A Plague Tale: Requiem — A Haunting Journey Through Brotherhood and Survival

A Plague Tale: Requiem — launching on Tuesday for PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X, and Nintendo Switch via cloud — occurs six months after its predecessor, A Plague Tale: Innocence. After evading the clutches of the Inquisition and fleeing from the threat of the Black Plague’s rat horde, the de Rune family has found temporary safety in the Provence outskirts. Yet, a perilous encounter with bandits tests Hugo’s endurance, forcing his older sister Amicia to embark on a quest to find a remedy for the enigmatic Macula that poisons him. This harrowing psychological and physical odyssey of the de Rune siblings forms the gripping essence of this sequel to the acclaimed 2019 title, A Plague Tale: Innocence.

Asobo Studio has expertly woven the tale of A Plague Tale: Requiem. The narrative hooks you instantly and maintains a strong grip throughout. Compounding this are richly developed characters brought to life by some of the finest voice performances I have encountered in gaming. Their experiences of grief, empathy, fury, and hopelessness are accentuated by the ethereal — and at times, eerie — background score by composer Olivier Derivière, who returns to lend his talents.

Also seeOctober Games on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X

A Plague Tale: Requiem has been crafted with meticulous attention to detail. The game engine’s technical enhancements enabled over 35fps at Medium settings at 1080p resolution on my PC, which features an AMD Ryzen 5 5600X CPU, 16GB of RAM, and a Radeon RX570 GPU. Notably, the visuals remain striking even at lower graphics settings. Opting for higher frame rates doesn’t diminish the game’s aesthetic appeal. This sequel tugs at your emotions through the touching sibling bond between Amicia and Hugo while seamlessly integrating intense stealth survival gameplay.

A Plague Tale Requiem review: campaign

The story of A Plague Tale: Requiem picks up where A Plague Tale: Innocence left off, six months later. This sequel assumes familiarity with the events of its predecessor and dives straight into the new narrative. However, newcomers can still grasp the story from a fresh angle.

Set in the new locale of Provence, players face novel foes pursuing Amicia and Hugo. Those new to the series will not be entirely lost; the narrative includes touchstones to previous events for context without an overwhelming info-dump that disrupts the story’s pacing. This thoughtful narrative approach allows A Plague Tale: Requiem’s story to maintain its own integrity.

Also seeFIFA 23 Review: Barely Even Trying

Throughout the 15-20 hour campaign of A Plague Tale: Requiem, players primarily control Amicia. Her unwavering determination drives her to do whatever it takes to safeguard her brother’s well-being. This protective instinct toward Hugo eventually transforms into contempt for royal soldiers, mercenaries, and anyone who might threaten her brother. Her moments of uncontrolled anger, brought to life by Charlotte McBurney’s exceptional voice acting, are striking.

Nonetheless, Amicia is fallible. Her increasingly aggressive behavior begins to erode her mental stability and physical health. During my gameplay, I often opted for a stealthy approach, hoping to avoid inadvertently pushing her toward further psychological ruin — though this did not impact the core narrative. Nevertheless, my emotional investment in Amicia made me want to shield her from becoming a remorseless killer.

Amicia’s journey through A Plague Tale: Requiem is not solitary. Several other characters assist her. Hugo, her younger brother, remains as charming as ever, despite the need to confront his connection to the threatening Macula, enabling him to manipulate the rat swarm for his sister’s defense when she is incapacitated. Lucas, an apprentice alchemist, joins the de Rune family on this journey, acting as the rationale who attempts to soothe Amicia during her bouts of fury and suggests non-violent alternatives. Lastly, their mother Béatrice is in a predicament, torn between the urge to ensure her children’s safety and her faith in an ancient order that may not genuinely prioritize Hugo’s wellbeing.

Throughout your experience with A Plague Tale: Requiem, you will be accompanied by various allies, each possessing distinct abilities. Lucas can distract enemies and continually devises new alchemical recipes to help in critical moments. As Hugo becomes more attuned to the rat swarm, he can steer it to consume vulnerable enemies. His enhanced senses allow him to detect foes through walls. Other characters also play a role in aiding your quest, whether out of kindness or self-interest.

