Galaxy of Pen and Paper is the sequel to the Knights of Pen and Paper series, by Behold Studios. The game incorporates a lovely art style and unique game mechanic to provide a great experience for fans of strategy and role playing games. I had the opportunity to chat with the team at PAX West this weekend and play the game and was really impressed with it.
The shortest way to explain it is that the game is essentially a game within a game. Since that doesn’t do the game justice let’s go a little bit more in-depth. The game is essentially a DnD campaign, but within a game itself. You play the game as a Game Master, and the in-game players of the campaign at the same time. While there is a main storyline, you have the ability to create scenarios and paths on your own, or follow along on the main path without diverting too much. It plays really well, and the SNES style aesthetic really gives it a nice look and feel.
Another great visual mechanic is that the environment reflects the storyline you’re going through. If your campaign takes a trip to space, your bedroom (the main starting point of the game) changes into the landscape of space. It adds a really nice layer of immersion while also making the playable/combat moments more digestible. Not every interaction in the game is going to land you in combat, but within the game itself you will be faced with questions that have answers based on the characters you’ve created at the beginning of the game.
What’s great about the character creation is that it’s pretty expansive in the types of options you can choose. You can pick the type of chair your GM sits in as well as their clothing and accessories. The in-game players also have customizable attributes from a visual standpoint, and then you can create their skill set as you see fit. It allows you to personalize your experience each time you start a campaign, which extends the replay value tenfold. The combat delivers what’s expected; a nice turn-based system with powered attacks, defense actions, and strategic options to help get you out of tricky situations.
The tl;dr take: It’s a really well done game that provides a fun way to experience an rpg with playful visuals and great replay value. The uniqueness of the storyline but also variables based on character selection and side-questing, I think fans of turn-based games should definitely check this out.
It’s available on Steam now for $14.99. For more information, check out Behold Studios website.
-Written by Andrew (@SoAfterISaid)
