"The Stone of Madness" almost drove me mad
"The Stone of Madness" combines real-time strategy with stealth adventure. The new game from the developers of "Blasphemous" is the antithesis of an action title and once again makes me realise that I have no soft spot for this genre.
With sweaty hands, I steer the fiery Leonora between the guards of a Spanish monastery. I try to sneak up on one of them to take her out with my knife. When I'm supposedly close enough, Leonora throws her hands in front of her face - I'm too close to a fireplace. Fire triggers her trauma and she can't strike. The guard turns round, grabs her and takes her to the cell for the rest of the day.
But I really needed her that day alongside the other playable characters to take out the guard. After that, I could have used Alfredo's lantern to examine the tracks on the ground, which would have revealed a secret switch. This in turn would have opened up a secret passage through which Amelia could have squeezed herself. This leads to a locked room containing a monk's love letters for a nun, which I could have used to blackmail the author. Now I have to try again the next day.
You see: In "The Stone of Madness", I have to be strategic in order to achieve my goals. The gameplay is fun, the characters are quirky, the level design is exciting and the presentation is cool. However, the awkward controls and bugs spoil the fun of the game.
Breaking out of the madhouse
"The Stone of Madness" is inspired by real-time tactics classics such as "Commandos" and "Desperados", but mixes their game mechanics with psychological survival elements. In the game, I have to help five characters escape from a run-down monastery that functions as an asylum. The whole thing is set in 18th century Spain.
In addition to the aforementioned characters Leonora, Alfredo and Amelia, I play the witch Agnes and the mute giant Eduardo. Alfredo is also the narrator of the story. He was sent to the madhouse because he wanted to uncover dark machinations behind the monastery walls. Eduardo, Agnes and Leonora are imprisoned in the convent because their behaviour does not conform to the norm at the time. Little Amelia, on the other hand, has lost her parents and is therefore being brought up by the nuns. They all want just one thing: to break out.
Source: The Game Kitchen
In the course of their escape, I uncover the secrets of the monastery and the eponymous stone. I have to choose one of two campaigns, which increases the replay value. The story is not particularly imaginative, but fulfils its purpose. In any case, the game lives from its crazy, yet likeable main characters. In order for them to get to freedom, I have to utilise the different strengths of Alfredo and co. and take their weaknesses into account.
Almost infinite possibilities to get to your destination
Each character has different abilities that can be used during the day or at night. "The Stone of Madness" has a day and night cycle. During the day, time passes, which changes the paths of NPCs such as the guards. Monks, on the other hand, disappear into their rooms in the evening. Instead, Animas - supernatural beings - appear, who follow me like the guards and knock me unconscious if they discover me. So I also have to adapt my actions to the time of day.
Source: The Game Kitchen
During the day, I explore the monastery, collect resources and items from crates and so on. I always have to keep an eye on my current objectives. Early on in the game, I have to make my way to a character who thinks she's a hen and dresses like one. To get to her, I have to bridge a hole in the ground. Fortunately, the strong Eduardo can carry planks and build bridges from them. Unfortunately, the way there is dark and the giant is afraid of the dark. So I fall back on the witch Agnes, who can either ignite or extinguish fires within a certain radius, and I've already built my makeshift bridge.
There are numerous ways to reach the goal, which also makes a new playthrough tasty. For example, instead of starting the fire with Agnes, I could have used Alfredo's lantern or taken a diversion with Amelia via her secret passageways.
In addition to the skills, I also have to keep an eye on the characters' weaknesses. Amelia, for example, is afraid of stone figures. If I'm near them, she moves more slowly and her mental health decreases. This is shown on a display from zero to 100. If the value reaches zero, new fears are added to the existing ones. In my case, for example, Alfredo also became afraid of loud noises.
Source: The Game Kitchen
Luckily, the value of mental health or health points, which are also available, can be replenished during the night. During this time, I don't control the characters in real time, but give them commands via menus. Alfredo heals the wounds of all characters with some bandages and when Amelia plays with someone, this restores part of her mental health. Eduardo, on the other hand, can use resources to make useful items such as lock picks for Leonora. But be careful: resources are not infinite. Once crates and the like have been searched, new items will no longer appear.
