Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is a Strange, Beautiful Twist of Genres

Capcom, though more well-known for its monolithic franchises such as Monster Hunter and Devil May Cry, infrequently pivots and creates something entirely new -- something experimental. Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is just that: a weird, one-of-a-kind game. 

Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess has a Style All its Own

I had the chance to get hands-on with Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess at Summer Game Fest, and after roughly an hour of gameplay, it's most certainly a niche title, but it does have a lot of intriguing mechanics and, most of all, style. 

Kunitsu-Gami is a beauty -- its take on Japanese mythology makes for a psychedelic experience, with highly stylized visuals through its UI, character and monster design, and just about everything else.

Beyond that, the soundtrack for this game is of the highest caliber, making great use of traditional Japanese instruments. With day and night cycles in Kunitsu-Gami, music is more calm during the day, but gradually ramps up as monsters emerge at night. 

Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess and its Genre Shift

The day is spent gathering resources and eliciting the aid of villagers freed from a strange corruption -- called Seethe --spreading across the world of Kunitsu-Gami. You're able to gather resources by slashing certain plants and cleansing the area.

This whole sequence is not unlike a strategy game a la Starcraft or Age of Empires; certainly, Kunitsu-Gami is on a much smaller scale, but gathering resources to create units you can command in battle? That's a staple of the genre.

Though, Kunitsu-Gami does plenty to deviate from the norm; the areas you can explore are from a third-person perspective, just like any other character from a hack-and-slash game. That's fitting, then, that during the night, we get a total shift of genre.

Emerging from the corrupted torii gates are monsters from the Seethe, and you have to slay them to protect the maiden Yoshiro, as she is the means by which you can cleanse these corrupted gates. 

Players control their units and position them in such a way that they fight off any monsters emerging from the gate, though said units aren't nearly as powerful as the player character, Soh. He is a killing machine, and has one helluva fighting style.

Soh melds swordplay with dancing, creating dazzling displays as he hacks and slashes his way through enemies. Inputs for Soh's attacks aren't unlike a Dynasty Warrior game, using simple two-button combos to pull off elaborate attacks.

While the combat is is fun, the waves of enemies tend to drag on. Commanding units amounts to positioning them in certain spots, and that's it -- it's lacking in complexity. Slashing through monsters as Soh felt a bit too easy, and the gameplay grew repetitive over time.

But Will Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess Live up to its Potential?

That's not to say Kunitsu-Gami won't expand upon its mechanics. I do see some potential in the inclusion of skills, as well as upgrades that alter characteristics of Soh or his units. There was even a boss battle, though it turned out to be a sponge for damage, nothing more.

There also appears to be a great deal of different units, though I only saw a handful. They seem to stick to specific archetypes, like archer, but who knows? Maybe they'll become more elaborate as time goes on. 

And of course, day tasks are sure to expand as time goes on -- in a later level, I had options to clear rubble to gain an upgrade, or repair a gate that'll stop monsters in their path. Kunitsu-Gami might end up being a slow burn, but it has potential.

If I left my demo with any feeling, it's one of cautious optimism. The mishmash of genres and its third-person, action game perspective is rare in this day and age, but if anyone can pull it off, it's Capcom. 

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Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess was previewed Summer Game Fest.