There have been many attempts at recreating the crazy, politically incorrect world of South Park, but none have been nearly as successful as Ubisoft’s South Park: Stick of Truth for Playstation 3. This release embodies the raw comedic genius of the television show, while also maintaining the eccentric personalities of all the South Park characters.
During this 14 hour turn-based RPG, you will experience many classic South Park moments, as you escape from anal-probing aliens, search for the whereabouts of Man Bear Pig, and visit well-known locations from the show.
As the new kid in town, you are tasked with either assisting Cartman’s humans or Kyle’s elves. After custom building your kid, you begin your long journey by becoming acquainted with the main cast and acquiring the first of many missions.
The Stick of Truth happens to be the most comprehensive RPG in recent memory. Sure the game includes all the tongue-in-cheek humor of the series (i.e. crawling through Mr. Slave’s intestines and having aliens cram dildos in your poop-shoot), but without a comprehensive system with plenty of features, none of it would matter. Luckily, South Park incorporates a multitude of features that can be accessed via the Main Menu by pressing the Select button.
First, all the characters you befriend in South Park (and even your enemies) can ‘tweet’ you messages via the Home menu. Some messages serve no other purpose than to raise a few chuckles, but others pertain to the current status of a character or even mission objectives.
The inventory system is laid out in a clean, simple format where you can equip your kid with weapons, armor (which are either homemade costumes or standard outfits), and facial upgrades such as sunglasses, mustaches and makeup. Your character gains Upgrade Points as he/she levels. These points are spent on your character’s abilities in the ‘Ability’ tab. The abilities your character has vary based on the class you choose during the character creation process (i.e. Fighter, Mage, Thief or Jew – yes, a Jew). Your character has access to five skill trees that contain five perk levels. The higher the ability level, the stronger the attack will be.
Your character also earns perk points to spend in the Perk tab. Perks, as the name implies, are skills that enhance your character’s HP, mana, and damage during combat. Some perks can increase the damage you inflict on stunned opponents and increase the effectiveness of potions. The Magic tab displays the spells you posses and the amount of mana you have available. A map of South Park, a quest log, a list of collectables found while playing, and available party members (which limits you to one active party member at a time) round out the Menu System feature.
Combat is rife with character dialog and hilarious moments. Characters will taunt each other and yell at you to, “Hurry the hell up!” if you take too long selecting an action from the combat menu. Once an action has been selected, an on-screen prompt displays the appropriate attack buttons to successfully execute an attack. Depending on the character being played, different visual cues are given to help assist the player with the timing of their attacks. For example: when firing an Alien Ray Gun, the weapon will flash before the appropriate attack button can be pressed. Long-range weapons such as bows and Alien Ray Guns all require precise timing to function properly. Missing the on-screen cue will cause the weapon in question to malfunction or fizzle out.
When you’re not exchanging blows with your enemies, you’re exploring the town of South Park looking for recruits, collecting items from houses, and visiting the many popular locations from the show. A fast travel system, which is represented by a red flag and horn, allows the player to call on Timmy to quickly transport to previously visited fast travel locations in town. The game also encourages the player to explore the entire town to find Chinpokomon toys or new friends. Collecting new friends will unlock perks that improve your character’s statistics, which provide damage or resistance to negative effects during combat. Moreover, a large variety of side quests are available to help level your character.
South Park: The Stick of Truth is an instant classic. With satire aside, it delivers a solid role-playing experience that any hardcore gamer can sink their teeth into. Where fans of the show are concerned, The Stick of Truth is the ultimate South Park experience. It delivers the politically incorrect stereotypes and tongue-in-cheek humor the show is known for without making any sacrifices.
Mike Pittaro
Platform: Playstation 3
Developer: Ubisoft
Publisher: Ubisoft
ESRB: M (Mature)
Price: $59.99
South Park: The Stick of Truth’s Official Website
| Review Score | |
|---|---|
| Graphics |  |
| Graphics that authentically depict the television show. | |
| Sound | |
| Everything from the show is present, including Cartman's insults. | |
| Gameplay | |
| Solid gameplay that is accompanied by many classic South Park scenarios. | |
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| South Park: The Stick of Truth is the ultimate South Park experience. | |
