A Plague Tale: Innocence Explained

A Plague Tale: Innocence
Developer:Asobo Studio
Publisher:Focus Home Interactive
Designer:Kevin Choteau
Programmer:Alain Guyet
Artist:Olivier Ponsonnet
Engine:Zouna
Composer:Olivier Deriviere
Released:PS4, Windows, Xbox One
14 May 2019
Amazon Luna
24 November 2020
NS, PS5, XSXS
6 July 2021
Genre:Action-adventure, stealth
Modes:Single-player

A Plague Tale: Innocence is an action-adventure stealth game developed by Asobo Studio and published by Focus Home Interactive. The game was released for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One in May 2019. It was made available on the cloud-based service Amazon Luna in November 2020. The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S versions of the game were released in July 2021, alongside a cloud version for the Nintendo Switch.

Set in mid-14th century Aquitaine, France, during the Hundred Years' War, the game focuses on the plight of Amicia de Rune and her ill brother Hugo as they flee from soldiers of the French Inquisition and from hordes of rats that are spreading the black plague. The player controls Amicia, using a combination of stealth and limited tools to hide from, distract, or knock out soldiers, evade rat hordes, and solve puzzles, incorporating elements of survival horror games.

A Plague Tale: Innocence received generally positive reviews from critics and sold over one million units by July 2020. A sequel, , was released in 2022.

Gameplay

In A Plague Tale: Innocence, the player assumes control of Amicia de Rune from a third-person perspective. For the majority of the game, the player needs to utilize stealth to avoid hostile encounters, as enemies will kill Amicia instantly if they catch her. Amicia is equipped with a sling that can throw rocks to break chains, create distractions, or stun guards long enough for the rats to ambush them; she can also kill enemies with a headshot if their head is unprotected.[1]

The game consists of a series of survival puzzles, which mostly consist of the player having to use specific methods to scare away or distract the hordes of hungry rats in order to gain access to new areas or direct them towards enemies. The primary method of warding rats off is fire, as they will seldom enter within the radius of burning torches and braziers. Amicia can craft special ammunition and supplies, which include fire-starting sulfur stones that ignite braziers, stink bombs that attract rats, or fire suppressants to extinguish torches carried by enemies.[2] Amicia's younger brother, Hugo, can be directed towards specific tasks when Amicia is busy, and can also access certain areas that she cannot. However, this is risky, as Hugo will start to panic if left alone and can attract unwanted attention. Later in the game, the player can assume control of Hugo, who cannot craft items but can control rats and sneak through small spaces.

Plot

In November 1348, Amicia de Rune is a 15-year-old French girl of noble descent who lives in Aquitaine during the Hundred Years' War between England and France. Her 5-year-old brother, Hugo, has been ill since birth; their mother, Beatrice, an alchemist, has sheltered him in their estate while trying to devise a cure.[3] While hunting with her father Robert in the forest, Amicia encounters an unusual substance on the ground, and her dog Lion is gruesomely consumed by an unseen entity. French Inquisition troops, led by Lord Nicholas, arrive at the de Rune estate in search of Hugo, executing Robert and slaughtering the family servants. Beatrice helps her children escape and instructs Amicia to take Hugo to a doctor named Laurentius.

The children flee to a nearby village, where they learn that hordes of rats have been spreading the black plague (known as the Bite). The two are wanted by the Inquisition and have to evade the villagers; Amicia and Hugo eventually reach Laurentius's farm and find him severely ill with the plague. Laurentius implores Amicia to finish her mother's work seconds before the farm is overrun by rats; the siblings flee with Laurentius's apprentice, Lucas, to seek the Chateau d'Ombrage, which once belonged to the de Rune family. As they cross a battlefield patrolled by English soldiers, Lucas explains that Hugo's blood carries a supernatural evil called the Prima Macula, which has lain dormant within certain noble bloodlines since the Plague of Justinian. Beatrice and Laurentius had been trying to find an elixir that would mitigate Hugo's symptoms, while Vitalis Benevent, the Grand Inquisitor of France, seeks to harness Hugo's power so that the Inquisition can rule France. Hugo and Amicia are briefly captured by the English, but escape with the help of sibling thieves Mélie and Arthur; Arthur is captured as the others escape to Chateau d'Ombrage.

