I think it’s somewhat fitting that I know I saw The Lonesome Guild somewhere, but I genuinely can’t remember where. I remember thinking—without knowing too much about it at the time—that a game that could capture that old feeling of being in an MMO guild and rarely interacting with anyone would be something I could definitely get behind.
In truth, it’s actually more than that, and my inability to remember where I first saw it feels like both an indictment of how many gaming showcases take place every year, but it also feels thematically accurate to the game. The Lonesome Guild is a simple and sweet little ARPG that puts connection at its center and finds myriad ways to utilize it.
The Lonesome Guild begins in the land of Etere, where a comet had been circling the world, captivated by its beauty and people. However, by some unknown force, the comet is pulled to the surface and is revealed to be a ghost who has lost all its memories. To make matters worse, a strange miasma has begun covering the world, filling its inhabitants with a sense of hopelessness and despair.
Our story begins with a small Bumblbun—a race of winged bunnies—named DaVinci finds himself beset upon by the miasma and despite his best efforts of escape, is consumed by it until something strange happens. The miasma is dispelled by the ghost who felt itself drawn to DaVinci’s cries for help. Together, the two set off on an adventure to find a way to rid Etere of misasma once and for all!
It’s a beautiful story about friendship, compassion and togetherness that really works its themes into its world and gameplay. It isn’t too long on their adventure before the ghost—whom DaVinci names Ghost—meets a reserved and cold fox simply named Mr. Fox, and learn that the miasma polluting the world is actually concentrated loneliness. It’s this feeling of loneliness and hopelessness that is causing people to become more isolated and, by extension, more dangerous—as enemies known as Exiles will attack anyone who enters their territory on sight.
It really punctuates the idea that empathy, compassion and forging bonds are the most effective way through any problem—be it puzzle or combat—and as you travel the world, you’re consistently shown through both characters and environmental storytelling how separation and to some degree discrimination caused this beautiful world to fall apart more than it ever needed to. While on its surface, it feels very much like a story for children, it’s so densely packed and deeply resonant that I found myself enthralled at almost every moment.
And the theme of togetherness plays into the gameplay as well in a lot of interesting ways—most notably, the combat. During each encounter, players can shift between one of three characters to control manually—via the assistance of Ghost—while the others engage automatically. During each battle, uncontrolled characters will call for the Ghost’s help and switching at the right moment will allow them to enter an “Emblazed” state, which allows players some bonus damage and a few other perks.
“The way players gain abilities is also unique to The Lonesome Guild’s storytelling.”
When players are Emblazened, they will fill up a meter that can allow for a massive, room-clearing power attack, but it also has more immediate bonuses during combat as well. Attacks while Emblazened will give players access to Support Moves they can do, which range between the two characters pulling them off. It’s an incredibly neat way to incentivize swapping between characters, while pushing the meta-narrative of connectivity.
Not only that, it pushes the player to be aware of the battlefield in both an active and passive way, as swapping at a moment’s notice might put you in danger if you weren’t fully paying attention to what your companions were doing. It’s a great way of keeping the player on their toes, while never really punishing them too hard for making small mistakes.
The way players gain abilities is also unique to The Lonesome Guild’s storytelling. As players find little campfires, they can stop for fireside chats, and selecting certain dialogue choices will build friendship points. As Ghost deepens their friendship with the various characters, it opens new branches of their skill trees—using ability points gained from levelling up to learn new attacks and passive abilities. It adds a layer of depth to how you engage in these dialogue moments.
Puzzle-solving, however, as far as I’ve seen, is a little more rudimentary. While I like the way The Lonesome Guild also works its themes of companionship into its puzzle-solving, it usually requires a character to hold a lever and wait while their teammates find the second lever. Some puzzles require Ghost to illuminate hidden objects, and others require a little bit of exploration. It’s never so easy that it becomes brainless, but I never found it so hard that I felt challenged.
Visually, The Lonesome Guild is quite nice. It does a lot with a little, utilizing a bright and colourful colour palette with a fun cel-shaded aesthetic that makes the game feel like a storybook come to life. Each of the characters is adorable and uniquely designed—DaVinci uses mechanical wings rather than his own less-than-stellar ones, whereas Chaska is a wayward warrior who struggles to find a place she truly belongs. Each character, though deceptively adorable, carries a weight that feels relatable and makes the game much more grounded.
The soundtrack is appropriately whimsical for a game like this, maintaining a lighthearted tone that never really falters even when the game gets serious. Ranging from the fluttery strings of a new adventure, to the pounding drums of battle, to the sombre horns and keys of a long-abandoned castle, The Lonesome Guild never loses a sense of grandeur through its soundtrack.
Despite its overall simplicity, The Lonesome Guild is a beautiful and captivating experience that is sure to please gamers young and old, new and veteran alike. It feels like the kind of game we need at this moment as more and more of the world becomes fractured—it’s nice to have some reminders that companionship and kindness are the real punk rock.
