Athenian Rhapsody [Review]
Comedy RPG lacks heart and falls flat.
Athenian Rhapsody. Credit: Nico Papalia / Top Hat Studios
Obviously inspired by Undertale and in turn by Earthbound, Athenian Rhapsody is an RPG made by solo developer Nico Papalia with a focus on comedy. Unfortunately, the game lacks the heart of the games that inspired it, with comedy that mostly falls flat.
Athenian Rhapsody is about exploring the zany world of Athens, where you must decide whether to kill or befriend characters and creatures you meet. The only semblance of a plot is that Athens used to be a peaceful place, but now everyone is obsessed with EXP and are willing to kill eachother to get it, all very meta.
Athenian Rhapsody. Credit: Nico Papalia / Top Hat Studios
The writing focuses on humor and the absurd, but unfortunately I just didn’t find it very good and didn’t feel motivated to continue spending time talking to the game’s many NPCs. I appreciate how surreal the game’s world is, and absurdity works, but it feels like it’s there for its own sake and not in the service of character and plot. It’s funny a handful of times and the rest falls flat. The game is very one note and I just wish the story and writing were more engaging; to me that’s one of the most important pillars of an RPG.
If you’ve played Undertale, the gameplay will be familiar. You explore the world and meet NPCs while also fighting creatures in turn-based battles where there’s a real-time element to combat, minigames you must play to avoid taking damage. Your other option is to befriend everyone rather than fight them, but you’ve still got to contend with the minigames as you’ll be attacked while spending turns discovering how to fill your opponent’s friendship meter. Some characters you befriend will join your party. However, you can only have one partner at a time to follow you around and help you in battle.
Athenian Rhapsody. Credit: Nico Papalia / Top Hat Studios
Athenian Rhapsody has a “Rhapsody System,” where players are able to share their individual playthrough’s story with other players. The game is described as having no two playthroughs ever be the same because there are so many choices to make throughout. The idea of collectible and tradable saves is definitely novel.
Athenian Rhapsody does have charming art. Its clearly Earthbound inspired looks are colorful and the character and creature designs are fun. The game is in a 2D top down perspective as is common for pixel art retro RPGs. In battle, characters get depicted in larger animated portraits, and they look great.
Based on what I knew its inspirations to be, I had high hopes for Athenian Rhapsody. Maybe the writing is fine and the humor just didn’t click with me, but the game pales in comparison with other similar RPGs.
Athenian Rhapsody is available now on PC (Steam / Epic / GOG), Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 / 5, iOS, Android, and Xbox Series X|S.
Overall Score: 5/10
Played on: PS5
