Kunitsujin: Path of the Goddess It’s a strange beast. A game that blends tower defense with squad strategy and third-person combat. When I first sat down to use it, I was prepared for the long haul. But any reservations I had were quickly cast aside—Kunitsujin: Path of the Goddess captures your interest with its graceful spins and flashy movements.
The game starts at the top of Mount Kafu, which is decorated with shrines and devotees. everything is fine until Uh oh, the entire mountain was besieged and hastily corrupted by the Boiling Ones. They desecrate the temple and capture any unfortunate soul they catch. You – a mysterious masked swordsman, of course – escape with the Kagura dancers on the mountain. This dancer (who can enhance your own abilities and purify Seethe of corruption) is the key to taking back Mount Kafuku. Protect her, rebuild the village, and lead a rebellion to retake the Holy Land. The stage has been set.
Manage cookie settings
The action immediately undercut the lofty stakes. Your protagonist moves a little wet, a little weak. They lack the fists I like to use with both hands in the heat of battle. That said, the game feels much more enjoyable because of the units you summon. Units with specific roles, each of which can be upgraded, help fuel the fantasy of a general, backed by a small group of powerful allies, tactically choosing who to deploy where on the battlefield.
At its best, Kunitsujin: Path of the Goddess puts you and your ragtag group in the middle of a rushing Seethe river, and it’s satisfying to see yourself standing firm against them.
What you do with these units is the heart of the game. Clearing a path for your Kagura Dancer so she can advance to the Torii Gate requires a currency that drops from enemies you kill as well as from limited nodes around the linear environment. It all comes down to the day/night cycle: Prepare to defend when the sun rises, defend against boiling in the dark. It’s tempting, even more tempting. It starts with basic options, but as enemy types and unit varieties are added, so does the complexity, and strategic ideas begin to emerge.
Kunitsujin: Path of the Goddess has a relaxing feel as you wind your way around the mountain. Repair the village to get upgrade materials, and return every now and then to complete bonus objectives – it has that wonderful gameplay rhythm that Capcom perfected in its sibling series Monster Hunter. It’s not exactly high-octane action, though, and on some of the longer missions the game dips its toe into sleepy waters.
But if your focus begins to wane, force yourself to focus on the smaller elements of that extraordinary artistic direction. The impact of your hard hit; a citrusy orange, looks more like tears in reality than a hard hit. How it follows your weapon as you cleave through waves of enemies. The overwhelming, endless seething designs, and how they emerge from the gates with a scarlet glow. it’s beautiful. There are also artistic paintings that take you back to Japan with a long history, and excellent animation works demonstrated by Kagura dancers… There is a rich visual feast here.
.png?width=690&quality=70&format=jpg&auto=webp)
Kunijin Goddess: Path of the Goddess is one of Capcom’s most visually stunning games. That does say something. It probably won’t become the publisher’s most popular experiment, but the development team nailed the visuals. If you’re the type of person who’s willing to buy a game for these reasons, or like tactical action in general, then Kunitsujin: Path of the Goddess is a solid choice.
I found myself fascinated by this game. Fascinated by its combat and strategy, and constantly in awe of what I saw, pleased with the steady flow of progression and structure of the mission layout. If a game can do that, it broadens my horizons a bit. That’s not a bad thing, is it?
Kunitsujin: Path of the Goddess will be released on July 19th for PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S and Xbox One, priced at £39.99/$49.99. It’s not too expensive either! If you crave something visually striking, go for it.
