Game of Thrones

In a situation that echoes the stories of the fantasy franchise it's newest RPG is based, (Video)Game of Thrones is a clash of two warring ideologies, two creative backdrops: one servicing George R.R Martin original best-selling novels, the other HBO's critically-acclaimed television adaptation.

The studio started work on its own interpretative vision of the A Song of Ice and Fire - currently a five-book spanning epic involving multiple casts of characters and swaying between political subterfuge and all-out war across a divided kingdom - three years ago.

Back then it was barely more than a half-dozen people working on a pitch. But soon staff numbers swelled from eight to forty as development changed gear past pre-production, with each member's selection hinging on whether they were a fan of the novels or not.

Back then, they'd heard rumblings of the rights being seeded for a television show. But they continued work on what would become a twenty-five to forty-hour adventure set across a twelve month stretch running in parallel with the events of the first book A Game of Thrones.

The Ranger and the Lord of Light

Grand plans to match the wide-ranging scope of the author's imagination in both geography and multiple characters diminished as the studio knuckled down to keeping this epic world in check: two very different perspectives were chosen: Night's Watch ranger Mors Westford and Alester Sarwyek, acolyte of the Lord of Light and heir to Riverspring. Both have secrets to keep.

The game's linear in structure rather than open world, allowing the studio to focus on building a rich narrative that mirrored the series.
While the two characters begin their story separately and are joined by an ally on their different quests, the game alternating between the two as per book, and each character chapter ending on cliffhangers as per the TV show, the two eventually come together for the latter part of the game.

Control isn't direct in combat, a quick button press slowing the fight momentarily and allowing you to strategise attacks based on your characters' currently unlocked abilities. You can stack three moves at any given time, and assign each to a different foe.

Differing weapons and armour types used by both you and the enemy offer various defensive problems and attacking solutions, tactics and
survival expanding in true paper/rock/scissors RPG fashion.

Character customisation, levelling systems, as well as ability and skill trees offer variety, though everything comes with a hefty text box that'll need perusing to work out the benefits. You can choose three different combat styles ranging from defensive focus to outright attacks, and assign two different weapon load-outs to switch instantly between during battle.

Another Westeros

We're told the studio designed its Westeros from novel descriptions and maintained a close dialogue with its creator throughout. Both to keep abridged of those events yet to be written and not clash with future reveals, and to ensure the look of the iconic locations were accurate.

Lead designer Sylvain Sechi tells us during the game's hour-long presentation of Martin first seeing the Wall in-game. The author thought it too big until Cyanide told him it was accurate to the six hundred feet measurement of his text, leaving the writer to concede his visualisation of the barrier hadn't matched its true spectacle.

We're toured through Castle Black, around the iconic throne room in King's Landing, and a multitude of keep corridors, forest glades, even a brothel - at the behest of one journalist enquiring if the game will mimic the sex and gore of the TV show (it won't, we're told, and instead it'll pour its energies into matching the political machinations and razor-sharp dialogue that is the text's other strengths).

Locations, faces, armour - all look correct, yet oddly different. Cyanide finds itself in the unfortunate quandary of the three-year development span landing it in the shadow of the television show who has, for many millions, already imprinted the look and feel of Westros so vividly. Come the game's release in June, the second season will have just concluded airing.

On one hand, it means a ready-made receptive audience clamouring for more. Yet it also means some of the audience coming with preconceptions of what Game of Thrones should look like.

For the observer, its an interesting situation. CD Projekt Red and 4A Games, developers of The Witcher and Metro series respectively could make their image of their source novels the definitive version.

Cyanide has the added pressure then of pandering to multiple audiences. What results is an amalgamation of multiple interpretations.

So Castle Black sits nestled in the crook of a Wall and impressive lift system that looks a replica of the TV series, but the castle's grounds are wider, less enclosed. There's a conversation to be heard at every corner. The Watch is as sullen as ever, but you gain a better insight into the wider Watch past the principle characters. In King's Landing, the throne room is more lavishly decorated, due to the time frame set before King Joffrey's restructuring, and you get a glimpse of the hallways and murals that lie behind the main entrance to the chamber.

Changing Faces

Alongside new faces we get familiar characters and voices. Mors and his connection to Castle Black means we come face to face with Lord Commander Jeor Mormont. In King's Landing, Alester and his bastard brother gain an audience with Cersei. The game's intro, serving as a recap for fans eager to know the when (Year 298) and where (everywhere between the Wall and King's Landing) and to introduce newcomers to the world, features voice work by Varys, who also plays a role to play in the story.

The resemblance between character and actor is a decent approximation, though the game's distinct art style means those with live-action counterparts to mimic look slightly more refined or detailed compared to other NPCs. The voice acting does the job commendably well, and the work with other NPCs follow suit.

In a way, the game achieves something neither the books or TV series has achieved, though its not so clearly signposted. As stated, the studio had long discussions with Martin so that the narrative and dialogue - tallying the same amount as the first novel come the end of the game's scripting - wouldn't clash with what the writer would reveal in later stories.

Thus the slow seeping of magic into a story heavy with swords and political intrigue will only be used within those boundaries dictated by the world's creator, and the studio raise the point that there are aspects of the world shown in the game that have been unseen even in the novels.

That plays directly into Alester's character, and his association with the Lord of Light. The Riverspring heir can use fire magic spells either to attack or to locate hidden items. Sechi eludes to the true face of this religious cult, and to having a better grasp of its setup than what's been see so far.

Likewise Mors's ability to transplant his mind into his loyal canine companion and control it directly not only offers different gameplay elements - track down a scent, stealth kills on unsuspecting guards - but an aspect of the world's magic not yet seen by television viewers.

There's a lot of information packed into the hour and a half presentation, and the studio acknowledge the pressure to deliver something that matches both other mediums in every respect.

The Conversation of War

Of the game itself we only see those handful of scenes detailed; both characters' introductions, familiar surroundings, then a handful of battles between the pair and small groups of knights across a series of corridors. These scenes also throw in stealth gameplay by way of tracking guard patrols through the dog's vision.

Between and quickly skipped through are dialogue scenes. Game of Thrones operates a flowing conversation system that forces you down whatever path you've initially picked; as with the show, there's little chance to linger. The developer wants you to be aware that every choice has consequence, a fact that embodies the sharp-tongued conversations of the series.

There's four possible endings to the game. Chapters will have multiple concluding routes, and decisions come with consequences - exampled is an instance of presiding over prisoner fates, and sentencing or freeing them playing into matters later on when the castle you're all in comes under siege.

Literary tie-ins have with them a degree of flexibility. TV and movie tie-ins, less so. That could be Games of Thrones biggest strength and yet its biggest curse. It's not looking to match the heights of The Witcher 2 or Elder Scrolls, but then, it doesn't need to. It's already got a deep-rooted fiction and several million devotees in great supply. All it needs to do is leave us as hooked as each episode or book chapter does. Do that, and this canon-approved story is already perched on a throne of someone else's making.