Kingdom of Night
Developer: Friends of Safety
Publisher: DANGEN Entertainment
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Switch, Xbox Series X/S (Reviewed), PC
Release Date: Available Now
Price: $19.99 USD – Available Here
Overview
Even if you’re someone that has never seen a certain show that took forever to film seasons only to result in such a disappointing finale that fans of the franchise were hoping for a secret “real” final episode to be revealed, it is clear that ‘80s nostalgia is all the rage. Especially when it comes to horror. Whether tying back to IT, Dungeons & Dragons, or other elements, the time period is ripe for the picking right now with plenty of easily referential material to work with and Kingdom of Night is right there to target that nostalgia. Featuring a retro design with a storyline steeped in the classic rise of an unlikely hero, is this action RPG worth your time now that it has arrived on consoles?
Story
The year is 1987 and the quiet desert town of Miami, Arizona has been having a fair number of issues lately including the disappearance of a popular cheerleader. The town’s longstanding “neighborhood watch” by the name Friends of Safety that has grown increasingly invasive over the years now rules the town with an iron fist. With “safety” as their reasoning, the robed FoS declare that a curfew will be set for the entire town. Of course, this doesn’t stop the local rich kid from gathering every “cool” kid together for a party to kickstart the weekend. Not being a “cool kid” and too nervous to ask out his crush, the girl next door, John (or however the player chooses to name their character) stays at home only to hear a loud ruckus outside. Upon investigating he finds that his dog has gotten loose and wandered over to the girl’s home, barking non-stop.
Entering the home, the player finds that it has been practically destroyed and that his crush has gone missing, kidnapped by the minions of the mastermind of evil that is about to befall the simple town. Through simply being in the right place at the right time, the player then meets an old man who informs him to gather what he needs for an adventure and gives him a special “keychain” before telling the player to set out for the bar in the middle of the town. Along the way the player soon finds that things have quickly gone wrong as mist blocks parts of the town, zombies roam the streets, and even other high schoolers are having their heads torn clear from their bodies. In an attempt to warn others, players go to the local party only to be met with disbelief, until a rampaging demonic hound smashes through the patio door, a powerful warlock kidnaps the local jock’s girlfriend, and leaves the rest of the high schoolers scattered to the far reaches of the town, hiding in various locations for their own safety.
Once the player reaches the tavern they meet with the same old man from before who informs them that four demonic forces have established themselves in various parts of the town and each one contains one of the gems required to potentially seal away the evil forever, setting the player out on a task to not only hunt down these four primary demons but also try to save anyone they might come across along the way with the player’s ultimate goal being to save their unrequited love.
Kingdom of Night tells a fairly interesting story that feels quite authentic for the era, especially when it comes to the cut-off nature of the town and how easily a powerfully backed group such as the Friends of Safety can enter positions of influence over an entire town. As players make their way through the game they will come across numerous notes about the lies that the F.o.S. have managed to spread while keeping the truth suppressed, either finding it through hidden documents or the long memory of a certain bar patron that comes out of his stupor with the help of a rescued classmate. The blend of near-apocalyptic scenarios, teenage drama, and the supernatural elements all come together in an enjoyable way, especially in some of the longer primary quests.
It is also quite interesting to see how the “open world” nature of Kingdom of Night plays a role in the game’s story. While there are clear guideposts about where players “should” go next and hunt down a target thanks in part to various hints given by allies, missions from NPCs, and the general “mob” level of enemies in a region, it doesn’t stop players from venturing far off the beaten path and trying to challenge a different demonic boss before another. In fact, it appears that only one is locked behind actual progress while players can opt to challenge the other three in any order as long as they feel strong enough.
This open nature is also a nice bonus when it comes to handling the game’s many side-quests. Most of these side-quests involve tracking down fellow classmates that fled from the party or are taking refuge somewhere from the monsters and being able to freely roam gives players a chance to stumble along these lost teenagers and save them by completing whatever tasks are required. Some simply involve taking down a few enemies or a “stat check” while others are far more complex and require completing entire quest chains or even taking down a demonic boss to properly rescue. Every rescued classmate and even a few others will make their way to “Stinky’s Tavern,” a place that serves as a beacon of light in the dark and not only will they comment on the player’s progress but also often various rewards that will help players along their journey, such as full healing, an extra accessory slot, or even something as simple as updating the background music.
It is worth noting that as players progress through Kingdom of Night and take on various quests that the overarching storyline can feel like it takes a bit of a backseat, especially when some side-quests are just for laughs, or reward gear that is far weaker than what players likely already have. Similarly, some side-quests also feel like they have no pay off of any kind, including one that is currently bugged and is impossible to complete should players reload a save file from before purchasing a certain recipe as it vanishes from the game. The open exploration also means that the main plot can feel slow to develop if players tend to explore too much, though thankfully this is helped with intermissions of sorts after every major boss defeat and some wonderful storytelling once players find themselves in the final section of the game. It is also nice to note that the game sports four different endings though, oddly enough, only one provides an extra scene which feels like a bit of a missed opportunity for at least two of the others.
