In a darkish, futuristic world, being a superhero has been outlawed. Not by the federal government, however by the one pressure in King Metropolis that issues – The Firm. Capes takes the turn-based technique style and provides it a comic book e-book really feel, placing you within the management of a fledgling group of superheroes attempting to dish out justice in a metropolis the place justice doesn’t exist. Whereas a few of its visuals lack a little bit of polish, the precise gameplay in Capes is heroic sufficient to make up for it.
If you happen to throw The Boys and Watchmen right into a blender with XCOM 2, what you’d be left with could be Capes. Developer Spitfire Interactive knew precisely the tone it was going for and caught with it. You begin with two superheroes and a grizzled veteran calling the pictures from a bunker and slowly assemble a group able to liberating King Metropolis from the grip of The Firm, which is so evil it doesn’t want a correct title.
The story is rarely revolutionary neither is it dangerous or predictable. It appears like a serviceable comedian e-book plot that by no means tries to problem conference however nonetheless doesn’t really feel lazy. The writers clearly know the tropes they’re utilizing and the way they work nicely sufficient that every part feels extra like a homage than a parody.
There are many small particulars that make Capes really feel like an interactive comedian e-book. The speech bubbles, for instance, are an awesome contact that sadly turn into obligatory because of some sound balancing points in sure scenes. We love the sport’s willingness to lean into comedian e-book tropes – there are twists within the plot that you just’ll see coming however they match the world the builders constructed. There are many references to basic comedian books sprinkled in to maintain you being attentive to the small particulars of every character’s design.
Not that the presentation all the time works, nonetheless. The visuals total are extraordinarily dated. Characters within the rendered cutscenes have nearly no expression and restricted motion, leaving loads of the emoting to a bunch of enthusiastic however inconsistent voice actors. The 2D visuals look higher however all of them do the awkward sway that cell video games use to make it really feel like characters are animated once they’re actually not. The visible points could make it tough to inform precisely the place your cursor is or to determine precisely why a particular energy gained’t land.
The place Capes does succeed is within the gameplay. Every hero has powers that deal injury or defend their allies. Each capabilities simply otherwise sufficient that they by no means really feel repetitive however aren’t so distinctive that you just don’t know what to do with them. As a result of there is no such thing as a hit-or-miss probability – each assault hits and offers a specified quantity of harm – understanding these powers and utilizing them successfully is the important thing to successful the quite a few missions your superhero group will get despatched on.
Not solely are the heroes’ powers distinctive, however they’ve an final that may deal large injury or utterly lock down a map if used accurately. There’s a great steadiness with the final word strikes that we actually appreciated. Some are faster to cost however do much less injury. Others are slower to cost however much more helpful. Neither is inherently higher than the opposite – it simply will depend on the way you construct your group.
Our favourite factor about Capes’ battle system is the usage of Crew Up assaults. Sure characters might help one another throughout a mission, boosting the ability or vary of an assault or giving them better mobility. Aspect, the crystal-wearing tank of the get together, actually shines on this regard. Few of his assaults deal loads of injury however he usually boosts the injury of teammates close by. It makes positioning not simply of enemies however of different heroes very important to your technique.
When you initially begin with only a few heroes, you’ll shortly acquire an entire roster of characters and should spend a little bit of time between missions leveling them up or unlocking expertise. Ranges will be earned by taking heroes on missions and incomes XP whereas finishing non-obligatory aims can earn you SP to improve your heroes. A number of the non-obligatory aims shall be out of your attain once you first try them and also you’ll have to return and check out once more when your group is extra highly effective.
As a result of lack of RNG altering your plans, missions really feel extra like a puzzle with a particular resolution than unpredictable battlefields. This won’t be to everybody’s style, however we discovered it much less irritating than when our best-laid plans fell aside as a result of the sport’s cube curler labored in opposition to us. This isn’t to say that each mission is straightforward – there’s a problem spike early in Act I that had us practically throwing our controller till we found out the correct tactic. Nonetheless, even after we failed, it all the time felt like victory was obtainable if we simply made a number of completely different selections, which is precisely the type of problem stage we prefer to see in a method recreation.
Capes isn’t going to win any awards for its visuals, however its gameplay greater than makes up for a dated look. It rewards cautious planning and intelligent utilization of powers whereas the choice of Crew Up powers offers the characters synergy that makes them really feel like a bunch that has labored collectively earlier than. It isn’t the most effective technique recreation on the Change however it’s positively price choosing up.
Conclusion
Regardless of some visible shortfalls, Capes is a really strong turn-based technique recreation that takes the most effective bits of XCOM 2 and provides it the superhero therapy. The tactical gameplay could have you considering of the easiest way to place your rising roster of heroes on every flip that can assist you save King Metropolis from the nefarious Firm. Even a predictable plot would not undermine how well-balanced and enjoyable Capes is to play. Technique and comedian e-book followers will discover lots to get pleasure from right here.