Lucas needs a forbidden book called the Sanguinis Itinera to complete an elixir that may help Hugo. Amicia infiltrates the university to retrieve the book while Mélie rescues her brother. Amicia recovers the book and meets a young blacksmith named Rodric, who helps her escape. Back at the Chateau, Arthur reveals that Beatrice is still alive but imprisoned. Amicia insists they not tell Hugo, but he overhears the conversation. His anger appears to worsen his symptoms, so Amicia and Lucas return to the de Rune estate, looking for Beatrice's research. In a hidden laboratory, they complete the elixir and administer it to Hugo to alleviate his symptoms. Angry at his sister for not telling him the truth, Hugo runs away and joins the Inquisition to find Beatrice. Vitalis injects himself with Hugo's blood so that he can possess the power of the Macula, but due to Lucas' elixir, he is unable to fully attain Hugo's powers.

Hugo escapes and finds Beatrice. Before their recapture, she reveals that the Macula gives him the power to control the rats. Vitalis threatens Beatrice's life to force Hugo's powers to fully awaken. Chateau d'Ombrage is then attacked by a swarm of rats guided by Hugo, still angry at Amicia. Nicholas, who is accompanying him, kills Arthur and orders Hugo to kill Amicia, but she convinces her brother to reject the Inquisition, and they work together to battle Nicholas until the rats consume him. The children decide to confront Vitalis.

As they fight their way to the Bastion, Rodric sacrifices himself to protect Hugo and Amicia. Vitalis awaits their arrival, having bred thousands of white rats that only he can control. Hugo ultimately overpowers Vitalis and Amicia kills him. Three days later, both the rats and the plague have disappeared and life begins to return to normal; many remain wary of Hugo and his power, including Mélie, who parts ways with the group. Amicia, Hugo, Lucas, and an ailing Beatrice leave in search of a new home.

Development

The game's development was led by Asobo Studio. It is their first original title since the team created the racing game Fuel (2009), and the company wanted to create a narrative-driven experience inspired by The Last of Us and . The main theme of A Plague Tale: Innocence is family and how the characters' relationships are challenged during adverse circumstances.[4] Another important theme is innocence.[5] Hugo, in particular, will observe the player character's behaviors and slowly transform from an innocent boy to a ruthless individual.[6] Child actors Charlotte McBurney and Logan Hannan provided their voice for Amicia and Hugo, respectively. The two also participated in the writing process by suggesting changes to dialogue and alternative takes.[7] The voice actors speak English with a French accent,[8] [9] but in the sequel, they dropped the French accent and switched to a more native British English.[10] [11] Up to 5,000 rats can appear on-screen simultaneously. To ensure the game can handle rendering so many enemies without sacrificing performance, the team introduced four layers of details when rendering the rats, in which rats furthest away from the player character exist as a "background, non-animated mesh", whereas the rats closest to the player are animated in detail.[12]

Publisher Focus Home Interactive announced the game in January 2017 as The Plague.[13] A first look game trailer appeared at E3 2017.[14] The game was released worldwide for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One on 14 May 2019.[15] The game was released for Amazon Luna on 24 November 2020.[16] The Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S versions of the game was released on 6 July 2021.[17] The Nintendo Switch version was playable via cloud.[18]

Downloadable content

The "Coats of Arms" DLC is available for all the three platforms, and came bundled with the pre-order version of the game. It adds three alternate skins for Amicia and Hugo's outfits and coats of arms. The additional content is cosmetic in nature.[19]

Reception

A Plague Tale: Innocence received "generally favorable" reviews from critics, according to review aggregator website Metacritic.[20]

Sales

In the United Kingdom, the game was the ninth-best-selling retail game in its week of release.[21] In July 2020, Focus Home Interactive announced that it had sold over one million units.[22]

