Storyteller: Write and Rewrite Your Own Fairytales

Looking for a short three-hour game that combines storytelling and puzzles? 

Look no further than Storyteller.

Storyteller is a narrative puzzle game developed by Daniel Benmergui and Ludimancy. It's a single-player game that was released in March of 2023. Storyteller can be played on Steam, Windows, Nintendo Switch, and Mobile.

The goal in Storyteller is to craft a narrative using the panel (scenes) and characters provided. The tasks can range from making characters fall in love to getting revenge on an Uncle.

Creating connections and context between the panels is a key element of the game. You can’t just throw a character into the room with a gun and expect them to use it; you have to motivate them with previous panels to make them. Every element of the narrative is fluid and constantly in use. 

When you move panels around, the other panels change to match the new story you’ve created with just one little change. It's the butterfly effect and amazing attention to detail from the game developers. They add even more details through the characters. 

Each character already has established relationships with the other characters, and it's up to you to figure out if they’re lovers, friends, or rivals. Everything in Storyteller is discovered through experimentation. 

All characters also have personalities to uncover. For example, if one character is sad and they’re placed in the room with poison, they may drink the poison, while a different sad character might instead use that poison to kill someone. 

I restate, you learn details like how characters react and their personalities by experimenting with scenes, characters, and stories.

The characters' default personalities stay the same across all the levels. However, if one character dies in a previous chapter, they return in the next chapter like nothing ever happened. That’s because each level is a clean slate, and everything goes back to default. 

The visuals are also incredibly detailed. Each scene or character has minor gestures and short sound effects that really sell what is happening to a character or how they are feeling. 

The music adds to the immersion. It’s soothing and fits the fairytale themes, while also changing during certain scenes to match the emotions meant to be felt. 

There are a few puzzles that are rather hard and had me stumped for a while, but I think that adds to the fun of Storyteller. The biggest downside to Storyteller is that it's kind of a one-and-done. Once you complete all the puzzles, there’s no reason to replay since you already know all of the secrets. 

Storyteller is a fantastic puzzle game to play at least once, but that’s it. Replaying doesn’t feel as satisfactory as the first time you play. It's a fun and unique puzzle game that challenges all players to use their creativity to craft a story.

My Rating: