Image Credits: Path to Nowhere, Fandom
OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:
Just like how the opening sequence of this game is filled with mystique, intrigue, drama, tension and awe, this game is far more deep than it seems upon initial inspection. It has personality, style and heart. It’s clever and knows how to hook you. On the surface it’s a waifu collector with some of the best voice acting, art direction and character design in the buisness. But just as the game developers are all disguised as ducks it’s a head fake, the feint to draw you in and make you believe that’s all it is when in reality it’s far more nuanced and intricate in it’s characters, story and gameplay than you expect.
Path to Nowhere is a story driven real time tower defense strategy game with some RPG elements. The basic premise revolves around your adventures in DisCity as the Chief of the Minos Bureau of Crisis (MBCC). You manage a rag tag squad of ‘sinners’, corrupted individuals with extraordinary abilities. Combat is both challenging and strategic both in terms of executing in real time and developing team compositions to overcome the various enemies and bosses that are presented. Character design is some of the best in the genre. They are unique, iconic and drenched with style. An essay could be written on the fashion styling alone. Music is exceptional. Not too often do you have a game that develops original music that is up to this standard in terms of creativity and quality. Together this is a special game and IP. A hidden gem that deserves to be explored.
Looking for a beginners guide and tier list? Check out this post.
GAMEPLAY:
Gameplay is strategic and surprisingly deep and challenging. The basic gameplay mechanic revolves around a core break system. Certain elite enemies and bosses carry cores. Specific character skills break cores, stunning enemies and allowing you to maximize damage. Units will auto attack but as the Chief you’ll move your squad around the map and chose when to active their ultimate abilities. Character power can be augmented by leveling up your units and skills. There is also an item system (crime brands) to allow you to customize your units for the specific mission/challenge. On top of this units fulfill traditional roles such as damage dealer/support/healer/tank. This all comes together to provide a satisfying level of depth and strategy to gameplay. As you get further into the main story you will be challenged, you will fail and you will learn more about the game and how to overcome those obstacles. Together is it a very satisfying gameplay loop that will test your limits.
Special events are unique, thematic and creative. Every event is so wildly different. On top of a new story and combat missions they often include a new type of mini game activity. Some past events include things like painting (yes painting), using a claw machine to pull stuffed plushies, virtual chatting on an in-game social media channel and a life sim of cooking and cleaning for your live in assassin roommate who may or may not have feelings for you but is also holding you hostage. If this all sounds wack, it is. But it also fits into the world, story and characters perfectly. You can tell the developers love this. This is why in their anniversary celebrations they are all animated as ducks. This game has personality and they know it.
Path to Nowhere also contains one of the most interesting gameplay modes I’ve seen in a mobile gacha so far: the eternal nightmare. This alternate mode allows you to progress through different encounters and along the way acquire power ups and new units that can only be used in this mode. This includes units that you do not currently own in the regular game. It’s a welcome change of pace. The combination of new power ups allows for team compositions that otherwise would not excel in other game modes. There are even buffs for more common rarity units allowing them to shine as well. It’s a mode that holds a lot of potential and will likely need more fine tuning before it reaches its final form. This is the type of innovation you want to see in game design. It pushes into new territory utilizing units you’ve never encountered or previously had no reason to build and effectively letting you test and experiment with different team compositions.
STORY:
The story unfolds slowly revealing the world and characters like a mystery novel. Overall it’s intriguing and stands out as one of the best features of the game. There is a strong focus on characters and their relationships. This is also evidenced in the side story content through events and the interrogation system where you get a closer look at a character’s backstory. I was often blown away with the variety, subject matter, depth and heart of these characters. Nothing is as it seems on the surface. Some stories are awe inspiring while others are downright tragic and heartbreaking. This is a game that knows how to create stories and character arcs. Voice acting is excellent and heavily contributes to pulling you into this world and making you empathize with all the drama that the characters experience throughout.
