You are a god, a bountiful god – review of the game “Godhood”

Being a god has its perks – a mass of faithful and devoted fanatics, your own temples filled with gifts, and virtually unlimited power. What could be better?

Godhood is a turn-based strategy. The action of the game takes place in Pre-Columbian America. There, as an unknown god, we reach our chosen one, enlightening him with our truths. Obviously, proclaiming only the right axioms is not favored by the conservative authorities. Consequently, our first follower is banished from his native land. With our help, however, he finds his place on earth, and other believers begin to follow him. This is the beginning of a journey together, during which we will prove to the world that we are the right god! 4

Come, little children, walk to the light

The story told at the beginning of the game practically exhausts the plot of the Abbey Games studio’s production. Of course, before we get to banish our first believer, we first need to create our divinity in a simple editor. We start by choosing our image, property and name of faith and followers. All this information can be left to blind luck by selecting the option of random selection. But, let’s be honest, as gods, we know best how to address us and with what face we will look at our children and their enemies. We also have to decide what our disposition will be. This choice will have a significant impact on the rest of the game.

The game is divided into two parts: village management and combat. In the case of the first one, we have to decide where the concrete buildings will stand and what our priests will do in the next turn. Throughout the game, we are not able to construct all the buildings, so we must focus on those that support the skills of our clergymen. It is up to us whether the main temple of our worship will be strengthened by the prayers of the faithful or by human sacrifice. Skirmishes with representatives of other religions, in turn, are the main way for the development of both our earthly representatives and ourselves. Regardless of whether we are a militant, peaceful, chaste or licentious deity, the battle is practically the same. For each fight, we choose our three priests who face three opponents.

The clergy whose actions we direct deserve special attention. While the choice of the deity character defines the character class of our first worshiper, each subsequent recruited ward, after reaching the first of five levels, may be assigned any of many professions. Each of them is based on two of the six statistics, so when choosing, for the best effect, it is better to follow the abilities of a member of our religious brothers. Obviously, the charges are becoming more and more powerful, gaining new abilities. However, when the priest reaches the appropriate age, he is considered old and becomes weaker with each turn. During the game, you should regularly rejuvenate the composition of your representatives, because even the most powerful warrior will eventually become a frail old man.

How beautiful: animals here, flowers here, human sacrifices there …

Visually, Godhood it looks exceptionally gentle. Simple, slightly comic-like and above all very polite graphics are tailored to suit both the youngest and older enthusiasts of digital entertainment. Blood is not spilled during the fights and there are no other manifestations of brutality. Each strike of the weapon is marked only with symbolic graphic effects, and the physical pleasures of the followers of the promiscuous deity are limited to short expressions of interest and ubiquitous hearts. Even the place of human sacrifice is depicted rather mildly, it is only decorated with a pile of bones and a stain of gore on the floor. Taking up the topics of physical pleasure and the ritualistic murder of people clearly does not fit in with the friendly graphics and soft music. An interesting feature of the plot is the ability to change the appearance, voice, and even the gender of the players at any point in the game. This option allows us to better distinguish our religion from others.

Zeus? Odin? Probably Dionysus

Godhood  is a fun and addictive game. It was a pleasure to spend two long evenings on it. The biggest disadvantage of Abbey Games production, however, is that it is available for a very short time. It is true that the possibility of creating deities of different nature, a wide selection of buildings and a multitude of character classes allow you to choose many paths of development. This makes Godhood appear to have a high replay rate. Yes, after walking the “war path”, the game of the god of pleasure  may seem completely different to us, but later the gameplay becomes extremely repetitive. Considering the price to be paid for the game, the defect described is unfortunately significant.