If I'm missing something, I can count on the second inmate NPC, Panecillo. The man with a baguette for a hat, with whom he likes to have dialogues, runs the black market in the monastery. I also find money on my exploratory tours. If I'm ever short of money, Leonora can sell items to the guards at night. As well as material things, a full purse helps me to keep the guards at bay: Leonora can bribe them and thus lower the suspicion value. The higher this is, the quicker the guards will notice the characters.
Source: The Game Kitchen
Finally, I collect wisdom points from conversations, the course of the story or from books that Alfredo reads at night. Alfredo and co. use these to learn new skills that give me advantages in achieving my goals.
In short: "The Stone of Madness" offers plenty of variety and numerous features.
The controls are the game's weak point
As great as the possibilities sound: If they are poorly implemented, the gameplay suffers. Unfortunately, this is the case here. The controls seem half-baked. The transition from one action to the next is not as smooth as I would like it to be. For example, if I want to shoot a guard instead of knocking him unconscious with a board, I first have to make an awkward choice. In more than one dicey situation, this took too long. Or I was caught by guards because the controls weren't intuitive and I couldn't finish an action quickly enough to get out of an enemy's field of vision.
Source: The Game Kitchen
It's annoying when I have to repeat a stealth sequence several times and sometimes even have to wait a whole day-night cycle to try again. In these situations, I almost smashed my beloved Steam Deck against the wall.
Which I didn't do, because I'm actually a rather level-headed person. Nevertheless, the game almost drove me mad several times. Not because of the controls, but because of my own incompetence. I don't really like real-time strategy games because they simply don't suit me. So why did I test the game anyway? Because I absolutely adore the "Blasphemous" games from developer team The Game Kitchen.
The "Blasphemous"-like art style also impresses with strategy
The broken world and the art style are the big similarities between the "Blasphemous" games and "The Stone of Madness". I love the setting in the shabby monastery, the quirky character designs and the comic-like cutscenes. I feel right at home in one of the brilliant "Blasphemous" titles. Everything looks like it's been cast from a single mould and supports the mood of the beautifully run-down world.
Source: The Game Kitchen
I'm not only impressed by the visual presentation, but also by the level design. The structure of the monastery is very well thought out, making it fun to explore. The individual areas are connected in different ways, which I only unravel over time.
It's a shame that the soundtrack and sound effects can't quite keep up. They don't blow me away, but they fulfil their purpose.
Although the game looks great visually, I encountered a few bugs and glitches. For example, a guard got stuck in a crate or characters simply disappeared. The isometric camera perspective also sometimes creates optical illusions and I don't understand where I have to go right from the start.
"The Stone of Madness" will be released on 28 January 2025 for PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series. The game was provided to me for testing purposes for the PC.
In a nutshell
Atmospheric real-time strategy with less harmonious controls and bugs
"The Stone of Madness" impresses with its intelligent gameplay and atmospheric visual presentation. There are countless ways to progress in the wonderfully grotesque monastery, which has been converted into a madhouse. In my opinion, the art style familiar from the "Blasphemous" games perfectly reflects Spain at the time of the Inquisition.
Unfortunately, some of the controls seem half-baked and - in addition to my own inability to play real-time strategy games - cause me a lot of frustration. If I have to wait a whole day-night cycle because of this, it's enough to make me tear my hair out - if I hadn't already been bald, I'd be bald by now at the latest. There are also bugs and glitches as well as a sometimes confusing camera perspective.
Too bad, with a little more fine-tuning "The Stone of Madness" could have been really good. However, fans of real-time strategy with stealth elements could still get their money's worth if they can cope with the poor controls and bugs.
Pro
- Many and well thought-out gameplay options
- crazy cast
- Exciting setting
- cool art style
Contra
- the controls are sometimes maddening
- Numerous bugs and glitches
- Sometimes confusing camera perspective
Header image: The Game Kitchen
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Kevin Hofer
Senior Editor
kevin.hofer@digitecgalaxus.chFrom big data to big brother, Cyborgs to Sci-Fi. All aspects of technology and society fascinate me.
