Back in June 2023, Capcom unveiled a visually striking new action game at the Xbox Partner Showcase event titled Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess. While this original IP’s gameplay and story was shrouded in mystery, we could tell that it featured an art style and setting inspired by ancient Japanese folklore similar to Capcom’s cult classic PlayStation 2 titles such as Onimusha and Okami.
Recently, in March 2024, Capcom revealed the full details on Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess’ gameplay structure, story premise, and release date for when it will launch on Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, and PC. Here is everything you need to know on Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess.
Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess Preview
Our own Zachary Boddy recently did a preview of Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess and found it a pleasant surprise that thinking that left them wanting more. The heavy Japanese-influenced art direction is rife with vibrant imagination and its mixture of real-time strategy and action gameplay was fun and showed a lot of promise.
What is Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess?
Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is a single-player action game incorporating elements of real-time strategy games and Kagura, an ancient form of ceremonial ritual dancing originating from Japan’s Shinto religion.
The game occurs in Mt. Kafuku, a tranquil mountain where the ancient Goddess resides. One day, a mysterious black substance suddenly appears out of nowhere and quickly spreads throughout the mountain. This substance is incredibly dangerous as it corrupts the environment into a nightmarish wasteland and mutates the villagers into vile monsters called the Seethe.
To make matters worse, the twelve masks that are said to contain the power of the Goddess and help fend off this corruption have been stolen by unknown thieves. Mt. Kafuku’s last hope now rests on Yoshiro, the mountain maiden, and her guardian warrior, Soh. Together, they will trek across all of Mt. Kafuku to retrieve the stolen masks, rescue the villagers from being defiled, slay the Seethe, and perform rituals that cleanse the mountain of this mysterious black substance.
What is Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess’ gameplay like?
Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess’ gameplay will have the player controlling Soh and protecting Yoshiro from the Seethe as she performs ritualistic dances to cleanse the environment of demonic corruption. This goal is easier said than done however as the gameplay structure is fairly complex and broken into day/night phases.
The first phase takes place during the day, and the player is tasked with exploring the environment to free villagers trapped by the black substance and guiding Yoshiro to Torii Gates, where she will prepare to perform the cleansing ceremony to purge the land.
During this phase, the player can recruit villagers to their cause, bestowing upon them the masks of Goddess you will retrieve throughout the game. These magical masks will give the villagers the strength to fight the Seethe, provide assistance during battle, and protect Yoshiro while you are away from her. You can also assign them specific roles to direct them more effectively in battle, whether it's for close-range combat or long-range support.
You can also build contraptions that will protect the Yoshiro from enemy attacks, strengthen the power of your allies, or trap your enemies.
You will need to make preparations quickly before nightfall, as that's when the Seethe will spawn from the corrupted Torii Gates and attack. During the night phase, hordes of Seethe will rush to kill Yoshiro and stop her from completing her rituals. You must protect her at all costs; otherwise, it's game over.
You must command the villagers you have saved to fight off the Seethe and jump into the fray yourself to slay the demonic hordes using Soh's expert unique fighting style that blends sword fighting with dancing. Once Yoshiro reaches a Torii Gate, and if you survive the night, she will be able to cleanse Torii Gate of corruption and restore the surrounding area to its former beauty, thus forming the gameplay loop of Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess.
When will Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess release and for what platforms?
Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is set to be released on July 19, 2024, for Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PlayStation 5, and PC via Windows and Steam.
Will Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess have pre-order bonuses?
Pre-ordering Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess will net you access to a mini artbook and the Walking Basket and Astral Projection Mazo Talismens for Soh to use in battle.
Is Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess coming to Xbox Game Pass?
Yes, Capcom has confirmed that Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess will be joining the vast library of Xbox Game Pass titles on the day it launches.
Dance the night away to cleanse the land of evil
While it is nice to see Capcom continue to support long-running franchises like Monster Hunter, Resident Evil, and Street Fighter or revive old franchises with new sequels like Dragon's Dogma 2, it is refreshing to see them experimenting with new concepts and ideas like Exoprimal and upcoming titles like Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess and Pragmata.
Whether or not Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess will turn out to be one of Capcom's best Xbox games and best PC games is a question we will have to answer another day when this upcoming PC title dances its way onto Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, and PC on July 19, 2024.
