The Thaumaturge | PC Review
Take a dash of isometric RPG, a spoonful of Polish Persona, and an alternate history Warsaw, and you’ve got The Thaumaturge. Developed by Fool’s Theory and published by 11 Bit Studios, it stars Wiktor Szulski, the titular thaumaturge and perennially scruffy protagonist. His mission: to wander around Warsaw, talk to ghosts, and generally annoy people. He’s good at the last part.
Empathic Spirit Tracking
Wiktor (pronounced with a V sound) begins the game exploring a remote village in order to capture a Salutor. These demonic spirits prey on people’s Flaws, and only a Thaumaturge such as Wiktor can see them, let alone tame and capture them. This involves exploring the environment and using your mystic senses to locate objects or places that resonate with your target, and use those traces you uncover to deduce information about them.
Your ally in this is Grigori Rasputin, a fellow man of the scruff who aids Wiktor in taming any captured Salutors, as well as providing insight and occasional comic relief. While this might sound similar to Disco Elysium, it’s only somewhat in the same ballpark. Yes, it’s also an isometric RPG focused on exploration and story, with a well-crafted and vibrant city as a character, but it’s not the same experience.
Punch Drunk Love/Hate
For one thing, Wiktor gets into actual scraps with cops, local toughs, or just prissy genteels who don’t like his face. This results in a turn-based combat experience, with Wiktor and his Salutors trading blows with anyone dumb enough to fist-fight someone who’s best buds with invisible demons. Wiktor can eventually acquire a number of Salutors, and can swap between them each round as needs be. Each Salutor has a particular attack focus: some heal Wiktor as they deal damage, inflict status effects that deal damage over time, or destroy focus, which enables Wiktor to do high-damage moves once the enemy’s focus is entirely gone.
However, your health always restores to full after each fight, and so the game falls into the same trap as other RPGs that use this mechanic: random mooks are generally easy and there’s no real tension in fighting them, as ordinary people tend to be fodder for a Thaumaturge. On the flip side, you have to subdue new Salutors in a boss battle, and it’s only here that strategy and challenge come into play.
Historically Accurate Inaccuracies
In between befriending monstrous spirits, you’ll traipse around Warsaw, circa 1905, as you attempt to uncover the mystery behind your father’s untimely passing. This mystery is what drives the story, but it’s equally (and often more so) interesting to simply explore and reveal more of Warsaw. The dev team put serious work into recreating the city of that era, and you’ll frequently stumble upon tidbits of knowledge about its inhabitants and what life was like under Russian rule. Wiktor’s powers allow him to sense the emotions tied to objects and places, so you’ll learn just as much about the people and how they live as you do about the overarching plot.
Speaking of that plot, unlike a title like Disco Elysium, it’s a largely linear affair in The Thaumaturge. Certain areas of the city can be gated by either your progress or your choices , so it might feel a little more constrained. Still, at the end of the day there’s plenty to explore and things to click on, and if you’re a gamer in the mood for an immersive, unique experience, The Thaumaturge is a good game to sink some hours into.
The Thaumaturge is currently available on Steam and will be available later on PlayStation 5 and Xbox for $35 USD. Depending on how thorough you are, it can be around 20-25 hours long, which is a good deal more digestible than other larger RPGs like Baldur’s Gate 3 or Warhammer 40k Rogue Trader. It’s an interesting journey through a setting rarely explored in the gaming medium.
To hear me talk more about The Thaumaturge, be sure to listen to the March 13 episode of The Gaming Outsider podcast around the 1:26:51 time stamp.
This review is based on a PC copy of The Thaumaturge provided by Evolve PR for coverage purposes. It will be available on Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5 at a later date.
The Thaumaturge
$34.99
Pros
- Unique Historical Setting
- Fascinating City With Equally Fascinating Inhabitants and Stories
- Can Punch a Rich Fop in the Face
Cons
- Some Texture Pop-in
- Combat Feels Unnecessary Outside Salutor Boss Battles
- RPG Elements Are Relatively Light
