Summary
In between assisting with the development of bothBaldur’s Gate 3and its work on the upcoming remake of the firstWitchergame, developer Fool’s Theory has been hard at work crafting the upcoming alternate history CRPGThe Thaumaturge. Blending engaging turn-based combat along with some compelling RPG mechanics involving the titular character’s ability to read and manipulate people,The Thaumaturgelooks to be a welcome addition to what’s already shaping up to be a banner year for the genre. And, for fans of either theShin Megami Tenseior its spin-offPersonaseries, getting the assistance ofThe Thaumaturge’s demonic Salutors will feel refreshingly familiar.
Like in those iconic JRPGs,The Thaumaturge’s protagonist, Wiktor, can interact with (and then subsequently tame) esoteric beings to assist him in combat and other gameplay scenarios. These beings, the Salutors, are an eclectic mix of otherworldly paranormal entities that deftly straddle the line between the world of the supernatural and the real-worldhistorical inspirations ofThe Thaumaturge. Like the Personas from their namesake series, taming and then bonding with these Salutors aligning with the game’s four Dimensions grants Wiktor abilities that he would not possess otherwise and impacts both dialogue and encounter design.
The Thaumaturge’s Dimensions Are Similar to Persona’s Arcana
Similar to the titular Personas from Atlus’Personaseries, each ofThe Thaumaturge’s Salutorsis aligned with one of the game’s four Dimensions. And, depending on which Dimensions the player chooses to align the protagonist Wiktor with, certain Salutors are either more or less effective, opening up new avenues in dialogue and combat scenarios while simultaneously closing off others. The four Dimensions are:
While there are only four different Dimensions for each ofThe Thaumaturge’s Salutors to align with, this should seem familiar to fans of thePersonaseries thanks to how each Persona is aligned with a particular Arcana. Strengthening these Arcana through the Social Links the protagonist can form with various companions in the real world has a profound impact on how the Personas themselves grow and develop, especially where Persona Fusion is concerned.
The Arcana in thePersonaseries are based on the traditional Tarot deck, resulting in 21 different alignments for the dozens of Personas in each entry. Similar to how neglecting certainSocial Links inPersonahas the negative effect of rendering some Personas ineffective, choosing to align Wiktor with one Dimension over another can potentially negate the usefulness of certain Salutors.
The Salutors' Existence as ‘Lovecraftian Pokemon’ Falls in Line with Persona’s Namesake
Also similar to the titular Personas arethe Salutors' design inspirations. The exact number of Salutors that Wiktor will eventually have access to inThe Thaumaturgeis not something that Fool’s Theory has revealed yet, but what is known is that each of them is inspired by real-world mythology and folklore from various regions. The same can be said of the creatures that assist the player in thePersonagames, which feature naming conventions and designs that connect them directly to the various Yokai and other paranormal beings from both Eastern and Western spirituality and folklore.
The act of meeting, taming, and “collecting” both Salutors and Personas essentially makes them each like a grimdark,esoteric version of Pokemon, complete with their own sets of abilities and “rock, paper, scissors” like effect on enemies in combat encounters. However, where both thePersonaseries andThe Thaumaturgediffer from Game Freak’s monster-taming franchise is in each game’s protagonist being able to hold their own in combat. Still, when Wiktor is up against the ropes or needs to uncover a secret someone is hiding in the course of an investigation, the Salutors are there to help tip the scales in the player’s favor.
The Thaumaturge
WHERE TO PLAY
The Thaumaturge is an isometric, story-rich RPG with a unique take on turn-based combat, character development features, and investigation mechanics, facing you with morally ambiguous choices – set in a world teeming with mysterious powers and strange ethereal beings called salutors.The year is 1905. Warsaw lives under the yoke of imperial Russian tsardom. Its inhabitants constitute a diverse group of different ancestries, views, and beliefs with often conflicting interests: Russian soldiers, Jewish merchants, Polish townspeople, and more. Despite the circumstances, the city is a buzzing metropolis, where one can attend a breathtaking party with the high society, and later get robbed in one of the dark alleys of the Praga district. A city of great hopes and dreams on one hand and dark desires on the other.A thaumaturge bears both a gift and a burden at the same time. This parallel holds true for Wiktor Szulski, the game’s titular protagonist, who is drawn back to the tumultuous streets of 20th-century Warsaw by family matters. The gift of thaumaturgy is intertwined with family legacy, passed down through one’s ancestors. This mystical inheritance significantly shapes Wiktor’s life journey tied around a pursuit of unearthly entities and their hosts. As only a thaumaturge can tame these ethereal entities - known to a select few as salutors - utilizing their mystical abilities to discover secrets hidden within the human soul and speak to the Darkness, no one understands quite like Wiktor how everyone suffers their own demons.
