It’s difficult to fully translate the experience of playing Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess into words, but ‘wonderfully weird’ comes close to it. Drenched in the influence of Japanese folklore and mythology, it features tower defense elements, where players are able to command troops and position them within a fixed radius on the map. Yet, they can also join in the fight by controlling a swordsman called Soh, whose rhythmic combo chains and slashes are kissed with a graceful, dance-like flair.
There are dynamic day and night cycles, a maiden to escort, and the ability to give orders as a soul in Spirit Mode. The core gameplay involves clearing a path yet interestingly enough, its design philosophy strays far from this, branching out into a refreshing smorgasbord of seemingly disparate elements that somehow blend together seamlessly and effectively. In the wake of a near three-hour exclusive preview, a few things are made apparent – the game is utterly bold, charming, and brimming with sleeper-hit potential.
Touted as a “unique Japanese-inspired, single-player Kagura action strategy game” or whatever that means, Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess centres on Soh, who’s tasked to protect a divine maiden named Yoshiro as she cleanses the corruption-afflicted villages of the legendary Mt. Kafuku. The player’s job is to cleave through hordes of grotesque enemies, situate available manpower on the battlefield, and carve out a path for her to purify tainted torii gates and move towards the next objective.
Then, there’s the other part of gameplay. The upcoming adventure is split into two halves, with daytime serving as the preparatory phase that leaves Soh free to explore the environment, rid villagers of spiritual defilement, purge tainted growths by slashing at them or holding down a button, and earn orbs. This form of currency can be used to assign the townspeople to a role or clear the road for Yoshiro to follow. Scattered along the map are blockages that villagers can get out of the way, as well as repairable contraceptions like defensive barriers and wards.
The latter will prove useful when night falls and droves of demonic forces known as the Seethe spill out from the level’s exit. To fend them off, players will have to strategically place villagers around the terrain and upgrade them to any of the available classes, each with their own specialisation. The Woodcutter, for instance, holds the frontline as melee fighters, while Archers, albeit less hardy, have increased attacking range. Meanwhile, the Ascetic creates a barrier that temporarily slows down enemies, allowing for defensive advantage.
Much of the heavy lifting will be done by Soh, though. On the battlefield, the sword-wielder executes a series of combos that harks back to Capcom’s action roots, featuring a mix of light and heavy strikes, aerial attacks, blocks, and a special move. Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is no Devil May Cry, but the stripped-down hack-and-slash fare comes across as fluid, crisp, and rhythmic, with some breathing room to switch up gameplay.
Unlike traditional tower defense games, the villager roles aren’t fixed. At any point in combat, units can be reassigned to a different class to deal with specific enemy types like winged beasts, which lie out of melee range when in the air and can only be shot down by the Archers. Soh’s active involvement further adds wrinkles to the traditional tower defense experience, making it less of a passive, hands-off affair as players juggle between healing damaged units with rations, retreating to the backline, and making aggressive pushes.
There’s the matter of escorting Yoshiro to consider as well. Deceptively straightforward in the early levels, the dynamic can pose a challenge if one isn’t careful. Because the maiden moves at a rather slow pace, it’s easy to miscalculate the travel distance – bringing her too close to the torii gate risks the Seethe overwhelming and attacking her, while leaving her too far behind triggers another round of defense. The key to victory, especially at later stages, is to find the middle ground; it’s certainly easier said than done, however, and entirely by design.
“This continuous cycle of strategic thinking allows players to feel a sense of accomplishment when they survive the night together,” explains director Shuichi Kawata in an email interview. “Additionally, as you clear each stage, you’ll find the teamwork with the villagers increasingly engaging.”
The gameplay loop typically spans a few day-night cycles, and once a level is completed, players will end up in a safe encampment where they can talk to Yoshiro, upgrade their troops, equip different sword perks, swap out talismans – accessories that carry stat boosts, such as increasing Soh’s attack power or the villagers’ health – and more. Progressing through the story unlocks more special abilities and upgrades, including combat maneuvers like Perfect Guard, ranged attacks, or immediate recovery after being knocked down.
