Developed by Sushee and published by the Square Enix Collective, Goetia is one part horror story, one part tragedy and one part mystery. It is the story of Abigail Blackwood, a girl who tragically fell to her death from a window in her family's mansion when she was just a child. Now, 40 years later, she finds herself as a little ball of light back on the property of Blackwood Manor. With no knowledge of the years in between, she finds herself having to release trapped demons from inside the walls of what was once her home.
At the same time, she explores the manor, the nearby village, ruins, caves and the forest, in order to piece together the clues of the past and figure out what exactly happened to leave the Manor and the surrounding area deserted. She follows the story of her parents and her sister, as well as her sister's children, and their dealings with demons. Along the way, Abigail uncovers secrets about her family history and about the natures of the demons who are unhappily trapped within the mansion walls.
Goetia is a point and click adventure game with a rich story and gorgeous visuals. Though it's short on characters—as you would be in an abandoned village—the developers get creative with how they reveal the pieces of the past, always leaving a trail of clues for the player to follow along. Playing as a ghostly ball of light spirit has many creative gameplay applications, from possessing objects to using your own spirit light to see. Though it is a difficult game, it's not impossible, and the challenges are rewarding. There are two alternate endings, both of which are appropriate and satisfying to the game, but only one of which is the true ending and involves, of course, solving a few more puzzles along the way.
Goetia was released April 14, 2016 for PC, Mac and Linux systems.
