What happens when you take a Non-player characters off its usual storyline? The product is a heartwarming fantasy game bound to make a name for itself among gems within the same genre.
NPCs are often considered the most well-loved feature of any video game, but rarely do they have the chance to exist beyond their world-building purpose. Luckily, everything is about to change as A Story Beside challenges that very notion by putting you (the gamer) in the role of the game’s protagonist.
How the game goes
With the first five chapters available to play, A Story Beside promises a genuine story-driven adventure brimming with life. The artwork is crisp and colorful, contrasting well with the warm tones of the surrounding scenery. There’s a distinct RPG feel to its map layouts and character sprites, which may not be for everyone. Personally, the RPG elements add to the nostalgic charm of the game.
Lyric, an innkeeper in a sleepy mountain village, exists at the center of the story. Throughout the game’s chapters, you make choices both minuscule and major. Regardless of the gravity, each decision affects Lyric’s immediate surroundings (for better and for worse). The consequences are not always obvious. The outcomes are sometimes frustrating, but the ambiguity only adds to the excitement of knowing that something is always at stake, be it a romantic endeavor to pursue or a pet to keep alive.
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There’s an array of dynamic characters who shape the main character just as much as you influence them; you can experience the plethora of emotions through the moving narration of the talented Nic Redman, who lends Lyric her melodic voice.
A Story Beside proves that each and every story is worth telling, whether or not there are dragons to slay along the way. We cannot all live out extraordinary, ground-breaking lives—and so we make the most out of the bitter and sweet day-to-day that we can afford. A Story Beside is a timely reminder of that very idea, making it an indie release to look out for when it is completed soon.
A Story Beside is currently available on Steam for Early Access as it is still being developed by Wayward Prophet, the independent development studio behind Harvest Moon-inspired social sim World’s Dawn. The developer approximates a full release by Spring 2021.