Gameplay
As an action-based RPG with an isometric perspective Kingdom of Night harkens back to some classic fast-paced games that pit the player against numerous enemies and rely on dodging or properly timed attacks and skill cooldowns to eliminate any foe, all while chowing down on whatever food item they have on hand to heal their HP, if the enemy’s themselves don’t drop hearts. Near the beginning of the game players will be prompted to select from five different classes, three melee focused and two magic focused. The melee classes are the sneaky rogue capable of stealth attacks out in the field, a balanced frontline fighter in the form of the knight, and an all-out heavy hitter in the form of the barbarian.
Playing a melee class is the far easier route as players can rely on dodges, hard-hitting melee attacks, and often stronger gear to stay in the fight. As for the magic classes, there are the Necromancer and Sorcerer. Both of these require managing a mana bar as well as executing magical spells that are based off of certain face-button input strings. These spells can range from offensive, defensive, to even boosting mobility, and while it may be more difficult, especially at the start, it is incredibly easy to buff magical damage into creating an overpowered build. It is worth noting that, as players level up, they will gain various skills related to their chosen class and occasionally skill points that can be distributed into Muscle, Guts, and Smarts.
Depending on the weapon the player is utilizing as well as their class, certain stats will play a better role to fit their style. It is also worth noting that there are various skill checks throughout the game that require the player to have a certain stat number to potentially complete, though thanks to most pieces of equipment providing some sort of additional points into these stats, it is possible to simply swap gear around to pass a check and swap back. One thing that is also interesting to note is that at level ten players in the melee category can further enhance their abilities, like the Knight becoming a Paladin and unlocking additional abilities. It is a bit unfortunate though that the game does feature a level cap 21 oddly enough, as the XP bar will disappear after the player unlocks their entire “keychain.”
As players explore the city of Miami they’ll encounter countless monsters of different types, many of which have different attack patterns that players will need to keep an eye on as it is easy to be overwhelmed at first, especially since some areas can swarm the player with tens of foes at once. Properly timed dodges will make any incoming attack miss and enemies can be knocked out of attack animations when struck enough. As they fight, enemies will drop everything from hearts that provide 10 health points automatically, money, healing items, equipment, and even crafting materials. Equipment is a bit of an odd duck in Kingdom of Night as it is entirely possible to find a piece of gear in an early location and have it be one of the best weapons players will utilize throughout most of their playthrough since it is entirely randomized except for certain treasure chests, boss drops, and challenge circles. It is worth noting that enemies do respawn after a certain period of time has passed, but players can utilize the game’s fast travel system to avoid this issue or simply blitz past foes that they are far overleveled for.
In the same sense, players will likely find that the various accessories that they can equip, three at first and eventually four, will only occasionally vary depending on need. Stats on dropped equipment are not randomized so anytime the player obtains a duplicate they’ll immediately know whether or not it is worth selling or just hanging onto. Oddly enough, while many “crafted” items that players can create are some of the strongest gear in the game in the form of bonus stats added, buffing physical or magical defense percentage, or even boosting movement speed, a few are complete duds, though at the same time even with thorough exploration we never quite figured out what to do with some very obvious unique crafting material, making us wonder if some of these elements were left on the cutting room floor.
It is nice to note that the various boss battles that the players take part in throughout the game are quite memorable even if a few are a bit on the simple side. Every foe has a gimmick of one kind or another that players will need to figure out to properly deal damage to them, though some are rather straightforward. It is worth noting that one particular boss wasn’t an issue themselves, but the “challenge” leading into the boss fight was, ironically, buggy. In this sequence players must flee from a swarm of large insects that insta-kill the player if touched yet it appears that the insects work on a rubber-band mechanic. Initially, we equipped all of the gear that would provide movement speed boosts and even drank a speed potion to run as quickly as possible only for the enemies to catch up faster than ever. In fact, without the boosted items they moved slower, which is a strange bug and an annoyingly repetitive sequence especially since dialogue cannot be skipped.
While we did not test it ourselves, it is nice to note that the game does feature a local co-op mode that allows the player to have a friend sit down alongside them and fight as a second player character at any time. This is a very nice touch, especially given the game’s design. That being said, it is a little disappointing that there is no New Game+ mode of any kind, but considering the lack of any collectables besides tracking down all the missing high schoolers and level cap, that isn’t a major loss.
Audio & Visuals
Featuring a retro pixelated art style Kingdom of Night still delivers plenty of detail with its world and the enemies that players encounter. While some foes are simple reskins, there is a decent amount of variety, especially when it comes to higher level foes and bosses. The various locations that players explore are detailed well enough, though a few locations feel like they are a bit too maze-like for their own good. One thing that is certainly worth praising is the game’s art style when it comes to the various NPCs players will talk with. Nearly every character has a unique character portrait in 16-bit detail that fits perfectly with the ‘80s theme with their hair styles and clothing.
It is worth noting that there is no voice work of any kind throughout the game which is a bit of a disappointment. Thankfully there is some solid background music that varies depending on the location that the player is exploring, including different themes that play when adventuring through a boss’ lair, sewer system, suburbs, and much more. Some of these tracks are quite eerie which adds a nice touch to the game’s atmosphere.
Overall
Kingdom of Night‘s dark narrative feels like a perfect fit for its nostalgic ’80s setting. With solid writing and world building to help establish the lore alongside addictive combat, especially for melee oriented players, this title is quite the impressive offering even with the few nagging issues holding it back such as respawning foes, bugs, and equipment often being lackluster. Thankfully these problems don’t dampen the experience much, especially with how satisfying some of the reveals are that happen throughout the game’s latter half.
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