14 DAY TRIAL // The mage is dressed in dark color and seems to be suspiciously close to admitting that he regards anyone who cannot cast a spell as an inferior caste. He also has a pendant with a suspicious stone, although I did not confiscate it because I fear the consequences of annoying a powerful magic wielder.
I’ve already used two interaction turns with him and I am supposed to follow the rules while illegally replacing my father. So I pick up the phone and call the leader of the city’s mages, who makes it clear that the mage needs to get it and plans to provide an escort.
I do what she says and get ready to deal with the new fantasy character that wants to get into the Sprawl. But I’m a little bothered that my performance was not five-star. Maybe I should have forced him to give up that suspicious stone.
Lil' Guardsman is developed by Hilltop Studios, with publishing from Versus Evil. I played a preview of it on the PC using Steam. The game will also be offered on the Nintendo Switch, the PlayStation 5, the Xbox Series X and S, and older platforms from Microsoft and Sony. The title is a Papers, Please-like set in a fantasy world.
Lil is 12, has red hair and a dad who’s willing to force his kid to do his job while he’s betting on sports. So she is forced to work at the guard post and evaluate individuals trying to get into the Sprawl, the fantasy city she lives in. Once her shift is done she also gets to take part in the selection process for the hero that will search for the missing king’s daughter.
Players only interact with four characters during the demo but the variety level on show is excellent. Lil can simply talk to them, asking about the reason for their visit and other aspects. She can also use a few tools to scan them or extract more information. There are also three Sprawl leaders she can call to check on specific visitors.
Lil’ Guardsman is a well-written game, taking a humorous approach to its fantasy universe. And it mixes modern world elements in fun ways, like the game show format that’s used to pick the hero who gets sent on a quest. I laughed at some of the answers and even more when the game revealed what my choices led to.
Mechanically, the game is easy to understand. Lil sits at the guardpost and, for each incoming character, has three interaction moments before she needs to decide whether to admit someone or not. You can spend them all to talk and find out more but when the game hints at using another tool it’s a good idea to do that.
There’s a rewind option and the game offers clear feedback on how gamers can improve their performance. The game show segment featured bigger choices that presumably will affect the Sprawl and the bigger narrative.
Lil' Guardsman looks great, blending classic fantasy ideas with modern touches and plenty of weirdness. All the characters I’ve interacted with have small touches that suggest a personality, which in turn influences how players will treat them. Lil herself, with her hair and headphones, is clearly designed to be a force of change in this fantasy space. I also like the soundtrack and voice work.
Conclusion
The developers at Hilltop Studios promise more than 100 characters for the game at launch. If it manages to deliver the same quality of writing, Lil’ Guardsman is shaping up to be one of the most interesting narrative-driven titles coming in 2023.
A preview key was provided by the publisher
