Spanish folklore dresses up for a very particular game.
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A dark tale, full of double morality, where the actions of the protagonist and his allies may not be the best, is always welcome in the world of video games. That’s why I have no doubt that fans of non-traditional FPS games are in for a great start to the year with the arrival of Crisol: Theater of Idols.
The title will take those who dare to try it to put themselves in the shoes of Gabriel, a divine soldier in the service of the sun, who will have to traverse the always gloomy streets of Tormentosa to fulfill a very special mission in Hispania: purify the land and annihilate the rival God.
It’s impossible not to think of Bioshock when you start walking through the streets of Tormentosa, because the game draws heavily from this saga and it shows, but it also modifies it with themes that I had never seen before in the genre, and that really give it a fresh air to something that was thought to be completely invented.
I hope your red blood cells are high because we’re going to need a lot of blood to get through some places in Hispania. Join me.
Technical Section
The steampunk aesthetic, so characteristic of BioShock, is also present in this title in a genuine and well-executed way. The world of Tormentosa, with all its hiding places and characteristic locations, is beautiful to explore and admire. Every detail of this strange world awakens curiosity at every step and immerses the player in a sad and oppressive atmosphere with relentless rain and endless night.
The soundtrack also helps to keep the player tense at all times, except in places where they can choose to relax for a few minutes, basically in allied control posts. But in exploration and action instances, music and sounds play a central role in creating a climate, and believe me, you’ll be scared when the first statues appear and you hear them before seeing them.
The dialogues are available in English and Spanish; during the analysis, I tried both versions and I must say that I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of both dubbings, although, given the location where the story takes place, my recommendation is to play it with Spanish audio. It’s flawless.
As it is a Spanish development, the game is 100% localized in our language (although only in its Iberian variant) as it should be, and with enormous quality.
In terms of performance, the game runs at 60 FPS, although on launch day it will receive a patch that corrects some minor imperfections in the textures that I, at least during this analysis, did not experience at any time.
Gameplay
The first encounter with an enemy in this production will show from that moment on a mechanic that marks the game and gives it a more than special condiment: the use of blood. And it is that the vital liquid for all living beings is the main weapon that will be needed to face enemies, in fact, it is the only type of ammunition available and a tool that allows both killing and healing.
Any weapon that is available will be loaded with a portion of the protagonist’s blood, which makes each reload consume energy, so the player should always be aware of whether to attack or flee depending on how much life they have or the situation that arises.
This constant blood loss opens the door to other ways of obtaining it, for example, absorbing it from animal corpses that abound in the streets of Tormentosa, and even, if desired, from some humans who lie dead, which also adds the memories of the deceased that can help solve some puzzles. Blood also allows changing some objects, such as the weapons themselves, creating excellent animations when reloading.
Beyond this mix of FPS and survival horror that defines the game, the different acts of the title, which I will not go into detail to avoid spoilers, present different puzzles that will have to be solved using various elements that are scattered throughout the map, such as bolt cutters to open specific doors, keys to turn on engines, valve pieces, etc. The puzzles also make the player think beyond the inventory and look for alternative paths to avoid deaths, for example, by electrocution.
Another great ingredient of this Crisol: Theater of Idols is the enemies. Most of them are statues mixed with puppets that, even without attacking, are already scary, and this becomes more intense when, after shooting them, they continue to advance despite the damage or having their legs blown off by blood shots. Other more powerful enemies force you to hide initially and wait for them to get distracted to be able to dodge them as if they were a Nemesis from Resident Evil 3.
Through the experience points that are obtained by eliminating enemies and some prize tickets that are obtained in a kind of fair, the protagonist’s attributes can be improved and, in turn, some of the characteristics of the weapons so that they reload faster or to increase the level of damage.
Duration
We are facing a game that can take around 10 hours to complete, but that you will really want to last much longer, not because it lacks something, but because of how captivating it is, especially as you advance in the story and get to know some details that make up the background of what is happening in this strange land.
The game forces exploration, which makes the volume of hours to see everything increase significantly, but it will also be the world of Hispania itself that motivates the player to know more about its corners, something that speaks to the potential of the title by itself.
Conclusion
Spanish studio Vermila Studios, along with Blumhouse Games in publishing, manages to captivate a particular group of players with this production, using a renewed formula for a genre that seemed to have seen it all. The dark fantasy combined with the constant mix of survival horror and shooter elements makes Crisol: Theater of Fate a must-play title for all fans of these genres.
I recommend trying the demo of this game, I’m sure you won’t want to stop just at what the demo proposes and you’ll want to keep exploring the horrible and intriguing streets of Tormentosa. Even if it costs you your own blood.
Translator and video game localiser with a passion for retro titles and simulators. He has never let go of a controller since he was given an Atari 2600. He collaborates with different developers in the localisation of their titles into Spanish through Camelot Translations.
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