Stray Gods

Stray Gods (formerly known as Chorus) is a cross between an interactive musical and a visual novel. The developers were inspired by such works as Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the episode Once More With Feeling), the Broadway show Dear Evan Hansen and the adventure game Life is Strange. It's the debut project of Summerfall, an Australian indie studio founded in October 2018 by David Gaider (Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Neverwinter Nights, Dragon Age), Liam Esler (Pillars of Eternity, Baldur's Gate remasters, Icewind Dale) and Elie Young. The game was crowdfunded on Fig.co. It was written by David Gaider and directed by Troy Baker.

Plot

The game's protagonist is Grace, voiced by Laura Bailey (Spider-Man, Gears 5). One day, she discovers a dying singer in her apartment; before expiring, the woman reveals she's a muse and passes on her musical abilities to Grace. This leads to an urban fantasy tale full of danger, conspiracies, myhical gods and creatures. Grace must clear her name and escape the Chorus, a secret society determined to punish her for the Muse's death.

The game is set in a modern day, though is also full of elements known from Greek mythology. We'll get to visit the New Olympus conference room, the Underworld nightclub and the misty Reliquary, where we'll encounter the Minotaur himself. Chorus is a mythos-focused musical full of mysteries and wonders. Players will get to know many strange, quirky, complex characters. Despite its serious tone, the game is full of witty dialogue and features romance questlines for some NPCs.

Mechanics

Stray Gods is a narrative game mostly focused on dialogue. Unlike in typical visual novels, we can use the abilities we've gained from the deceased Muse to influence and manipulate NPCs (for example, get them to confess to a lie), gaining valuable information. It is through music that we direct conversations. Our exact approach to them is up to the player. Grace has three main attributes influencing her personality: charm, cleverness and kickass. The dialogue system resembles the latest works of BioWare, and though important, as it affects the lyrics and the course of the game, it's not necessary to succeed during conversations. Players must instead adapt to the NPC's personality.

Technical aspects

The visuals consist of illustrations. The backgrounds are mostly static, while animations during dialogue scenes are minimal. Since the game is a musical, the soundtrack is extremely important. It was composed by Austin Wintory, an American composer nominated for the Grammy Award for his work on Journey.

Last updated on 14 July 2023