Athenian Rhapsody

Genre: Turn-Based RPG

Players: 1

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Review:

Athenian Rhapsody, released in 2024 on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch, is a game that can loosely be described as a Turn-Based RPG, but the best point of comparison here is Undertale and its spin-off/sequel game Deltarune, which which Athenian Rhapsody shares a great deal in common.

Like those two games, Athenian Rhapsody has players take the role of a young human boy in a realm full of odd creatures, where combat rounds incorporate real-time elements that have you dodging enemy attacks in a limited play space, with non-violent alternatives to combat, where your moral choices can affect the story. Oh, and there’s also the presentation, which I’ll get to later.

Taking place in the World of Athens, a whimsical fantasy world with little in common with Athens, Greece. In this world, the everything revolves around EXP, playing out as if the videogame concept of gaining experience from killing enemies existed in-story. As a result, while some of the world’s residents try to survive in a peaceful manner with others, other residents treat life like a zero-sum survival of the fittest game to be won, and as you play through the game, your choices can either work against this trend, or reinforce it.

Beyond the overall thrust of the story, you’ll find plenty of interesting characters throughout the game, including two of the earliest characters you encounter, Richard and James. Richard has gone all-in on his goal of EXP-gathering, while setting up what he sees as deadly mazes and traps to capture others. Meanwhile, James fancies himself Richard’s best friend, but isn’t a fan of the whole “killing for EXP” thing.

While these characters are interesting, other characters can seem nonsensical and at times even unintelligible, so at times during the story it’s not clear what is even going on, and your own character, a self-named mute protagonist, just seems to get dropped into the story without really fitting into it. I think that flaws like these do result in a game with a story that’s not quite as strong as Undertale or Deltarune.

And since I’ve brought it back there, I’ll finish out the rest of the look at this game’s presentation, noting that this game’s 2D pixel art visuals look extremely similar to the art style of Undertale and Deltarune, which were both in turn inspired by Earthbound. They use similar cartoony squiggly character designs and often repetitive or low-quality environments (though some effects, like the animated leaves of trees are quite nice). This is backed by a synthesized/chiptune soundtrack, which has some catchy tunes in it, like Up For a Fight, En Garde, and Nylon, though most of the soundtrack is more whimsical, to fit the tone of the game.

When it comes to the gameplay, we’re also looking at something very similar to Undertale, as mentioned above – the game uses Turn-Based RPG combat, but with real-time dodging elements much like Undertale. It all works well enough, and is handled with a similar level of creativity and variety. There’s also a partner-swapping party system and a magic system that requires charging up the points needed to cast spells that helps to set this game apart so it’s not just a copycat, and in addition to this, you’ll find various minigames throughout the game as you play, taking on different forms, to keep things interesting.

On the negative side of things, this game has an item storage system that’s frustrating and doesn’t seem to serve any purpose, and I think the default challenge level gets pretty steep early on in a way that’s uneven.

In short, for multiple reasons, I don’t think Athenian Rhapsody is quite on par with Undertale and Deltarune, despite so very clearly being inspired by those games. However, it’s still a solid game in the same style. If you’re an RPG fan looking for something quirky, or especially if you’re a fan of Undertale and/or Deltarune, this is well worth checking out.

tl;dr – Athenian Rhapsody is a Turn-Based RPG with a style and gameplay that is highly reminiscent of Undertale and Deltarune, from the unique combat system to the role morality plays in the gameplay and story. It’s a very good take on the same sort of game too, though it doesn’t quite reach the same heights as Undertale and Deltarune. Still, if you like quirky RPGs and especially if you’re a fan of those games, Athenian Rhapsody is a great choice for you.

Grade: B+

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