Ever wanted more Disco Elysium but from another studio? The Thaumaturge is a 2024 isometric game that’s touted to have exciting dialogue options and unforgettable characters. Critics at Player.com hope Fool’s Theory delivers on its promise, which is a story-driven experience with many RPG elements, such as skill trees and unlockable gear.
In the world of The Thaumaturge, Salutors, ethereal beings, exist. Salutors can’t be seen with the naked eye, but Thaumaturges won’t only see them but also use their psychic powers for themselves. It’s a unique flip of the script, letting players experience the character’s magic powers and investigative skills.
Also Similar: How to Fast Travel in Disco Elysium?
The Thaumaturge’s Top 6 Game Mechanics
The Thaumaturge is full of new features, down to innovative visual cues and fighting mechanics. This list breaks down the top six mechanics you should look forward to using in-game. They not only make up the core of The Thaumaturge but they’re also tied to the lore. Interested in some visual novel games? Have a look at the other titles here.
#1: Machinate Your Desired Ending
The Thaumaturge shines because of its turn-based combat, but leading to each fight are diverse dialogue options. You can ally with whoever you want or burn certain bridges depending on your mood and, of course, your ambitions. That said, your decisions affect the fate of your environment and its inhabitants. Moreover, a Salutor knows the human soul like no other, so you’re not a regular observer.
The presence of the skill tree also contributes to your freedom. Your approach to combat and diplomatic situations alike changes depending on certain skills at your disposal. So, we can expect high replayability, meaning the game might have multiple endings.
That said, let’s discuss Flaws in The Thaumaturge. Every character, including the protagonist, has a Flaw embedded deep in their souls, and only Salutors and by proxy, Thaumaturges can see it. Flaws are caused by negative emotions and traumatic scenarios. If you feed a target’s Flaws, influencing their thoughts and daily activities becomes easy.
#2: Experience Crime and Luxury as Two Sides of a Coin
You’ll truly experience crime and luxury in The Thaumaturge. It’ll have you attending balls in one minute and robbing the drunk members the minute after. It’s akin to ice and lava, and we wonder if the protagonist is capable enough to survive the aftermath. Additionally, you’ll experience 1905 Warsaw in all of its glory, so you can bask in many historical moments.
The choice is up to you whether to partake in one or the other. Your pacing is also up to you, so engage in your dark desires while making history as an enigmatic Thaumaturge. There’s already confirmation that Grigori Rasputin will appear in the game, though he isn’t playable.
#3: Experience Unreal Engine 5
Unreal Engine 5 is a technological marvel that heralds a new age of visual storytelling. Games, movies, animated films, and many more are already benefiting from its photorealistic visuals. The Thaumaturge is another title using the famous game engine in 2024. Naturally, that means better lighting effects, ambient occlusion, shadows, movement, and facial animations, and the weather system will be realistic to a fault. Hopefully, the game will also be available in 4K at 60 FPS.
#4: Tame the Salutors
The Salutors are ethereal beings that are inspired by the in-game folklore to be magical beings who can perceive the human soul. Soul manipulation isn’t new to many gamers, but we doubt you’ll be able to raise or reanimate the dead. Rather, Wiktor, the protagonist, can use psychic powers by taming Salutors. Besides shredding people’s mental fortitude to shreds, we look forward to using some mind-reading abilities.
Overall, Salutors’ abilities are divided into four, which are Deed, Mind, Heart, and Word. Mind abilities deal with secrets of the mind, whereas Deed powers are by-products of actions such as smashing and pulling. Heart refers to feelings of love, hatred, regret, or any strong emotion that’s being covered up. Finally, Word lets you discover all the words that were uttered by your target, including all their whispers and screams.
Salutors are also attached to Flaws, so you’ll find them following traumatised NPCs around. You can then extract the Flaw and the Salutor you want will follow you instead. Thankfully, The Thaumaturge is being developed by a CD Projekt Red-affiliated studio, so the developers are bound to bounce ideas between themselves. Moreover, Fool’s Theory is spearheading the development of The Witcher 1 remake, so creating magic powers that we’ll enjoy shouldn’t be difficult. So far, the studio has announced four Salutor, which are:
- Upyr.
- Lelek.
- Bukavac.
- Weles.
#5: Enjoy a Reinvented Turn-Based Combat
The turn-based combat of The Thaumaturge is completely reimagined because of the Salutors at your disposal. Fool’s Theory mentioned that Wiktor will control more than four Salutors already, so switching your fighting style won’t be difficult. To that end, each Salutor has different abilities for you to master in combat.
Having Salutors at your beck and call doesn’t mean you can’t kill foes using guns. We don’t know if Wiktor can use other weapons such as knives, machetes, and grenades. Still, the fights against other Thaumaturges are what we’re anticipating the most.
#6: A Power-Hungry Protagonist Awaits
Wiktor is a power-hungry protagonist who the game portrays as a troublemaker because he’s a Thaumaturge. In simpler terms, his main power is a representation of his in-born Flaw, which is pride. The good thing is that pride can be helpful sometimes and harmful at other times. So, one can say a Thaumaturge is a Salutor’s favourite meal; Both are attracted to each other like metals to magnets. So, the rule of thumb is that Thaumaturges should only have one Salutor.
Fortunately for players, Wiktor doesn’t follow that rule, so hunting down other Salutors will be a rewarding experience. For one, we’re already wondering if it’s possible to steal Salutors from other Thaumaturges.
Our Final Say: Facial Animations in the Trailer Still Need Some Tweaks
Facial animations aren’t the smoothest in the trailer, and we hope The Witcher 4: Polaris won’t look like this. Nonetheless, The Thaumaturge’s facial animations should have been improved by the time it’s launched in February 2024. The trailer showcases that it’s already playable. That said, check out the best Nintendo Switch games there before it’s released.