it an rpg and not an adventure game.

Originally Posted by forgottenlor
Thanks, Aubrielle. I'm just curious, as I'm in middle of playing the Dwarves, which feels like a mixture of an adventure game/visual novel cross with some combat thrown in, whether you really feel this game is an rpg. When I read "rpg" I expect both character development and types of interaction (including exploration) that are absent in point and click games. The Dwarves is a nice game, but its not a particularly good rpg (in the way I understand the word) . I understand that Ghost of a Tale is a good game, but I'm not sure how much appeal it would have for me, that's why I'm curious what makes it an rpg and not an adventure game.

That's a really interesting question, and I'm afraid I don't have an easy answer. I guess all I can do is invoke a game like Quest For Glory I, which I guess technically is a point-and-click adventure, but for me it's very much an RPG too. You have a character sheet, numerous different stats that control different things and are raised in different ways, a rich world with choice and consequence and numerous different ways to address problems or finish quests. In my head, I guess it's sorta both. With all the standard RPG features - different scores, etc. - Ghost of a Tale has one feature that for me stands out as a strong RPG tradition - a lore encyclopedia. I know that while there are a lot of non-RPGs that utilize that feature (The Order 1886), I find more RPGs that use it than other genres, and RPGs do it in a far stronger and more complete way. Ghost of a Tale's lore encyclopedia is pretty robust. And the outfit system, as well as how different stats are raised by said outfits, feels like an RPG feature to me, too.

I mean, at the end of the day, it's all gonna be up to you - or any player - whether the game is an RPG to them or not. But I'd personally be okay calling Ghost of a Tale an RPG.

And thanks, you guys!

Hey Aubri, congratulations for the review

Is this game like Styx or is Styx like this game ? (I have played neither but both seem like interesting stealth games).

Originally Posted by you
Is this game like Styx or is Styx like this game ? (I have played neither but both seem like interesting stealth games).

I wish I could answer definitively - I haven't played Styx, so I'm not sure. Anyone?

Thank you Aubrielle! I've added it to my wishlist

Thanks for the info in the preview, and keep highlighting these indi jems for us in the future.

tried this some during early access and the part that disappoints me the most is how it tries to sell as an rpg. If you go into this game expecting lots of rpg elements you might get disappointed like I did, but for what it is it does seem like a good and very cute game. But in my head dialogues and a few quests isn't what defines a game as rpg. I'll definitely play it again at some point with a different mindset

And thanks for the preview aubrielle :3

Originally Posted by Nyx
tried this some during early access and the part that disappoints me the most is how it tries to sell as an rpg. If you go into this game expecting lots of rpg elements you might get disappointed like I did, but for what it is it does seem like a good and very cute game. But in my head dialogues and a few quests isn't what defines a game as rpg. I'll definitely play it again at some point with a different mindset

And thanks for the preview aubrielle :3

Thanks, Nyx, I think you've answered my question. Assassin's Creed for example, has a story, lore, quests, and upgradable equipment, but its not defined as an rpg game. Dishonored, which has almost the same elements, is sometimes defined as an rpg, and as much as I love Dishonored, I'd never call it an RPG. I'll keep that in mind with Ghost of a Tale, and buy it as a steal based adventure game, if I buy it at all.

So it is actually not an RPG, but more of an adventure/stealth game with some RPG elements.
Well, that's not a bad thing. Just try to not sell it as a full RPG
RPG = character skill > player skill + choices & consequences (be it in character building and/or story)

It's quite simple to get an easily applicable definition once you strip the secondary stuff like lore and writing (secondary in relation to the definition, that is).

What actually kept me off the game was this:

The hero is a little mouse named Tilo, a minstrel thrown in the dungeon for offending the king.

That is simply not something that speaks to me. I feel like I grew out of stories starring a little mouse.

Thanks Aubrielle, I'll add to my wish lists as well!

Does sounds like a cute little game but for me doesn't sounds like an RPG but then we all have our own definition of what we consider an RPG. For me part of that is freedom to make ones own character which is why I never got into games like the Witcher, Assassins Creed, or Dishonored, although they are all cool games.

To me is more an adventure game. Does sounds fun though and during dry spells I tend to play some other types of games so will keep it in mind.