ART & CHARACTER DESIGN:
Art direction is phenomenal. These are some of the best character designs in gaming. Characters are iconic and uniquely stylish. There is a strong emphasis on fashion with care and attention to the colors, cut, silhouette, and accessories. They are straight out of the latest fashion week runway. It’s rare to come across art that is unique and memorable without feeling like it’s just a replica of the latest trends. This all contributes to pulling you into this world and creating a desire to explore and get to know the characters, their backstories, motivations, desires and dreams. According to the 1st year anniversary stream art direction is by a duck named 4K.
MUSIC:
The original tracks in this game are evocative. From the chill synthwave vibes of “Whisper in the Dark” to the heart breaker anthem of “Undefined Red” the music defines moments and memories in this story driven journey. Many of the tracks are designed specifically for special events and tell the story and attitude of characters through song. The developers are obviously passionate about music and love what they do. The music director is none other than a duck named Todd.
CHALLENGES:
Most of the main story missions are appropriately adjusted to your teams power level. However, as you get further in the story there is a major spike in difficulty around chapter 10. It can be overcome once you understand the specific units you need and patiently acquire the resources to level them up over time. Like many gacha games power is slow to progress and it can become frustrating if you don’t understand that these types of games are designed to be more a marathon than a sprint. Other than that this is one of the more generous and less predatory gacha games out there. If you plan correctly and save up your premium resources/tickets you do have a good shot at pulling the units you want. The pity system is also quite forgiving with banner pity carrying over from past events.
NEW PLAYER EXPERIENCE:
One of the best parts about starting the game is that by working through the new player challenges you get access to one of the best units in the game – Nox. It’s also one of the few gacha games where common rarity units are exceptional. For example, B-Class sinner Labyrinth is one of the top core breakers in the team. You will feel like a boss busting back to back cores with her ultimate. This isn’t the only exception. There are an assortment of more common rarity units that offer great utility that will help carry you in the game until eventually you do gain access to more S-Class sinners. This is a smart choice on the design side. Making more common rarity units have a place and purpose in the game.
TIPS:
Complete the missions that allow you to unlock Nox for free. Nox is one of the best units in the entire game and will be a core part of your team even in end game content. Be very selective in which units you upgrade initially as resources will be limited. Focus on your best core breakers like Labyrinth, Che and Hecate and your top damage dealers like Nox. If you’re having a problem with a stage, its likely you don’t have enough or the right core breakers and/or your top damage dealer is under powered.
Chapter 10 is a major shift in difficulty. This is usually the point to chill and level up your units instead of trying to power through. With the right core breakers and your main damage dealer powered up you’ll make it through much easier. These type of games are meant to be progressed over time as you slowly gain resources. Events are great opportunities to gain an abundance of resources to level up your units. Try to complete as many missions as you can.
Don’t forget to do your interrogations. The premium resources you gain from them stack up. Also like many gacha games, plan and research which units to pull and pass on. Doing so will allow you to have enough resources saved up to get the exact units you want.
CLOSING THOUGHTS:
Stellar character design, intriguing storylines, evocative music and strategic gameplay are all interwoven in this tower defense game. It’s rare for a game to be hitting on so many fundamental elements and create an identity that is unique without trying to replicate something that is already popular. This type of IP holds so much potential. I could see it expanding into various other mediums and games. Path to Nowhere has heart and style and I hope many of you wander into DisCity to explore its characters and stories.
Thanks for checking out this overview friend! Neon Vanguard is about curating and connecting you with games in the mobile and indie space. New articles are released every week. If you enjoyed this content, please like, share and subscribe.
GAME DETAILS
PLATFORMS: Android/iOS
RELEASE: 2022
DEVELOPER/PUBLISHER: Aisno Games
GENRE/TAGS: Tower Defense, Story Driven, Real Time Strategy, RPG, PVE
TARGET AUDIENCE: Story and character focused gamers that enjoy strategy and tower defense with a mix of innovative gameplay modes and exceptional art design and voice acting.
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