Since Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess unfolds in a rinse-and-repeat manner, there are efforts to minimise the feeling of repetition and monotony. The first two levels in the preview build serve more as an introduction to the game’s basics, but subsequent ones offer a good idea of the variety that players can look forward to.
For example, a strategy-leaning stage strips Soh of his fighting capabilities, turning him into a soul who can only command units, while a sea battle puts players on boats that are connected by planks. There, they can move from one end to another, set up defenses in the space, fire cannons at the Seethe, and assign villagers to new roles, including the Shaman, who restores the health of Soh and nearby allies, the Sumo Wrestler, skilled at close-ranged combat, and the powerful but slow Spearman.
Another level, in a similar vein, requires individuals to dispel the always-present darkness (no matter the time of the day) by illuminating the pathway with a light source. Each of these stages comes with specific bonus objectives, and marks a natural progression from the previous round, resulting in a well-adjusted learning curve. Newcomers should be able to pick things up fairly quickly, though real-time strategy (RTS) and tower defense enthusiasts may find the game too easy. Still, it should be noted that the preview content was curated, so the actual experience might differ.
What will be a constant is the visual splendour that runs wild in Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess. It delights with an arresting aesthetic that draws comparison to Okami, another culturally rich gem from Capcom, sharing the same striking and vibrant strokes. Instead of a watercolour palette, the hybrid title sports a more realistic sheen that traces every swing of Soh’s sword with brightly-coloured arcs, making it difficult to look away.
There’s also a lush quality to the environmental design, evoking a sense of tranquility before the action kicks in. Even the demons look beautifully grotesque, a patchwork of humanoid features, ornate carvings on misshapen skin, spindly limbs, and at times, monstrous physicality. Tongues, heads, and other body parts are blown out of proportion, giving off an unsettling feeling that’s exacerbated by their lumbering or scampering movement, depending on the Seethe type.
Such a degree of detail can be traced back to work behind the screen. In addition to constructing actual miniatures to use as a base for different stages, the developers used a blend of photogrammetry and some real clothing for the outfits in the game. Holding the narrative strands together is the influence of Japanese folklore, which naturally bleeds into the main story.
“I personally enjoy old Japanese folklore and mysterious tales, and the idea came to me from envisioning a scenario where messengers from another world appear every night in the mountains of Japan, and the task is to protect the gods while dealing with these messengers,” shares Kawata.
He adds, “[But] the story isn’t solely built upon mythology; I also travelled to different parts of Japan and read books, using interesting stories as motifs. For the Seethe in particular, I interpreted the folklore in my own way.”
The preview didn’t offer many hints to the story beats, leaving players with minimal dialogue and vague references to the overarching lore. As confirmed by producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi in the same interview, a single playthrough will take more than 20 hours, so there’s clearly more to Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess than simply guiding Yoshiro down Mt. Kafuku and cleansing it of corruption.
As intriguing and refreshing as it is, the mythology-steeped romp does have its awkward and less polished moments. For one, the tight top-down camera can make it difficult to keep the entire field in sight, impacting strategy-focused levels and possibly, later stages, even with the option for a wider map.
While likely done to preserve a clean user interface (UI), the lack of name markers presents some issues in locating allies across the map too. Players can do so by pulling up a tab, which highlights their silhouette in green and displays their information, but since there are two separate menus – the other one appears when standing beside them, and is used for healing villagers – the system isn’t the most intuitive.
In the company of engrossing action, breathtaking visuals, and culturally-steeped storytelling, these small armour chinks pose little threat to its allure. There’s plenty to be excited about Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess, especially since bold ambition, novelty, and niche quirkiness don’t always go well together. As it stands now, Capcom has something truly special and oh-Soh-promising in their hands that looks set to carve out its own niche.
Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess releases 19 July for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
