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SPOILER ALERT: Some key details of the video game are discussed.
If you watch South Park, you know it’s definitely not a show for everyone, basically because they roast absolutely everyone. If you can handle gross and graphic images, obscene language and everything opposite of politically correct, then the show is quite a riot. Through the years, the show has gotten more disgusting and also famous for mocking events and people that are important at the moment in real life. With the end of the 17th season back in December, it seems that their satire has no limits. Mocking “Game of Thrones,” black Friday, Kanye West, George Zimmerman and the NSA to name a few, the show still makes Wednesday nights very funny. However, Trey Parker and Matt Stone decided to cut the length of the seasons. Instead of breaking it up into two seven-episode halves in fall and spring, they are only doing ten episodes in the fall now. Their list of projects outside of South Park, including Broadway hit “The Book of Mormon,” have Trey and Matt with their hands full.
The show is renewed through season 20, and both creators have assured that they still love making the show. With that in mind, another reason why they cut back the number of episodes per season was that they were developing a video game, a South Park one. The 17th season multi-episode arc on Black Friday and Game of Thrones gave fans a preview of what it would look like. The scenery, costume design and plot are very much present in it. For those who love to play with friends, the game doesn’t offer a multiplayer option, relying only on it’s role-playing style.
The plot of the “Stick of Truth” is very straightforward; your newly created character is the new kid in town, and as such, you need to make friends. In order to do this, you must join Cartman’s side as a defender of the stick of truth, which basically is a piece of wood with “absolute” power. Kyle’s side steals the stick and the war begins, unfolding the adventure and your quest. Your missions look fairly simple, but they involve a lot of fighting and thinking outside the box. As you make more friends, you gain more powers, and as you fight more, you gain more experience and level up. The weapons are childlike, but they grow in strength and design as you move along, to the point that one of the strongest weapons is a vibrator. On top of that, one of the most effective “magic” attacks is a fart called Nagasaki.
The game features all the prominent characters of the show and countless supportive ones that will build up your nostalgia. Junk items you collect involve hundreds of things used in the show throughout its run. Your quests help you meet up with iconic characters like Jesus, Al Gore, Mr. Hankey or the underpants Gnomes to name a few. Unlike the show, the jokes will definitely not be considered memorable, but you will certainly have a few laughs here and there. This will be especially true in some plot twists and some specific quests, like Canada or the inside of Mr. Slave’s butt.
The “Stick of Truth” can be defined as a 13-hour episode, since you go through so many places, meet so many people and hear so many jokes that it feels like you’re watching the show. It’s fun to watch and fun to play, and can even be hard at times, since many battles take forever to finish, like the huge nazi fetus or Princess Kenny. Unfortunately for fans, one full day of binge-playing it will get all the major quests and side quests completed. However, choosing a different trait for your character among mage, thief, fighter or jew and even deciding to betray Cartman can make the gameplay a little different and exciting for a second time around.
Overall, the game isn’t going to be able to compete with huge productions like Final Fantasy, Metal Gear Solid, Diablo or others, but it definitely wins in comedy, user experience and creativity. A March release certainly doesn’t really help those who are waiting season 18 to start, but as usual, it will premiere during the fall. For now, getting into trouble and making friends in a video game is as good as it gets.
