Review: The Council (2018)

Demons, seriously?

★★½

I tend to enjoy games with a good plot and choices that heavily affect the game's story. I was hoping this game would be one of those, but sadly, I was left more disappointed than pleased. It wasn't the characters or the visuals; it was the story and how rushed it felt.

Set in 1793, the game starts with Louis Mauras De Richet (Nathan Rippy) and his "mother," Sarah De Richet (Shelly De Vito), trapped together after hiding some book. Shortly after, Louis gets a letter from Lord Mortimer (David Gasman) to come to his island because Sarah has gone missing. Louis arrives and gets strange feelings. He is comforted by Duchess Emily Hillsborrow (Bibi Jacob), whom the player can romance later on. Upon arrival at the mansion, Lord Mortimer is not present. This raises many questions. Why isn't the host there to welcome his guests if he invited them all?

When you eventually find your "mother," things are just as bad as they seem. But in order to find her, you must go through a series of riddles because, apparently, Sarah only seems to speak in riddles. This can be fine at first, but when the game keeps throwing too many at you, it can get painfully repetitive. Other than Sarah, Emily/Emma, Louis, Sir Gregory, and Lord Mortimer, everyone seems underdeveloped. It's not like there were that many characters.

The biggest twist is finding out that you're a demon and the son of Lord Mortimer and the nephew of Sir Gregory (Saul Jephcott). I'm sorry, but it just feels rushed and out of place. The fact that Lord Mortimer just tells you makes it boring. A plot twist should be a visual thing, and the player has to realize it while it is happening. Just telling the player "Oh, you're a demon, by the way," isn't very exciting. To make matters worse, and I'm surprised nobody has talked about this, is the fact that Emily turns out to be your sister. If the devs knew that Emily was going to be Louis' sister, why give the player the option to sleep with her? Talk about complete incest. The devs probably enjoyed the film "Not Another Teen Movie (2001)" too much.

The game had a strong opening, but as the episodes went on, it started to feel more rushed. It's a shame, really. I enjoyed the visuals, the references to ancient mythology, and the study of humanities. The demon part didn't even bother me; it was the story, the reveal, and how rushed the game felt. The Council has an appealing premise with intriguing options and repercussions. However, it falls apart with bizarre plot twists, repetitive retracing, and uninteresting riddles.