Review of South Park: The Stick of Truth

*SERIOUS BLOODY CONTENT WARNING FOR THIS GAME* I mean, if you know anything about South Park, that's an unnecessary warning, but still, if you're offended by or just don't find the show's signature brand of humour very funny, this game won't do anything to change your mind, so don't even bother. That's because from top to bottom, beginning to end, this game IS the show. They're completely indistinguishable, the animation is the same, the voice actors are all reprising their roles, and it's easily the best thing about this game. The story too, feels exactly like a 10-15 hour long episode of the show, in a good way, with a lot of nonsensical and hilarious twists and turns that really puts the make-believe fantasy war between the kids into perspective. However, I did feel some moments in the story dragged on a bit, and towards the middle of the game, you'll be expected to make a choice that you'd think would drastically affect the rest of the story somehow, but it affects a grand total of absolutely nothing. Bit of a letdown. On PS3, the game does like to stutter a fair bit, but it is mostly made up for by the amazing world of the town, how detailed it is, and how packed to the brim with easter eggs and hilarious items it is. It's so rare to see a straight up comedy game these days, that it's a joy to see one that took any opportunity it could to throw a joke in somewhere, whether that be in the inventory screen, NPC dialogue, or during combat. Speaking of combat though, that feels like the most seriously lacking area of the game. I played the game on the hardest difficulty and it was still an absolute breeze, and overall it's a very shallow RPG, where 9 times out of 10, the best strategy will always be to simply equip the highest level items in your inventory and spam magic attacks, while being able to refill your health or magic before attacking if necessary. For a while, that's fine, and the animations of the special attacks for each character are funny and imaginative, but after seeing them for 10 hours straight, and mostly using the same strategies over and over again, it does end up feeling a little tedious by the end. Still, if you're a fan of the show, you'll undoubtedly find a lot of enjoyment in this, and if you're not someone who already knows they don't like the show, but haven't had much experience with it, give it a go anyway, it's a charming, gross, satirical, outrageous good time.