LIT ON THE SPOT - REVIEW

Masquerada: Songs and Shadows is a humble top-down RPG that does the most important things exactly right: it tells a good story, with a fascinating protagonist and important social commentary, while it engages the player with an efficient combat system that may not be that complex, but works well for most of the time.

The game’s story follows a man called Cicero Gavar, who is summoned back from exile to assist in an investigation on the whereabouts of an important researcher. He assumes the role of Inspetore and his findings will make him navigate dangerous waters, as he uncovers long forgotten secrets about the world he lives in.

Cicero is a character haunted by his past, or more specifically, by his brother’s legacy. Cicero’s brother, Cyrus, organized a revolution, taking the tools of power in the city of Ombre – masks – and distributing them to everyone. Cicero, however, didn’t help the movement, and the revolution failed and his brother was killed. Because of his neutrality in the matter, he is shunned by both sides: the politicians in the Spire accuse him of not doing his duty, while and the remnants of the rebel group, the Maskrunners, accuse him of cowardice to stand up against an unjust government. As one of the rebel leaders tells Cicero; “You didn’t choose at all! A spineless pathetic man is easier to hate than even a traitor.”

So, when he is called back to Ombre, Cicero must confront his past mistakes. He starts the game already understanding that his neutrality was a farce: silence is always the reaffirmation of the status quo, and he knows that now. But, at the same time, he is now employed by the very same government that killed his brother. The revolution failed, and he must live with this fact. That doesn’t mean that he has to like it, though. When questioned by his friend on why he is so bitter about wearing again the Inspetore uniform, Cicero’s answer is revealing: “Because this symbolises everything about me that my brother would disapprove of. And I am wearing it.” This small answer shows how Cicero still doesn’t care about the Maskrunners, about the revolution, about the injustices of the world. He is aware of them, but what he cares about is Cyrus. For Cicero, things are not political, but personal. It’s the ghost of his brother that haunts him throughout the game.

And Cicero’s solution to that is not ideal: he wants to hide from it. When questioned by the same friend, he answers: “You think getting me to talk about my past will help me get over it – it won’t. I’ve spent the past five years burying the man that abandoned his brother and fled the city. Stop trying to bring him back.” Cicero is an interesting protagonist because when faced with political problems, his reactions are not based on his ideologies, but on his character’s flaws. He was neutral in his brother’s revolution because he’s incapable of engagement. He can’t choose sides. He can’t stand politics. He wants to hide in a shell and be left alone. In his journals, Cicero explains this very well:

“My entire life thus far has been an attempt to disengage. When I was young, my brother and I kept to the shadows of the streets – we hunted where the other children would not, we stole from the houses that were the targets of no others. This was a choice I made for us, because I believed that the fewer ties we developed with the world around us, the less they had to hurt us with.”

Cicero doesn’t choose sides and wants to stay away from politics, simply because it’s safer to do so. He’s a coward. He sees danger in being an activist and so he hides. That the game focuses so much on masks makes him a fitting protagonist: what Cicero wants most is to hide behind a mask, to construct a persona that makes him safe.

However, as the plot unfolds, he learns that his mask – although powerful – demands a cost in lives – sometimes even literally as he eventually discovers. In Ombre, masks are a symbol of power because the bestow power. They separate castes – the Masquerada and the Contadani – and enforce them. Those who wear masks have magical power at their disposal, creating a cruel circular argument: they have masks that make them stronger and they argue that because they are stronger that they deserve the masks and have the right to rule. It’s no surprise, then, that Cicero’s brother wanted to distribute the masks to everyone: he wants to break the wheel and socialize power. But Cyrus failed.

The story of Masquerada begins as an investigation and evolves to one of revolution. Cicero starts to uncover the secrets behind the masks – their original nature and purpose – and as he progresses in his duty he stumbles upon the menacing figure of the Herald. The Herald is the game’s antagonist: a religious fanatic that wants peace – that’s good – but wants to achieve that by killing a lot of innocent people – that’s bad. It’s the classic case of the villain who has a noble goal, but terribly misguided methods. What makes the Herald a bit more interesting, then, is the fact that he knows what he is. He sees that he is the author of carnage and basically genocide. He doesn’t want to be part of any of that – he abhors all that – but his faith binds him with the promise of an elusive reward: the greater good. There is a scene in which, after questioning his God and obtaining no answer, the Herald releases a deep cry of frustration and pain: he starts to understand that faith is not enough of a justification to violence.

To assist him in his journey Cicero manages to form a group of so-called friends. This group is unique at first because it’s not a united one. No one trusts anyone. It’s no surprise, for instance, that when one of the characters reveals to Cicero the truth about their sexuality, Cicero asks them to not tell the rest of the group, with fear of reprisal. They all guard secrets and one of them is even honest enough to say out loud that she is a spy infiltrated in the investigation to report to her guild about their findings.

Although each one of them goes through a kind of narrative arc, not everyone comes out as a fascinating character. It doesn’t help that the game is never subtle about that either: “The Mariner has learned acceptance. The Bloodling chose sacrifice. The Maskrunner has lowered her wall, and the Marshal…she listens to her heart again,” one of the characters summarizes near the end.

Even Cicero’s narrative arc is spelled out in his journal, as he learns the fallacy of neutrality: “By those immutable facts, we impact the world, no matter how deep a hole we try to isolate ourselves in. We are accountable for the influence that we have on those around us, no matter if it was inflicted by our design or by uncontrollable circumstance.”

On the gameplay department, we could describe Masquerada as a “Pillars of Eternity lite”. It’s a Top-Down RPG in which you control a party of three characters with skills. It’s lite because the game doesn’t have exploration and side quests, the characters only have four skills, there are no complex combos, and the basic attack activates automatically when near an enemy. It’s a linear game, plain and simple: even skill points are awarded at specific predetermined times, and not by defeating monsters or completing missions.

Even so, there are some issues. To revive a team member, for example, you have to get near them and press “A”. However, “A” is the same button that activates one of the four skills: frustration is then inevitable. Besides that, the skills are all too similar, which makes changing the character you control on the fly a bit redundant.

Another problem is that Masquerada has an abundance of lore and it’s too enamored with it for its own good. Everywhere you go there you see a codex entry describing a place or a historical event you couldn’t care less. The game proves the maxim “show, don’t tell”, by telling too much and showing too little, making the player bored in the process.

And presentation wise, the game’s art style invest in a lot of colors, giving it a striking look. Cutscenes are presented in animated panels, and the general direction has heavy Italian influences. The only downside is the lackluster soundtrack, since it has only one mood: solemn. When you are at the Spire, the music is solemn. When you are at the streets, the music is solemn. When you are visiting any other place, the music is solemn. The only exception is your headquarters – the music is melancholic – and obviously the combat – the music has a bit, but just a bit of energy. For a game that has “Songs” in its title, this is definitely a disappointment.

Masquerada: Songs and Shadows is a simple RPG with a good story. It could have been much better, though, if it developed just a bit more its side characters, let go of its worldbuilding and boasted a more varied and interesting soundtrack. It’s a great game, but had the potential to be much more.

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