Polish developers created a role-playing game based on the book. A well-known approach, right? And also The Inquisitor has an intriguing premise. Jesus, who climbed Golgotha, did not die after the crucifixion – he came down from the cross and became emperor to take revenge on the unbelievers. The world in this alternate version has changed a lot. After many centuries we play for the inquisitor Mordimer Maderdin. We arrive in the town of Köningstein, where a series of mysterious murders took place. This is the case we will have to investigate.
The game has beautiful visuals and a consistent style; for example, the Victorian era architecture is well done. The authors say that the plot can be completed in a very reasonable 10-15 hours. If you don’t get stuck anywhere (and there are very few extra activities in the game), things will go even faster. We spoke to the developers and played the pre-release version of The Inquisitor – all the details now.
Dialogues, plot, world
According to the authors, they wrote this story themselves. Jacek Piekara, the author of the book series, did not work on the plot. Considering that our hero Mordimer is a guardian of faith and justice, there are moral dilemmas along the way in The Inquisitor. The player’s choice affects the outcome of one of the three endings. The dialogues are created with the possibility of role-playing and with different options – mainly “good/bad cop”. Occasionally, dark fantasy can be diluted with humor. This is what the authors say about it:
“Our screenwriter wouldn’t be himself, because he is a rather cheerful person by nature. Overall, the acting and dialogue have a dark tone, but there are lighter moments too – even references or satire, especially if you look for them.”
The Inquisitor also has a karma system that will gradually change depending on your decisions.
“We’d like to keep it a secret how it’s done, but there is a representation of your karma in play. This is not just any scale, but a separate mechanism. Once you realize that, you can keep track of your karma.”
After playing the pre-release version, we can say that karma is strangely represented: you are unlikely to understand what decisions entailed consequences. And it will be even more difficult to draw useful conclusions about the development of the hero.
One of the game’s strong points is the city itself. It is well laid out and changes, as the authors say, with what happens. The alternate history of Christ allowed the developers to create their own custom religious symbolism.
“In The Inquisitor, Jesus did not die on the cross, but broke it, survived, and began punishing those who wanted Him dead. In the game he is called ‘Christ the Merciless’. Instead of the Messiah sacrificing himself on the cross, we have a man standing proudly with a sword in his hands. This image can be seen on the statue in the center section.”
Power in the city belongs to the church, but there are several other organizations, each with its own place.
“Koningstein is inhabited by various factions: the cardinal’s people, the church guards, the inquisitors and others. Mordimer will periodically encounter factions and their representatives. But everyone has their own interests and responsibilities – they hardly cross paths during the game.”
There is also an ‘Underworld’ – another dimension. A mystical, otherworldly location where you must collect fragments of memories. Everything is very foggy here and there are monsters roaming the area that you have to fight. Or avoid.
“The only purpose for which a player goes to the underworld is to find out the truth. However, death awaits you around every corner here. Some enemies can be defeated, others cannot.”
You could say that mysticism haunts Mordimer. Our hero will also have visions that indicate some plot details. These will be small sketches and cutscenes.
Investigations, combat, QTE
There will be few fights. The combat system is built around swordplay in a simplified, familiar way. A normal blow, a strong blow, a block, a parry and a few special techniques.
“The system is mainly designed for duels. But not all enemy encounters will be one-on-one. But you shouldn’t expect large-scale battles either.”
Boss battles are also announced. Admittedly, after playing the pre-release version the conclusion arises: if normal battles look clumsy, boss battles also become drawn out, albeit with a special enemy. This is what the authors say about bosses:
“Battles with them are designed in such a way that the player must carefully observe and study the enemy, and then decide when to strike, dodge or parry. For example, some attacks simply cannot be interrupted.”
In addition, QTE elements have been added to the game. They occur in various gameplay situations, including mini-games, battles, investigations or chases – and are completed without any problems.
“The number of QTEs in The Inquisitor is balanced. They are always contextual and will not overload the player.”
What do you think of QTEs in games?
From time to time our inquisitor will conduct investigations. These include various actions: you have to search for evidence, collect memories in the ‘Underworld’ and interrogate townspeople. Almost all of these mechanisms are performed simply. Press “eagle vision”, come here, perform a few simple steps – you’re done. The Inquisitor’s capabilities will increase slightly over the course of the game, albeit without any special frills.
“Progress is connected to the story. Mordimer will gradually receive new equipment, skills and items. In the “Underworld” the player has special abilities that can only be used there. Supernatural, like teleportation.”
In our experience with The Inquisitor, the second dimension segments slow down the game immensely and distract from something more interesting: dialogue and progression through the story. ‘Superpowers’ don’t really help matters; ‘Underworld’ looks like your average survival horror.
The ‘eagle vision’ that is familiar from many games is called ‘prayer mode’ here. When you press it, evidence or important places will be displayed, as well as chapels in which you can replenish the “energy source” – it is consumed by prolonged use of the “prayer mode”.
“Prayer mode acts as a kind of ‘detective sense’: we can use it to find clues we haven’t seen before. It shows points of interest and objects with which we can communicate.”
Based on the results of our acquaintance with The Inquisitor, we can say that it has a rather interesting setting and a good story, but about the rest there are questions. The investigation has been conducted – it’s time to compile a dossier.
The game is very ambitious and takes up too much. Some aspects are clearly made with love; the city in The Inquisitor has been built from scratch and looks cool. Even at a quick glance you will notice that a lot of work has been done. But the monotonous, rustic and intrusive gameplay segments cannot reach the same level as the story, dialogue, visuals and game world. The gameplay is as if the authors didn’t know exactly what they wanted: here you have action battles and investigations into the mind of the Witcher, and ‘eagle vision’ and console QTEs. There’s a feeling that the game would be more suited to the quest or visual novel genre.
If you are interested in the image of an uncompromising inquisitor, you should read the book series “I, Inquisitor” by Jacek Piekara. I sincerely want to praise the game, but it is the interactive part in The Inquisitor that cannot boast of anything special.
The release is coming soon – February 8. Will be released on PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.
Do you play The Inquisitor?
Source: VG Times