Start your fairy tale
I love games that have fun and clever ideas. Who doesn't? Quite a few game developers, apparently, because too many games are retreads and rehashes of the same old ideas. Ravenswatch is a recently released roguelike. In addition to its beautiful art, Ravenswatch's playable characters are clever riffs on folklore and fairy tales. Ravenswatch launched in September on PC and recently ported to consoles, so it's a good time to look at the hero roster.
Especially in single player mode, Ravenswatch is a very challenging game. Starting with the right character makes the first few hours a little less daunting. Of course, there is no such thing as a “correct” character, it's really a matter of play style. The game begins with four playable characters: Scarlet (Little Red Riding Hood), Beowulf, The Pied Piper and the Snow Queen, and five more are ready to be unlocked. Every time you beat the first chapter with a different character, a new one will be available. In other words, you will go through that first level several times.
Scarlet/Little Red Riding Hood
Ravenswatch has a day and night cycle. This is important because several characters transform at night into completely different versions of themselves. The first example of this is Scarlet, who during the day is a dagger-wielding, quick-hitting menace. At night, he transforms into a powerful werewolf with deadly claws, a terrifying roar, and monster-killing teeth. Scarlet is an excellent and well-balanced starting character because she is agile by day and strong at night.
The flutist
The first time I played the piper, I actually laughed out loud. This character fights with music, playing single notes on his flute for a ranged arrow-like attack or playing a flourish of notes for rapid spread of crowd-controlling damage. Its music, which has an Arabic modal sound, is actually musically synchronized with the game's score. Although The Pied Piper has many musical-themed attacks, it is not the Piper's only weapon. He can also control a swarm of rats, and rats are great for both defense and attack. The only drawback to the Piper is its slightly low starting health.
carmilla
Carmilla might be my favorite character. She is a sexy vampire who can cause damage with her teeth, claws (when in bat form), and blood magic. He can send spikes of blood that pierce his enemies and swoop down to bite them in the neck. be a dhampir, It can be active during the day, but at night it gains a 30% critical chance bonus. In multiplayer, you can heal your teammates and start the game with 100% health.
Sun Wu Kong
This must be the year of the legendary Chinese hero Sun Wukong. In Ravenswatch, Sun Wukong is excellent both as a team player and as a solo character. He starts the game with 110% health, has excellent damage-dealing hits with his staff, and can buff all of his fellow heroes. But that's not all! Sun Wukong can transform into another random hero and can transform into a group of 6 monkey clones.
Geppetto
Geppetto starts with only 80% health, but he is worth playing for his variety of abilities. Being a carpenter by trade, his main weapon is a hammer. However, Geppetto's game focuses primarily on the Dummies he can create. Dummies are excellent in a crowd control group, but have a wide range of offensive and defensive abilities. Geppetto can also build a Master Puppet that deals massive damage. Like Sun Wukong, playing Geppetto takes some practice, but it's worth the effort.
The other heroes
All Ravenswatch characters have their place as solo heroes or in a multiplayer squad. The Snow Queen is a great AOE damage dealer, perfect for freezing enemies in place while another hero takes them out. Like the flutist, the mermaid Melusine uses music as a weapon, in this case her voice. Aladdin deals melee damage with his scimitar, can ride his magic carpet and damage enemies while flying, and is a useful healer. Beowulf is a tank that deals damage with a sword and shield. He also has a fire-breathing Wyrm that can access a variety of fire-based attacks.
The basic premise of Ravenswatch is an open platform to add more characters and I'm sure we'll see them at some point in the future.