Smoke and Sacrifice is a stunning game out now Nintendo Switch. This game is something to behold and looks fantastic in every inch of its vast world. With different locales to take on and a cavalcade of monsters, there is much to discover and fight. It is great seeing such a vibrant world open up as the player treks through it.
Smoke and Sacrifice is a perilous adventure story about a young woman named Sachi who has recently given up her baby. In a crazy world where the sun has gone out, the people thrive thanks to a metal tree. Every year they are forced to kill a child and send them off in a strange portal. Sachi is devastated that this year her baby is chosen to leave her. After she sends him away from a monstrous force attacks and makes short work of the town. Sachi lead by a mysterious man sneaks away and gets blasted by the laser than destroyed her child…or so she thinks.
Sachi finds herself in a strange new underground world. Sachi and the others were always taught that this weapon obliterated things for a god. Finding herself alive she realizes she may, in fact, be able to find her baby. But, this world is worse than the world above and nothing is going to be easy, especially coming to find her baby. Now she has to discover what is going on here and find her child in the vast underground expanse. Despite being underground this vast world houses quite a few environments making it worthwhile to explore as much of the world as possible.
Sachi soon meets people wearing gas masks as the world below isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. Without even a fake source of light, the bioluminescent plants must do. Sachi learns that she must build lanterns to get through the dark smog that covers the land. This is our heroine and the player’s introduction to crafting. Crafting is a detailed system that allows players to create from what they have on hand. It is important to always have a stockpile of certain items so that lanterns can be made. Lanterns are far more important especially in the early game to get through the toxic smog.
Items also have durability, and will break away after a time. The lanterns will eventually dim and the weapons may break. Just make sure to always load Sachi up, never look a gift horse in the mouth, and be sure to gather often, the player never knows when something is going to happen and must be ever ready.
This game gets better as the player travels through it as the player will learn to craft better weapons and armor. Decking out Sachi in better armor also makes her look cooler. Traveling through this underground world it will only help to be decked in the best. It’s great to slowly get stronger in this crazy world and making her battle ready is part of the fun. This woman has been sent from a world where she’s never fought in her life to one where she needs to fight to survive, she’ll need all the help she can get.
The monsters in this game are also interesting. These beasts will do all they can to kill Sachi. Fighting them is often the only way to pick up certain items. They will charge at any chance they can get and Sachi will be forced to fight them off. Often times the monsters will not hesitate to all swarm Sachi. This is devastating especially if they attack without warning. When grinding for items it is always good to maneuver Sachi away from large groups especially in the beginning. Even weaker enemies can do a large amount of damage when just starting out. It is definitely good to understand which monsters provide which items, as some items are truly indispensable.
The artwork in this game is top notch and has its own style. It’s hand drawn aesthetic is beautiful to look at, and the characters are highly crafted. The monsters look fierce and the people look like they’ve been through a lot. The environments have been lovingly crafted to look great. Just about everything is detailed, and the player should appreciate the attention to detail put into this game. Every time something new appeared on the screen, I personally was excited, as it was just another layer to the already vibrant yet gruesome world.
Smoke and Sacrifice is a great game that tells a dark story. Sachi needs all the help she can get in tracking down her sun, and this makes the quest that much more difficult. There aren’t people who will join her, and it is up to her and her crafting skill to uncover the mysteries and hopefully track down her son. Pick up Smoke and Sacrifice today to help Sachi explore a vast world and help her find her son, or is she destined to live distraught for the rest of her life?
Disclaimer: A review key was provided.