HomeFeaturesFelvidek
The RPS Advent Calendar 2024, December 2ndDay two and already on the booze
Day two and already on the booze
Image credit:RPS
Image credit:RPS
Today’s advent calendar window has an entire cult inside of it. Also, an alcoholic knight speaking in plummy prose between mouthfuls of booze and porridge. What’s more Christmassy than booze and porridge, eh? Not much, we’ll wager. You could pour the boozeinthe porridge, perhaps? You could call it ‘inebrioats’!
Or, you could just playFelvidek!
Image credit:Jozef Pavelka
Genre wise, it’s a JRPG. You can’t argue with me on this, because it says JRPG on the Steam page. Go argue with that. In actuality, the game is set in 15th century Slovakia, but you will do some familiar JRPG things, such as turn-based battling. That all progress here is based on equipment, and there’s no levelling up, might be an issue in a longer game, but Felvidek is a svelte four hours long - an absolute balm in a genre that’s given us a few brilliant though intimidatingly lengthy entries this year.
Really though, Felvidek’s brilliance is down to the story it tells, which has the feel of a very elaborate stage play. It’s both surreal and grounded in the medieval era, with bizarre demonic cults stepping on stage alongside internally conflicted priests. It’s both winkingly baroque in how convoluted and archaic some of the language is, but also quite chatty and matey in its two-man buddy comedy of errors. Alongside the occasionally deadly combat, it really does evoke a singular view of medieval life that’s deadly, goofy, and heartfelt all at once.
Headback to the advent calendarto open another door!
