Prejudice and prejudice can become so entrenched in our being that what appears different to us on the surface can become downright monstrous, even if we don’t end up acting differently. This is one of the most important posts from Voice of Cards: The Beasts of Burdenthe third game in the Voice of cards series. The game usually conveys its story themes with a masterly hand, surprising you at various points with a story centered around the journey of self-discovery that the four central young heroes undertake.
The beasts of burden is my first introduction to the creative tabletop inspired series developed by Alim and published by Square Enix. It’s also my first time playing a game from Creative Director Yoko Taro, Executive Producer Yosuke Saito, and Music Director Keiichi Okabe. However, I’ve only heard high praise for other titles the team has worked on, such as the critically acclaimed NieR: Vending Machines. After watching the game to the end, I feel like the standalone Voice of Cards: The Beasts of Burden is an excellent starting point for those curious about what the plots for Yoko Taro’s games are all about. There are societal comments and conveyed messages that never fall into “preaching” contexts, all tied to mature realistic resolution. I won’t say too much about the story itself as I feel the way it slowly unfolds with each new story moment is part of its lasting impact, but it will undoubtedly make you feel things while giving you plenty of food for thought.
The game begins by putting you in the shoes of Al’e, a young woman from an underground village who fights to protect its inhabitants from the threat of monsters. The villagers were raised with the idea that these monsters want nothing more than to wipe them out completely, and unfortunately it won’t be long before the monsters attack with full force. Al’e is left as the lone survivor thanks to the intervention of a mysterious, taciturn young man named L’gol. Together with L’gol, she embarks on a quest for revenge against the monsters. The pair soon meet the brave researcher Pulche and the ever-joyful circus girl Tralis. What begins as a simple quest for revenge takes unexpected turns and reveals hidden truths as the once-clear waters invariably cloud the waters.
In addition to the thought-provoking and impressive plot twists, the heart of Voice of Cards: The Beasts of Burden stems from the friendship that develops between the party. Al’e, L’gol, Pulche and Tralis are great characters with hidden depths that you discover as you play. I love their interactions with each other and how they react to the harrowing situations they find themselves in. Unfortunately, the rest of the cast isn’t as memorable as our four heroes and serves more as tools to help the story progress. It’s nice that you can collect cards for characters and monsters with unlockable flip sides, often revealing surprising tidbits. But since this information is in a separate codex, they don’t affect the roles of the characters in the title itself.
For those familiar with the previous two games in the Voice of cards series, this third entry offers the same clever gameplay and storytelling as its predecessors. You are literally playing a tabletop RPG, complete with cards and dice to roll. The story comes to life thanks to the Game Master, the only narrator who initially introduces himself to you before the story begins in earnest. The world and its countless dungeons and cities are made of cards that are turned over to reveal their secrets with every move of the game piece representing your party. Story scenes use character art cards as the only means of conveying what’s going on, with the cards often moving around the screen deftly to show a particular action. The Game Master is the one who explains what happens and who says what, sometimes choosing cards to decide how a scene might turn out initially. Battles take place on a game board where cards are displayed that have your health and status and possible moves and items at your disposal. It’s a rather clever premise that reminds me a bit of Level-5’s experimental 3DS title, Crimson Shroud.
Cleverness and creativity in terms of presentation and narrative mechanics aside, Voice of Cards: The Beasts of Burden takes place like a very traditional JRPG. You move across maps and open up new areas. You explore cities and visit shops to stock up on gear and equipment. You get a vehicle that you can upgrade to help you further. You talk to characters and make dialogue decisions, complete some thought-provoking puzzles in dungeons to break the run-then-fight-then-run-some-more routine, and get into turn-based combat as you traverse the dungeon and the world map areas. Besides looking slightly different from how many video games are presented, the core mechanics are solid representations of tried and true JRPG systems that most who pick up the title will already be familiar with.
