Luther - the Journey 12+

Excellent game but I am unable to download the full version, nor do I see it in the App Store

From a technical perspective, this game is only ok. The mechanics aren’t explained very well, leaving you to explore or be confused. Nothing explains the floating resources over your head. It’s not made clear exactly how to reduce some of the needs of your party (doubt, sleep) and you can’t tell how much hunger or thirst is removed by water or food, leaving you unclear on whether you’re wasting anything. The choices you get have little meaning, since if you take care of even just water and food then you can easily take advantage of everything and you never feel pressure to skip any chances to get stuff. Ultimately, however, I’m not sure that the game isn’t actually a very subtle parody. It starts by making a big deal about nailing the Theses to the cathedral door, an event which is generally agreed never happened. (Only one person ever made the claim and it’s believed he wasn’t even in Wittenberg at the time.) Second, the entire premise is fleeing from Charles V’s troops, which didn’t actually happen. The pope spent years trying to communicate with Luther before finally issuing an excommunication, after which even more communication happened. So we have a game that starts with something that didn’t happen, being about something that didn’t happen, and left me looking for the fun parts, which didn’t happen.

I think expectations these days have gotten to the point that people can’t enjoy anything. Everyone is an Ebert, a critic seeking to be lauded by the dissatisfied masses.

This game is excellent. The graphics and connection to the time period. I had to pray the devil away when a black cat crossed my path (made me laugh). The artwork for events you read in scroll format (like in The Legend of Zelda games) is by the great masters like Hobelin.

I admit figuring out how to equip the Menorah or how to give one of characters food or rest isn’t spelled out. You have to experiment and figure it out, which to me is actually charming, like you are really in the 1500s trying to survive.

The gameplay is very fun, and I don’t think we’ll ever see a Luther based game like this in our lifetime, since the 600th Anniversary of the Reformation is almost a century awa, and by then games will likely be VR and hologram rooms.

Pros:

+Engaging gameplay
+World building, a beggar told me “the devil take you!” For not giving him alms. Lol
+Graphics, especially for the style of game, plus famous artwork by the Masters.
+Replay Value, there is stuff to collect, other paths to take, pilgrims and more you can help or not.
+Educational, a great way for young people to learn about Martin Luther, and The Reformation.

Cons:

-Mechanics (Tour-trial), how to equip items, drink water, end fear and etc is not spelled out for you, so you may lose simply because you don’t know what to do.

Note: This developers should make a similar game about Geoffrey Chaucer’s “The Canterbury Tales.” You could have the Knight, The Parson, The Wife of Bath, and etc on the way to the Shrine of Thomas Beckett.