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Play Overview
Foretales (2022) is a narrative role-playing adventure where every action, choice, item and character is represented by a card. By choosing cards you not only decide your fate but shape your story. Fight or avoid violence, kindness or play it safe, these result in both intended and unintended consequences. It stands out for its fairy tale art style and ability to create surprisingly coherent and moving narratives from your web of choices that lead in unexpected (often unheroic) directions.
A dark prophecy dooms the medieval world and anthropomorphic animals to an apocalypse that can only be stopped by you. Starting out with meagre money and food, you interact with characters and use what you have to progress and build a reputation. Depending on your choices and how you play your cards, you might end up as the hero who saves the world or go down in history as the one who hastened its demise.
It's presented as a tabletop game, with cards representing the current scene. You then play cards from your hand to combine their effects with those on the table. It sounds like a battle game, but here the cards work more like choices in a role-playing game. Some card combinations change your reputation, others initiate fights, others get you money or reputation with specific groups. Others let you use items, like keys or backpacks. Depending on what you choose to do, the story changes, and interactions change depending on your reputation. If you take on a fight you turn to cards like swords and knives to damage opponents in turn-based combat.
The result is a complex game that offers a unique way to interact with characters and the world. More than this though, it becomes an intriguing way to play a part in telling a story. You need not only tactics and strategy but also experimentation and imagination to discover the nuances of your hand. What's more, the branching storyline means no two playthroughs are the same, and playing in different ways can often lead to fun discoveries and unique encounters.
Our examiner, Ben Kendall, first checked Foretales 19 months ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 18 months ago.
A dark prophecy dooms the medieval world and anthropomorphic animals to an apocalypse that can only be stopped by you. Starting out with meagre money and food, you interact with characters and use what you have to progress and build a reputation. Depending on your choices and how you play your cards, you might end up as the hero who saves the world or go down in history as the one who hastened its demise.
It's presented as a tabletop game, with cards representing the current scene. You then play cards from your hand to combine their effects with those on the table. It sounds like a battle game, but here the cards work more like choices in a role-playing game. Some card combinations change your reputation, others initiate fights, others get you money or reputation with specific groups. Others let you use items, like keys or backpacks. Depending on what you choose to do, the story changes, and interactions change depending on your reputation. If you take on a fight you turn to cards like swords and knives to damage opponents in turn-based combat.
The result is a complex game that offers a unique way to interact with characters and the world. More than this though, it becomes an intriguing way to play a part in telling a story. You need not only tactics and strategy but also experimentation and imagination to discover the nuances of your hand. What's more, the branching storyline means no two playthroughs are the same, and playing in different ways can often lead to fun discoveries and unique encounters.
Our examiner, Ben Kendall, first checked Foretales 19 months ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 18 months ago.
Kids not old enough for this yet? There are lots of games similar to Foretales. Here are some similar younger-rated games:
Play Style
This is a Battle and Sequencing game with Adventure, Fighting, Narrative and Role-Play elements. This is a single-player game.
You can play this game in the following styles:
Benefits
Age Ratings
Content Rating
Rated for younger players in the US. Rated ESRB EVERYONE 10+ for Fantasy Violence, Use of Alcohol, Mild Blood and Mild Language. Action cards can contain combat moves (e.g., shooting arrows, flinging pepper to distract), which are conveyed via brief impact sounds, dwindling hit points, and screen-shaking effects. A handful of sequences depict characters discussing rum, grog, whiskey, or wine; in one sequence, an animal is given a bottle of rum to consume (e.g., "*glug*...*glug*...*glug*...*hic*...*hic*..."). The words “damn” and “hell” appear in game text.
Skill Level
8+ year-olds usually have the required skill to enjoy this game. Still, it's important for parents and guardians to consider the maturity required to process the game content. There is no need for quick reactions but you need to be able to come up with winning strategies to succeed in the turn-based fights. To appreciate the storytelling side you need a bit of comprehension.
Costs
Game Details
Release Date: 15/09/2022, updated in 2022
Out Now: PC and Switch
Skill Rating: 8+ year-olds
Players: 1
Genres: Battle, Sequencing (Adventure, Fighting, Narrative and Role-Play)
Accessibility: 22 features
Components: 2D Side-On, Cards, Cartoon and Grid
Developer: Alkemi Games (@AlkemiGames)
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