Summary
- South Park: The Stick of Truth, which just reached its 10-year anniversary, remains a time capsule capturing the essence of the South Park IP in a video game adaptation.
- Stick of Truth sets a high bar for South Park games, blending quality gameplay with the show's iconic characters and humor.
- The upcoming South Park: Snow Day! Introduces significant changes, including full 3D gameplay and co-op play with real-time action, and Stick of Truth has set a high bar for this new game.
In the ten years since the release of South Park: The Stick of Truth, South Park games, RPGs, the South Park series itself, and the world at large have all changed significantly. As a result, South Park: The Stick of Truth stands as something of a time capsule, capturing the moment in which the South Park IP was finally done justice in a video game adaptation. Other South Park games before it were numerous, but they all varied wildly in quality and struggled to capture exactly what it is that has helped the series endure for more than 25 years. Ironically, the IP now finds itself in a similar spot following Stick of Truth's release.
After partnering with RPG veterans Obsidian for the development of Stick of Truth (with the express goal of creating a captivating RPG that replicated the look of the show), publisher Ubisoft would pass development duties to Ubisoft San Francisco for the sequel, South Park: The Fractured But Whole. This resulted in the title being a vastly different experience than the first game, a trend now looking to repeat itself with the upcoming third modern South Park game – South Park: Snow Day!. A decade later after it debuted on March 4, 2014, Stick of Truth still stands as the definitive South Park game thanks to its iconic presentation, pitch-perfect humor, and genuinely deep RPG mechanics.
Kenny's Role in Every South Park Game Explained
Though he's had a consistent presence across South Park's video game adaptations, there is a clear evolution to Kenny's representation over the years.
South Park: The Stick of Truth's Faithfulness to the Show Makes it a Series Standout
This year's upcoming South Park: Snow Day! Looks to provide a third (and potential closing) chapter to the saga of "The New Kid" that began in The Stick of Truth, but it's doing so while incorporating some significant changes over its two predecessors. Where Stick of Truth and Fractured But Whole were 2D games adhering closely to the look and feel of the show, South Park: Snow Day! Is the first full 3D game in the trilogy. Gameplay for Snow Day! Also implements co-op play and has a greater emphasis on real-time action and coordinated attacks.
Even if the writing and humor are faithful to the show, the game's presentation leaves something to be desired considering how well its predecessors accurately replicated their source material. Fans who had wished for the ability to essentially play through an episode of the show were able to see that dream become a reality thanks to South Park: The Stick of Truth, and its turn-based RPG combat and use of references spanning the show's then 17-year history help it stand as perhaps the best game to ever use the South Park IP.
Fractured But Whole would release to initial strong sales, but that momentum would quickly fall off and see the game fail to meet the targets set by Stick of Truth before it. After it's first week, sales were already 7% lower than those of its predecessor.
What Stick of Truth Can Still Teach Future South Park Games
The South Park games' transition to a full-3D co-op brawler may be a calculated decision on the part of the developer and publisher to reach a wider audience than Ubisoft's two RPG titles, but it remains to be seen whether that gamble pays off. As it stands, both Stick of Truth and Fractured But Whole are successful titles in their own right that also are some of the better licensed games in recent years. As the saying goes, it's not necessary to fix that which isn't broken, and Stick of Truth's proven formula is still one of the better templates for a South Park video game.
Ten years since its release, Stick of Truth still presents an impossibly high bar for all other South Park games to reach, and it does so by mixing quality gameplay with a fundamental understanding of what fans love about the license. It borrows enough from Super Mario RPG and Dungeons & Dragons to appeal to RPG enthusiasts, and its difficulty and pacing are approachable enough as to entice genre newcomers in with the promise of classic South Park shenanigans. If there's one lesson that Stick of Truth can teach future South Park games, it's that the show's iconic characters and subversive humor don't have to come at the cost of compelling gameplay.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 85 /100 Critics Rec: 88%
- Released
- March 4, 2014
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Mature Humor, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Obsidian Entertainment
- Publisher(s)
- Ubisoft
- Engine
- onyx engine, proprietary engine
- Franchise
- South Park
WHERE TO PLAY
From the perilous battlefields of the fourth-grade playground, a young hero will rise, destined to be South Park’s savior. From the creators of South Park, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, comes an epic quest to become… cool. Introducing South Park™: The Stick of Truth™.
For a thousand years, the battle has been waged. The sole reason humans and elves are locked in a neverending war: The Stick of Truth. But the tides of war are soon to change as word of a new kid spreads throughout the land, his coming fortold by the stars. As the moving vans of prophecy drive away, your adventure begins.
Arm yourself with weapons of legend to defeat underpants gnomes, hippies and other forces of evil. Discover the lost Stick of Truth and earn your place at the side of Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny as their new friend. Succeed, and you shall be South Park’s savior, cementing your social status in South Park Elementary. Fail, and you will forever be known… as a loser.
- Platform(s)
- Xbox One, Xbox 360, PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch
- Genre(s)
- RPG
- How Long To Beat
- 12 Hours
