What you need to know
- The Thaumaturge is an upcoming RPG from 11 Bit Studios and developer Fool's Theory, known for the criminally overlooked RPG "Seven."
- The team includes veterans who worked on franchises like The Witcher, and follows a gentleman in turn-of-the-century Warsaw, endowed with the power to command otherworldly spirits and demonic entities.
- The choice-driven isometric RPG has driven some hype already on the back of a successful demo during Steam Next Fest, but has grabbed a small delay to avoid a busy February, and will now launch on March 4, 2024.
- The PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions are slated to launch at a "later date."
One of my personal most anticipated upcoming PC games, The Thaumaturge, has grabbed a short delay.
Previously slated for February, The Thaumaturge is now gunning for a March 4, 2024 launch date, per a press release we received yesterday. Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5 versions are set to arrive "at a later date."
If you're unfamiliar, isometric RPG fans should definitely keep an eye on this one. The Thaumaturge is set in early 1900s Warsaw, and across the territories that made up parts of Tsarist imperial Russia. You play as Wiktor Szulski, endowed with strange powers of a thaumaturge, and the trials and tribulations that come with it.
As the game's titular Thaumaturge, Szulski has the power to tame entities known in-game as Salutors, inspired by demonic mythic and legend. In the demo from Steam's next fest, we ran into notorious Russian mystic Rasputin, who helps the player bring our first Salutor to heel.
Szulski is by no means a fighter, but by taking command of these demonic possessors that wreak havoc on the superstitious folk of the era, Szulski can unleash them in turn-based combat. The Thaumaturge is analogous to isometric games like classic Pokemon, Final Fantasy, or Wasteland, with a twinge of demonic summoning as seen in turn-based RPGs like Persona. The combat in The Thaumaturge is as tactical as it is satisfying, from what we saw in the demo, and should scratch the itch of fans who long for a turn-based game with high-quality cinematic leanings.
Polishing evil
The Thaumaturge is actually feature-complete, and we can confirm that we're actively reviewing the game on PC ahead of its March 4th, 2024 release date. In a statement, Fool's Theory noted that the delay is more about avoiding February's busy game release schedule, so that The Thaumaturge can breathe on its own.
"We’re happy to share that the game is now complete, and numerous reviewers already have it in their hands. At the same time, taking February’s busy launch period into account and the opening for a better release window, we’ve decided to take this opportunity to give The Thaumaturge more breathing room so it receives the attention we believe it deserves."
Fool's Theory previously worked on an isometric sandbox stealth RPG called Seven from 2017, which enjoyed some positive reception but languished, somewhat criminally overlooked. It seems that Fool's Theory isn't taking similar chances with The Thaumaturge, this time around.
The game does deserve more attention. Having played the game myself a short while ago, I count it firmly among my most anticipated upcoming games. The backlog is real, though, with 2024 already shaping up to be yet another non-stop roller coaster of high-quality games that were bottle-necked by the pandemic years. Tekken 8, Persona 3 Reload, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Palworld, Enshrouded, and even games that endured a lot of scepticism like Skull and Bones are already dominating a busy first quarter.
If you've been a fan of games like Baldur's Gate 3, Wasteland, classic Fallout titles, or indeed — you've imagined a more gothic version of Pokemon, do yourself a favor and wishlist The Thaumaturge on Steam below.
