Xbox Game Pass Just Quietly Added Capcom's Most Ingenious Strategy Game
A dazzling hybrid of genres.
A horde of demons surges across the hills, determined to eliminate the sacred priestess you’re protecting, and all you have to stop them is your sword and a gaggle of helpful villagers. Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is an inventive fusion of action and tower defense strategy created by one of the masters of action games, Capcom. It’s filled with artistic flair and innovative design, and it’s easily one of the most unique titles we’ve seen from any studio in years. Kunitsu-Gami was a must-play in 2024, and it’s even more essential now that it’s free on Xbox Game Pass.
Kunitsu-Gami’s brilliance lies in its subtlety. Its unpronounced narrative weaves a fascinating tale through only body language, while its strategy and action elements, which initially feel disparate, merge into an incredibly compelling system. It’s a game that feels mysterious and unwieldy at first, then becomes intoxicating as you grasp its formula.
Strategy and action are given equal measure in Kunitsu-Gami.
You play as a mysterious masked warrior named Soh, whose sole task is to protect a priestess named Yoshiro. Alongside Yoshiro, you help govern the human world from atop the mythical Mt. Kafuku. One day, portals appear on the mountain, spewing forth creatures called Seethe that devour humans and defile the land. You need to retake the mountain, playing through dozens of levels that have you reclaiming villages and settlements from the Seethe.
Each level in Kunitsu-Gami is a self-contained map where you need to protect Yoshiro as she advances to the end. There are multiple routes you can have Yoshiro take, and she’ll advance during the daytime but stop at night, when the Seethe come out. That means the game is essentially split into two halves where you explore and prepare, then fight off enemies.
Kunitsu-Gami primarily plays like an action game, letting you move Soh around levels from a third-person perspective. At night, you’ll use sword combos and abilities to fight off enemies, but that’s not your only tool. Each level grants you a handful of villagers to order around and fulfill different roles. Archers and Gunners can hit enemies from a distance, and climb up towers for even more range. Sumo Wrestlers draw aggro and work as a wall that stops enemies. Shamans can heal allies but can’t fight, while Ascetics use magic to slow enemies, leaving them open to others.
Soh’s attacks have dazzling effects that make them look like a theatrical dance.
Villagers can be assigned to a dozen different roles that you’ll unlock as you progress. You can also assign your carpenter to build defenses: towers for archers, barriers to foil enemies, saws and fireworks that cause damage as Seeth pass through, and cannons you can fire at them.
You always have a wealth of options at your fingertips in Kunitsu-Gami, making it a game of carefully balancing all your strategic choices. You need to figure out the best defense, optimally place structures and villagers, and then fill in the gaps yourself when nighttime comes. The game also does a phenomenal job of throwing a robust array of enemies at you, making each level feel unique and challenging, and often forcing you to adjust your strategy on the fly.
Most impressively, Kunitsu-Gami’s action and strategy systems feel inextricably linked; you simply can’t go through the game without using both. That’s what makes the game so fresh and vibrant, but Kunitsu-Gami does so many other little things right, too.
Between stages, you’ll be able to repair villages for rewards (and pet a few animals).
The entire game sports a beautiful aesthetic inspired by Japanese mythology and art. Menus look like paintings in motion, Soh’s combos are a literal dance of sword moves, and even the Seethe themselves are grotesque mutations of humans fused with Japanese mythological creatures. Everything about the game’s art and world design feels so distinct from anything else out there, and that sense is only heightened through the subdued storytelling that uses exaggerated movements from characters, making the entire thing feel like some grand stage play.
Kunitsu-Gami is one of those games that’ll have you saying, “I’ve never played anything like this.” Yes, it draws elements from tower defense games and some of Capcom’s past hits, like Devil May Cry, but the way it blends everything together is nothing short of ingenious. 2024 had a lot of incredible games, but only Kunitsu-Gami pushed the medium forward in a bold new way.