Your company and the enemies you encounter all have elemental affinities that you can exploit in combat once you get the hang of them, a recurring feature of the first two games. What makes fighting a little different in The beasts of burden is that your party can use monster cards, obtained through combat or in a specific store. These cards give you access to unique abilities that you can call on during battle, ranging from a variety of attacking spells to useful status improvements and debuff moves. Some can be used automatically, provided you have the right amount of gems to unlock them, a type of battle currency earned at the beginning of a group member’s turn that you can use to perform certain moves. Others will need a roll of the dice beforehand to see how effective they will ultimately be. Sometimes you can get the same monster card in a higher rank, increasing the overall potency. Fortunately, the game is prepared to always replace a lower ranking card with a higher card. You can only have one of a specific type of monster card, so there is no stacking of the deck. But there are so many monster cards to acquire that you will inevitably have a varied arsenal at your disposal.
Each party member can equip a certain number of cards to bring into battle, giving you quite a range of skill. I tended to lean on anyone with at least one healing ability and about two offensive abilities with status effects to balance things out: you can make awesome character builds! Each region of the game has enemies with different strengths and weaknesses, so you can strategically set up your party to best approach each area with minimal exploratory research. As long as you explore every nook and cranny of the maps and don’t run away from enemy encounters, I found that battles weren’t too hard to win, even in the later chapters, thanks to the experience I gained and the horde of cards I have had collected.
The beasts of burden is a balanced gaming experience with some well-designed dungeon areas to explore. I did think some dungeons could be quite long. However, you can save everywhere if you need a break, which will keep the dungeons from feeling like they’re welcome any longer. I never felt overly frustrated with even the longer dungeon areas and their puzzles, nor with the enemy encounter speed. Even if you move to higher ground, once you reach a number of levels and improve your equipment and skills, you will develop strategies to successfully counter what is thrown at you. While there is an element of randomness in collecting certain skills and item/monster cards, I never felt like it reached aggravating degrees, even when trying to find specific types and ranks of monsters for one of the ongoing side missions of the game. A little patience can pay off immensely!
Visually, I found the game’s presentation impressively unique. I love the map illustrations and the detail in the character portraits with designs by Kimihiko Fujisaka. The general art direction and how it ties into the stories is simply beautiful. I don’t think those expecting gorgeous 3D graphics might be overly impressed, but it’s a stunning game with a distinctive visual direction. The music is great too, with simple yet evocative tunes and really powerful songs depending on the area and what’s happening. Music director Keiichi Okabe deserves applause for the soundtrack, and the vocal tracks in particular are stunning. My only complaint about the music is that there is an area where a fantastically sung piece is played, and while it’s incredible to listen to, the music is so loud it muffles the Game Master’s narration somewhat.
Speaking of the Game Master, the whole plot depends largely on their performance. They are the narrator and our guide, bringing to life the voices of the characters and the events you discover. I played the English version of the game and fell in love with Carin Gilfry as the GM. She delivers every line beautifully and makes every character’s voice clear with a script that is beautifully translated and localized. I even like the personal interjections she makes when she “breaks the character” from the narrator role to interrupt her own thoughts or reactions to something in the plot. She really makes you feel like you sit down and play through this story as she tells the story and guides you along the way. Even the cards she doesn’t tell—containing deeply buried thoughts and emotions—are artfully woven into her spoken lines. Using just one voice actor for story exposition is something you don’t often see in video game RPGs, but it shapes the experience Voice of cards trying to convey.
Voice of Cards: The Beasts of Burden is a creatively unique gaming experience, both from a storytelling and presenting point of view. I don’t think the presentation will be for everyone per se, but those who do like it will definitely find something enjoyable and insightful about the overall experience. This is a game that is both realistic and hopeful, at once tragic and tender. I cared about the four main characters as they continued their quest, and I loved diving into the story with a fantastic narrator to guide me. Based on the reviews of the first two games in the series – The Isle Dragon Roars and The Forsaken Maiden, respectively – by my fellow RPGFan reviewers, it seems like each Voice of cards title gets a little stronger than the one that precedes it. Considering how much I’ve come to appreciate The beasts of burdenI can’t wait to see what the future holds for this clever series.
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