ZA/UM’s narrative CRPG masterpiece Disco Elysium may be dead, but its legacy sure isn’t. We’re now seeing the first of what is sure to be many narrative-dependent RPGs taking inspiration from Disco Elysium with Emotion Spark Studios’ Rue Valley.
Published by the ever-popular Owlcat Games (who you may know for Pathfinder: Kingmaker, Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous, or Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader) it’s looking like Owlcat is expanding its horizons and dipping its toes into the publishing gig with this new RPG.
Rue Valley is an isometric narrative RPG about a man trapped in a time loop, surrounded by a colorful cast with complex emotional stories, each hiding unexpected secrets. Dealing with mental challenges, the main character must rise from the depths, delving into the anomaly to uncover its enigmatic origins.
Set in the titular Rue Valley with a gorgeous art style and moody atmosphere, as a narrative-driven game the trailer is careful to not expose any extraneous details that may spoil the experience for players, but from what is shown this seems to be a classic Groundhog Day experience, where you take control of a player character Mr. Harrow who stumbles his way through the valley and through his personal demons in a depressed stupor in an attempt to escape the time loop.
Though considering the nuclear blast at the end of the trailer, maybe escaping the time loop isn’t exactly going to be sunshine and rainbows, but we’ll figure out exactly how that effects him when the full game comes out. As it stands, it’s cool to see Owlcat giving back to the indie community that they themselves spawned from, and Emotion Spark Studios’ Rue Valley looks like a great narrative experience, and one that you can experience eventually by wishlisting it on Steam, GoodOldGames, and Epic Games Store.