Steffi has discovered an exciting RPG that draws heavily on Disco Elysium – but also brings some intriguing ideas of its own.
Some smart marketing company has discovered my great weakness: Advertisements that mention Disco Elysium immediately compel my index finger to click on it. In this particular case, however, I”m very grateful about it, because that”s how I came across the Steam game Sovereign Syndicate
Do the words “role-playing, Victorian London, momentous decisions and fantasy “ make you feel tingly? Then this is a guaranteed candidate for your wishlist!
What is Sovereign Syndicate?
At first glance, this role-playing game really looks a lot like Disco Elysium, especially the iso-perspective and the dialogue interface. This is, of course, intentional, as the developers want to appeal to the same target audience and step into the gap left by the great role model.
It”s best to imagine Sovereign Syndicate as a mix of role-playing game and point & click adventure game. You spend most of your time talking and exploring the open game world – Victorian London with a good dose of Dark Fantasy (did someone say “underground werewolf fights” here?). You”ll get to know the dirty docklands, where opium dens and abject poverty dominate the streetscape.
In the demo, which is available on Steam, you start the adventure as Minotaure Atticus. You can decide for yourself what Atticus is like right at the start of the game. There are four archetypes to choose from, each of which gives him his own skills. For example, I chose “Self-Discipline”, which allows Atticus to temporarily disguise himself as a human in order to avoid prejudice. Handy!
I can”t say much about the story progression yet, except that there will be three playable characters in the finished game: Atticus, a trusty robot named Otto, and the wily buccaneer Clara Reed. Their stories are meant to be closely related and will play out differently depending on your decisions.
But for that I can already introduce you to the main gameplay features. They sound pretty complicated, but could make for a really exciting and complex whole.
Tarot cards and skill samples
As in Disco Elysium, your character has various skills and traits that you regularly take samples on. For example, whether you manage to remember something. This is where the first new system comes in: instead of rolling virtual dice, you draw a card from your tarot deck. This determines whether you fail or succeed – and that, in turn, affects how the story progresses.
Traits that you act out more often will eventually shape your character and unlock new skills. True to the era, they are assigned to the four bodily fluids (this was a common medical theory in Victorian London).
Atticus has not only skills, but also a inventory with space for found items and various sets of clothes Because clothes make people in London society, of course! Of course, you can recognize the social classes even more precisely by their respective idiosyncratic British dialect
Don”t be afraid of the slang!
Sovereign Syndicate brings two very cool convenience features at once: All the objects and places you can interact with can be highlighted via keystroke This is also a good thing, because the graphics are rather mediocre, you could miss some things
The second feature you may already know from Paradox games: Many terms are highlighted and explainedin the dialog boxes when you hover over them with the mouse. Therefore, you don”t have to be afraid of the English demo version, which uses a lot of London slang. The language is not as complex as Disco Elysium and the built-in glossary helps a lot.
The even better news: A German version is also planned for the final release. However, there is no dubbing – so you”ll have to enjoy reading to enjoy Sovereign Syndicate.
Is this fun?
In the demo I found the tarot system and the skills quite obscure at first due to the lack of a proper tutorial. But you just have to jump in at the deep end, you”ll quickly get the hang of it as you play. At least enough to get along with Atticus.
The dark fantasy setting with legendary creatures and magic fully captivates me, the world invites you to uncover all its dangerous secrets – and in the demo you quickly accumulate the side quests in which you descend deeper into the London underground.
When is release? The developers are planning on a Steam release in the spring of 2024. You can currently try out a demo and add Sovereign Syndicate to your wishlist, then you”ll be notified as soon as the release date is set.
Editor”s Verdict
Unfortunately, I haven”t had the time to play through the demo on Steam completely. What I have seen of it, however, I like super! The graphics and writing of course don”t compare to the previously unmatched story king Disco Elysium, but I wasn”t expecting that either.
And although Sovereign Syndicate looks like an almost brazen clone at first, it definitely brings enough of its own ideas to justify its existence. Victorian London with fantasy elements always appeals to me anyway, as does steampunk and a story that I can influence.
So Sovereign Syndicate has already withstood my first scrutinizing look, now I”m eagerly waiting for the final release!
