⚔️ The Tale Of Bistun Xbox Review 6/10 "A little less conversation, a little more action…" ⚔️ @IMGNPRO @Bart_IMGN #GameDev #IndieGames

The Tale of Bistun appeared to be an interesting prospect. It’s a heavily narrative-driven adventure, and most that we Western audiences are exposed to commonly involve a modern setting and/or some sort of zombie apocalypse. So, this was certainly something new.

I can safely say that this is the first game I have played that is based on a Persian poem, namely Khosrow and Shirin, written by Nizami Ganjavi in the 12th century. I won’t go into what the poem is about because it unfolds in front of you as you play the game.

You start the game waking up with no memories. You soon discover that you are called Farhad, that you are a mason of some sort, and there is a woman whom you need to seek out. The story is narrated in the voice of the protagonist and this narration runs throughout, telling the tale. The appearance of the game is a fairly normal isometric view, and you spend your time in lush mountain and cave environments. 

The look of the game is subtly beautiful, and the landscape is a pleasure to wander around. You needn’t fear getting lost though as a helpful bird will lead the way (which is fortunate as there’s little other way of knowing). The camera isn’t always perfect (you don’t control it at all) and I found the character animation a little awkward at times. The music is very good, being suitably dreamlike and matching the visuals well.

The actual game itself though is a big disappointment. It’s simply too easy and too linear. You come across discreet battles (you enter a zone that becomes blocked off until you kill every in it) that don’t really feel that natural as part of the story. And, the fights are just not taxing for anyone with a modicum of gaming skill. Even I wasn’t challenged by it, and that’s saying something.  The fights also aren’t that complicated either. Button mashing will usually allow you to prevail.

When you’re not scrapping with goblins, you’re following your magical bird friend around the land. A land with perilous stone bridges (that you can’t fall off) and dangerous cliffs (that you also can’t fall off). You go into dream realms at some points, but though these also look great, it’s still just more of the same slow gameplay with little threat.

Fans of this game (and there will be many I’m sure), will relish in what it is – a well-written interactive story. If you are interested in an epic Persian romance and just want some gentle game mechanics to nudge the story along, then this may well be for you. I found the narration too overbearing personally, as it was near constant, and I prefer my stories to be told more through action than longwinded exposition.