Baldur’s Gate 3 sparked a lot of reinvigorated interest in the classic isometric RPG style, and a new game called The Thaumaturge could be the perfect follow-up for anyone itching for me. Generally speaking, the isometric perspective in RPGs goes hand-in-hand with the classic approach of 90s PC entries in the genre, with a focus on deep player choice and branching story possibilities. When paired with modern updates to combat and quality-of-life, it can be an especially potent cocktail.
As of March 4, The Thaumaturge can officially be purchased on Steam, following a couple of release date delays that saw the launch shift from December to February and then to the current date. Billing itself as a “story-driven RPG with morally ambiguous choices,” The Thaumaturge takes on a 20th century Warsaw setting and puts a supernatural twist on it. Like Baldur’s Gate 3, the game features turn-based combat, in this case presenting attacks as card choices.
Every Video Game Release Date (March 2024)
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The Thaumaturge Is A Perfect Baldur’s Gate 3 Follow-Up
From Faerun to a New Realm
There are a lot of key highlights of Baldur’s Gate 3 that The Thaumaturge also hits on, making the transition possibly easier than jumping back to an earlier Baldur’s Gate game or picking from the wide variety of isometric RPGs already on the market. The most obvious lies in the detailed graphical presentation, with environments that feature an impressive level of Unreal Engine 5 complexity and conversations that play out face-to-face. The titular art of thaumaturgy is also reminiscent of Baldur’s Gate 3‘s illithid powers, offering mystical abilities that come at a potential cost.
The Thaumaturge is also very much its own thing, however, and it looks like some of its unique ideas could be exciting. The historical setting is one key facet that sets it apart from the more typical fantasy or sci-fi worlds of the genre, especially considering that Warsaw isn’t a city that’s been heavily covered in the video game realm. The ability to use the powers of salutors in combat gives it a bit of creature-collecting flair, but with allies who are significantly more creepy than cute.
The game also crafts its own system for investigations, making a player’s ability to scrounge up leads and answers a significant part of progress. It’s an area that’s been covered by games like L.A. Noire and Disco Elysium, but pairing it with an extensive combat system makes for a package that’s hard to find. Manipulating and influencing others also ties into The Thaumaturge‘s salutor system, with four dimensions of powers aligning to make different NPCs susceptible.
The Thaumaturge developer Fool’s Theory has previously tried their hand at the genre with Seven, and publisher 11 Bit Studios recently released the visually stunning sci-fi tale The Invincible. If The Thaumaturge represents a meaningful evolution of Fool’s Theory’s prior work, it could definitely make a splash in the isometric RPG scene. Finishing a Baldur’s Gate 3 campaign can be bittersweet, but having a game like The Thaumaturge makes it easier to ignore the bitter and focus on the sweet.
The Thaumaturge
- Platform(s)
- PC , PlayStation 5 , Xbox Series X/S
- Released
- March 4, 2024
- Developer(s)
- Fool’s Theory
- Publisher(s)
- 11 Bit Studios
- Genre(s)
- Horror , RPG
- ESRB
- M