A Plague Tale Requiem review: graphics and gameplay

A Plague Tale: Requiem is a breathtakingly beautiful game featuring immersive environments and almost lifelike character animations, particularly during emotionally intense sequences. Depending on the situation, levels can be alive with vibrancy or heavy with the scent of death. The superb sound design, combined with the masterfully orchestrated background score, draws you deeper into the richly crafted, horrifying world of 14th-century France that the developers have built.

Also seeSaints Row Review: How Not to Make Open World Games

Improvements to the underlying engine of A Plague Tale: Requiem enable the onscreen presence of up to 300,000 rats at once. This results in the rat swarm taking on truly nightmarish forms, unleashing chaos and annihilation on a grand scale. Several exhilarating chase sequences against the rat horde had my heart racing. I was unprepared for the apocalyptic terror that these rats unleashed, likely to plague my dreams for days to come.

Amicia is not entirely defenseless against the rats or the human adversaries she encounters on her quest. A Plague Tale: Requiem does emphasize stealth and survival; however, players also have access to a variety of weapons to confront threats. Starting with just a rock and a sling, Amicia gathers knives, pot bombs, and a crossbow as the story unfolds. Additionally, she can create different alchemical mixtures to enhance her weapons and solve environmental puzzles. The variety in tactics keeps encounters fresh and engaging. The puzzles strike a balance between offering a sense of achievement and being straightforward enough to avoid becoming a tedious search for solutions online.

Despite the diligent attention to detail noted throughout my playthrough, a notable shortcoming in A Plague Tale: Requiem is the single animation for Amicia’s takedowns and counters. (Meanwhile, her rapid breaths become increasingly audible as an unsuspecting enemy approaches.) Initially, I worried that this might render encounters monotone after a few hours. However, thanks to the continual introduction of new weapons, abilities, and allies, each level remained unique, always providing an opportunity to experiment with different methods.

As you progress, you can unlock new skills; however, character advancement does not award skill points freely for your desired abilities. Instead, skills will unlock based on the character’s intended approach — be it stealth, aggression, or alchemy — providing new capabilities only within that corresponding skill tree. This approach to progression in A Plague Tale: Requiem feels refreshing.

Also seeThe Last of Us Part 1 PS5 Review: Absolutely Gorgeous, but Overpriced

A Plague Tale Requiem review: verdict

A Plague Tale: Requiem stands out as one of those exceptional titles that arises when a developer opts not to dilute an outstanding game with unnecessary content. Microtransactions are nonexistent. Instead, we receive a title featuring a tightly woven narrative, stunning visuals, and memorable characters.

Amicia’s emotional turmoil and subsequent fury as she seeks a cure for her brother’s dire illness are deeply unsettling. The intricately crafted characters of A Plague Tale: Requiem gain additional depth through remarkable voice performances. The rich graphics, coupled with a compelling background score, heighten the experience further.

The pacing of character progression is well balanced, with the gradual introduction of new allies throughout the journey preventing A Plague Tale: Requiem’s gameplay from ever feeling stale. Its level design encourages experimentation as Amicia gains access to new tools.

In conclusion, A Plague Tale: Requiem is unequivocally one of the finest single-player campaigns I have experienced in recent memory.

Pros:

• Outstanding voice performances
• Engaging sound design and background score
• Impressive graphics, even on lower settings
• Endearing characters
• Intense chase sequences
• Diverse strategies for levels

Cons:

• Repetitive animations for takedowns and counters

Rating (out of 10): 9

My experience with A Plague Tale: Requiem was on a PC featuring an AMD Ryzen 5 5600X CPU, AMD RX570 GPU, and 16GB of RAM.

A Plague Tale: Requiem is set to release on Tuesday, October 18 for PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X, and Nintendo Switch (Cloud).

Pricing starts at Rs. 1,999 on Steam for PC, Rs. 3,499 on Xbox Store and PlayStation Store, and $59.99 (approximately Rs. 5,000) on Nintendo Store.

A Plague Tale: Requiem is also available through Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass, with subscription plans starting at Rs. 349 monthly on both PC and Xbox. The Ultimate membership, which includes online multiplayer and additional content, is available for Rs. 499 monthly.