The throwback approach to RPG game design has been responsible for some of the best games to appear in recent years. A huge highlight in 2023 was Baldur’s Gate 3, which resurrected a classic series with a fresh new entry. Before it, there was also the broader CRPG revival, with games like Pillars of Eternity, Wasteland 3, and Tyranny arriving to show the staying power of an older approach to RPG design. As of this week, another retro-style role-playing adventure called Banquet for Fools has arrived to continue this trend with striking visuals and inventive design.
Banquet for Fools is an exploration-focused fantasy game that takes place on a gloomy island called Invimona whose inhabitants have all mysteriously disappeared. The player controls a group of characters sent to investigate this disappearance on behalf of their ruler. Once they arrive at Invimona, they pursue their mission by picking through the wilderness and towns, navigating their way without the help of, per the game’s Steam page, any “auto-compass or quest logs.”
The companion characters possess different skills, from those dealing directly with the game’s real-time combat to abilities related to music and animals. They’re able to talk to the population of Invimona, with different conversation options appearing based on their various skills, pray to stone icons of ancient gods for favors, learn to craft items, mete out justice as extensions of their ruler’s authority, and more.
Its creator notes that Banquet for Fools is already “feature complete” in Early Access, with more material to be added between now and its final launch next year. The Steam page also states that “you should be able to start a character at any point in Early Access and be able to continue seamlessly through updates to the end of the game.”
Banquet for Fools is available on Steam in Early Access right now. To celebrate its launch, it’s currently 15% off as well, which makes its price $16.99 USD / £14.23. Grab a copy right here.
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