Accolades

Year Award Category Result Ref.
20192019 Golden Joystick AwardsBest Audio[23]
Titanium AwardsGame of the Year[24]
Best Art
Best Game Design
Best Narrative Design
Best Adventure Game
The Game Awards 2019Best Narrative[25]
Steam AwardsOutstanding Story-Rich Game[26]
2020New York Game AwardsBig Apple Award for Best Game of the Year[27]
Off Broadway Award for Best Indie Game
Herman Melville Award for Best Writing
NAVGTR AwardsAnimation, Artistic[28]
[29]
Animation, Technical
Art Direction, Period Influence
Camera Direction in a Game Engine
Control Design, 3D
Costume Design
Direction in a Game Cinema
Gameplay Design, New IP
Game, Original Adventure
Lighting/Texturing
Original Dramatic Score, New IP
Performance in a Drama, Lead (Charlotte McBurney)
Performance in a Drama, Supporting (Edan Hayhurst)
Performance in a Drama, Supporting (Tabitha Rubens)
Sound Editing in a Game Cinema
Sound Effects
Use of Sound, New IP
Writing in a Drama
Pégases Awards 2020Best Game[30]
[31]
Best Artistic Design
Best Sound Design
Best Narrative Design
Best Game Design
Best Game Setting
Best Character
SXSW Gaming AwardsExcellence in Narrative[32]
16th British Academy Games AwardsTechnical Achievement[33]

Sequel

See main article: A Plague Tale: Requiem. A sequel, titled A Plague Tale: Requiem, was released on 18 October 2022[34] for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S.[35] The Nintendo Switch version is a cloud-based game.[36]

