South Park The Stick of Truth Review

South Park the Stick of Truth is a turn-based RPG in the vein of Super Mario RPG but with Trey Parker and Matt Stone's trademarked humor.


Published: March 14, 2014 6:06 PM /

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South Park The Stick of Truth Key Art

“Skyrim was our model,” Parker said, referring to the most recent Elder Scrolls game. “We wanted to do Skyrim, but in South Park.” But he went further then that—dreaming of making “the next step in RPG evolution.”

 

“And everyone was like: Uh, really?” Parker joked. “Eventually, I realized what I wanted it to be would have taken about 20 years and $80 billion to make.”

Trey Parker told the Wall Street Journal his big idea for South Park The Stick of Truth. Luckily, Obsidian, Ubisoft, Matt Stone, and Trey Parker found even ground. The result is a turn-based combat RPG from the likes of Final Fantasy and other JRPGs (Japanese Role Playing Games), with all the hilarity one would expect from the creators of South Park. Obsidian, the developers behind Star Wars the Old Republic and Fallout: New Vegas, seemed to have taken great pride in the world they re-created.

South Park The Stick of Truth - Like Show, Like Game

The Class System with a South Park twist

The Class System with a South Park twist

 

First off, a South Park episode is full of shit. Literal, political, obnoxious, vulgar, oppressive, and racial shit! Only one word can describe this, well, two words-FUCKING AMAZING! If you are offended by my choice of wording, I feel you should look at a Donkey Kong review, as this game is full of what South Park is. Without spoiling the story, I can say it got better and more insane as the 15-20 hour campaign progressed. If you have ever wished to play out your own South Park episode, this may be the game for you.

From the beginning to the end, I felt a vast sense of camaraderie with my fellow South Park buddies. My followers and NPCs provided hours of comical dialogue and missions/quests. Character creation is standard fare here but is more nostalgic than most, as making your very own South Park character may make you all warm inside. Classes are here but only serve to vary the abilities. The Jew class is a standout, mainly because of the special "circumcision" ability.

South Park The Stick of Truth - Gameplay

Die Nazi scum!

Die Nazi scum!

 

Secondly, the Gameplay is elevated due to the context of the story. Essentially it is broken up into two categories-exploration and combat. Walking around South Park and collecting loot from inside Cartman's Mom's room had me rolling on the floor. The amount of show references will encourage a thorough walk through of the map. Collecting all 30 Chinpokmon scattered around the map is just one of many things to do and experience. Exploration is also handled in standard fare. Quests are given from NPC's along with various side quests. An example of a side quest is trying to find Jesus. Not your typical side quest-making the exploration and questing unique and intriguing. Not once was I bothered by the questing system.

South Park The Stick of Truth - Random Battles

Chinpokemon

Chinpokemon

Out in the world, you will encounter battles with various enemies. From Elves to Mongolians to Nazi Rats- the enemies run the gamut. It is a great way to combat redundancy. The combat itself is nothing new, however, but it works well within the formula. Turn-based fighting is easy and fun making most battles worth the XP and time. XP is given for various things and comes with an upgradable skills tree all RPG fans should be accustomed to, and it gets the job done. The magic here is how all of this is connected and done with such polish that Role Playing in South Park is fun.

South Park the Stick of Truth - Graphics

The Visuals were the best on-purpose shitty graphics I have ever seen. South Park is intentionally made to look like construction paper animation, and it has never looked so good. On both the 360 and the PC, the game looks like an everyday South Park episode. This effect creates immersion as your character, the New Kid (or douchebag), tries to find his place in this long-established universe. The environment itself is a character that proves to be the star of the game. Nostalgic references are littered in every crevice and up every character's asshole-you'll be spending some time in Mr. Slave's. High marks are given to make the game feel like an episode.

The audio is top-notch, as all characters are voiced accurately and with the appropriate amount of South Park flair. Half the fun is listening to the banter and obscene dialogue between characters. Listening to Mr. Kim in combat during a summons is hilarious and had me laughing uncontrollably. I will not spoil the others, just know many more are available and are equally as funny.

The Verdict

Overall, the game is enjoyable throughout and has made me rethink licensed products in gaming. Those interested in replayability may find the game lacking, as most can be seen in one playthrough. If playing all classes is something you wish to do, allocate roughly 100 hours (I could think of more shitty ways to spend 100 hours). I recommend this game to any South Park fan, RPG fan, or video game fan. Ultimately, everyone should give this game a go.


 

Review Summary

9.0
For fans of both South Park and RPG's this is a must play. For everyone else, I'd recommend it thoroughly. (Review Policy)

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Has a strong affinity for everything fantasy related. Plays Indie, RPGs, and shooters. Favorite games are the Witcher 2, Diablo, Journey, GW2, and Hotline… More about Patrick