Television series

A television series adaptation to be produced by Mediawan in association with Asobo and Focus Home was announced in March 2022.[37]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Delahunty-Light . Zoe . 22 March 2019 . A Plague Tale: Innocence is here to make you realise how much we've become used to death in video games . https://web.archive.org/web/20210417105001/https://www.gamesradar.com/a-plague-tale-innocence-is-here-to-make-you-realise-how-much-weve-become-used-to-death-in-video-games/ . April 17, 2021 . 14 May 2019 . GamesRadar.
  2. Favis . Elise . 28 April 2019 . Watch Eight Minutes Of New Gameplay From A Plague Tale: Innocence . . https://web.archive.org/web/20210725022238/https://www.gameinformer.com/2019/04/28/watch-eight-minutes-of-new-gameplay-from-a-plague-tale-innocence . July 25, 2021 . 14 May 2019.
  3. Web site: Delahunty-Light . Zoe . 17 March 2017 . Imagine The Last of Us in medieval France with man-eating rat swarms . https://web.archive.org/web/20180213233623/http://www.gamesradar.com/imagine-the-last-of-us-in-medieval-france-with-man-eating-rat-swarms/ . 13 February 2018 . 22 August 2021 . GamesRadar.
  4. Web site: Valdes . Giancarlo . 19 June 2018 . How 'A Plague Tale: Innocence' Makes Diseased Rats So Terrifying . https://web.archive.org/web/20220605101002/https://variety.com/2018/gaming/features/a-plague-tale-innocence-interview-1202850698/ . June 5, 2022 . 14 May 2019 . Variety.
  5. Web site: Ramée . Jordan . 25 January 2019 . Survive The Black Death In A Plague Tale: Innocence, Coming This May . https://web.archive.org/web/20220605101002/https://www.gamespot.com/articles/survive-the-black-death-in-a-plague-tale-innocence/1100-6464583/ . June 5, 2022 . 14 May 2019 . GameSpot.
  6. Web site: Delahunty-Light . Zoe . 16 February 2018 . A Plague Tale: Innocence will have up to 5,000 man-eating rats simultaneously on screen... but you're the real monster here . https://web.archive.org/web/20190406071421/https://www.gamesradar.com/a-plague-tale-innocence-will-have-up-to-5000-man-eating-rats-simultaneously-on-screen-but-youre-the-real-monster-here/ . April 6, 2019 . 14 May 2019 . GamesRadar.
  7. Web site: Chalk . Andy . 25 January 2019 . A Plague Tale: Innocence video tells a tale of orphans in the time of the Black Death . https://web.archive.org/web/20190715153040/https://www.pcgamer.com/a-plague-tale-innocence-video-tells-a-tale-of-orphans-in-the-time-of-the-black-plague/ . July 15, 2019 . 14 May 2019 . PC Gamer.
  8. Asobo Studio . AsoboStudio . 1101477600252362752 . 1 March 2019 . Do voice actors speak with a French accent? Yes, since the game is set in 14th century France, we feel it's more immersive to use French accents in the voice acting.. . 22 January 2024 . 22 January 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240122192524/https://twitter.com/AsoboStudio/status/1101477600252362752 . live .
  9. Web site: 2019-02-26 . A Plague Tale: Innocence - FAQ . 2024-01-22 . Focus Entertainment - Official Forums . en-GB . 22 January 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240122192525/https://forums.focus-entmt.com/topic/36489/a-plague-tale-innocence-faq . live .
  10. Web site: Webb . Dan . 2022-10-17 . A Plague Tale: Requiem Review . 2024-01-22 . PlayStationTrophies.
  11. Web site: Stephanie Sterling . James . 2022-10-26 . A Plague Tale: Requiem - Rat's All, Folks (Review) . 2024-01-22 . The Jimquisition . 22 January 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240122194026/https://www.thejimquisition.com/post/a-plague-tale-requiem-rat-s-all-folks-review . live .
  12. Web site: Belzanne . Auerlie . 9 May 2019 . Asobo Studio details the tech behind getting thousands of vermin on screen simultaneously . https://web.archive.org/web/20200531184433/https://blog.playstation.com/2019/05/09/creating-a-sea-of-rats-in-a-plague-tale-innocence-out-may-14-on-ps4/ . 31 May 2020 . 14 May 2019 . PlayStation Blog.
  13. Web site: Foxell . Sam . 7 January 2017 . Focus Home Interactive and Asobo Studios collaborate on new adventure game, The Plague . https://web.archive.org/web/20210808132245/https://www.pcgamesn.com/the-plague/the-plague-announcement . August 8, 2021 . 14 May 2019 . PCGamesN.
  14. News: O'Connor . Alice . 22 August 2018 . A Plague Tale: Innocence does indeed look like that one game with the brilliant rats . en-US . . 10 April 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200201042144/https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2018/08/22/a-plague-tale-innocence-gameplay-trailer/ . February 1, 2020.
  15. Reiner . Andrew . 24 January 2019 . A Plague Tale: Innocence Launches This May . . https://web.archive.org/web/20210808132247/https://www.gameinformer.com/2019/01/24/a-plague-tale-innocence-launches-this-may . August 8, 2021 . 14 May 2019.
  16. Web site: New on Luna+: A Plague Tale: Innocence . Amazon Luna . en . YouTube . 24 November 2020 . 18 December 2022 . 27 March 2024 . https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/tTMlecNT0bM . live .
  17. Web site: Phillips . Tom . 17 June 2021 . A Plague Tale: Innocence getting 4K 60FPS Xbox Series X upgrade (UPDATE: PS5 too, and a Switch cloud version.) . https://web.archive.org/web/20210714073022/https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2021-06-17-a-plague-tale-innocence-is-getting-4k-60fps-xbox-series-x-s-upgrade . July 14, 2021 . Eurogamer.
  18. Web site: 18 June 2021 . Following The Announcement Of A Plague Tale: Requiem, A Plague Tale: Innocence Is Confirmed For Nintendo Switch On 6 July, Also As A Cloud Version. – NintendoHill . https://web.archive.org/web/20210709190348/https://nintendohill.com/2021/06/following-the-announcement-of-a-plague-tale-requiem-a-plague-tale-innocence-is-confirmed-for-nintendo-switch-on-6-july-also-as-a-cloud-version/ . July 9, 2021 . 1 July 2021 . nintendohill.com . en-US.
  19. Web site: A Plague Tale: Innocence - Coats of Arms DLC on Steam . https://web.archive.org/web/20210226151107/https://store.steampowered.com/app/967380/A_Plague_Tale_Innocence__Coats_of_Arms_DLC/ . 26 February 2021 . 9 June 2020 . store.steampowered.com . en.
  20. Web site: A Plague Tale: Innocence . 2023-10-17 . www.metacritic.com . en . 4 October 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231004101831/https://www.metacritic.com/game/a-plague-tale-innocence/ . live .
  21. Web site: Dring . Christopher . 20 May 2019 . UK Charts: Rage 2 is No.1 but fails to match original . https://web.archive.org/web/20220605110359/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2019-05-20-uk-charts-rage-2-is-no-1-but-fails-to-match-original . June 5, 2022 . 20 May 2019 . GamesIndustry.biz.
  22. Web site: Handrahan . Matthew . 1 July 2020 . A Plague Tale: Innocence reaches one million sales . https://web.archive.org/web/20210305165501/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2020-07-01-a-plague-tale-innocence-reaches-one-million-sales . March 5, 2021 . 1 July 2020 . Gameindustry.biz.
  23. Web site: Tailby . Stephen . 20 September 2019 . Days Gone Rides Off with Three Nominations in This Year's Golden Joystick Awards . https://web.archive.org/web/20211029173817/http://www.pushsquare.com/news/2019/09/days_gone_rides_off_with_three_nominations_in_this_years_golden_joystick_awards . October 29, 2021 . 20 November 2019 . Push Square.
  24. Web site: Titanium Awards 2019 . . 9 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191121193654/https://en.funandseriousgamefestival.com/awards/ . 21 November 2019 . live . 21 November 2019.
  25. Web site: Winslow . Jeremy . 19 November 2019 . The Game Awards 2019 Nominees Full List . https://web.archive.org/web/20210204224234/https://www.gamespot.com/articles/the-game-awards-2019-nominees-full-list/1100-6471564/ . February 4, 2021 . 20 November 2019 . . CBS Interactive.
  26. Web site: Watts . Steve . 31 December 2019 . Steam Awards 2019 Winners Announced . https://web.archive.org/web/20201010115300/https://www.gamespot.com/articles/steam-awards-2019-winners-announced/1100-6472457/ . October 10, 2020 . . CBS Interactive.
  27. Web site: Sheehan . Gavin . 2 January 2020 . The New York Game Awards Announces 2020 Nominees . https://web.archive.org/web/20220206184338/https://bleedingcool.com/games/the-new-york-game-awards-announces-2020-nominees/ . 6 February 2022 . 4 January 2020 . Bleeding Cool.
  28. Web site: 13 January 2020 . 2019 Nominees . https://web.archive.org/web/20211107011118/https://navgtr.org/2019-nominees/ . November 7, 2021 . 21 January 2020 . National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers.
  29. Web site: 2019 Winners . National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers . 24 February 2020 . 25 February 2020 . 25 February 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200225035705/https://navgtr.org/2019-winners/ . live .
  30. Web site: 7 February 2020 . All the categories (2020) . https://web.archive.org/web/20210802205712/https://soumission-pegases.academiejeuvideo.org/en/public . August 2, 2021 . 5 March 2020 . Pégases Awards.
  31. Web site: 10 March 2020 . Pégases 2020 : La liste des vainqueurs par catégorie . https://web.archive.org/web/20210614082022/http://www.jeuxvideo.com/news/1191577/pegases-2020-la-liste-des-vainqueurs-par-categorie.htm . June 14, 2021 . 10 March 2020 . . French.
  32. Web site: Grayshadow . 17 February 2020 . 2020 SXSW Gaming Awards Nominees Revealed . https://web.archive.org/web/20220710162911/https://www.noobfeed.com/news/9773/2020-sxsw-gaming-awards-nominees-revealed . July 10, 2022 . 19 February 2020 . NoobFeed.
  33. News: Stuart . Keith . 3 March 2020 . Death Stranding and Control dominate Bafta games awards nominations . . 5 March 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220403202400/https://www.theguardian.com/games/2020/mar/03/death-stranding-and-control-dominate-bafta-games-awards-nominations . April 3, 2022.
  34. Web site: rawmeatcowboy . 2022-06-23 . A Plague Tale: Requiem launching Oct. 18th, 2022, extended gameplay video released . 2022-06-23 . GoNintendo . en . 23 June 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220623235053/https://gonintendo.com/contents/5454-a-plague-tale-requiem-launching-oct-18th-2022-extended-gameplay-video-released . live .
  35. Web site: A Plague Tale: Requiem - Focus Home Interactive. 17 June 2021. 14 June 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210614155537/https://www.focus-home.com/en-us/games/a-plague-tale-requiem. live.
  36. Web site: A Plague Tale: Requiem - Cloud Version Confirmed For Switch . Thomas . Whitehead . 14 June 2021 . . 15 June 2021 . 23 June 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220623071956/https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2021/06/a_plague_tale_requiem_-_cloud_version_confirmed_for_switch . live .
  37. Web site: A Plague Tale is being turned into a TV series . Tom . Phillips . 18 March 2022 . 18 March 2022 . . 18 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220318131557/https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2022-03-18-a-plague-tale-is-being-turned-into-a-tv-series . live .