Esoteric Ebb is possibly my favourite game that's been released this year so far — a Disco Elysium-like game that's deeply political and employs a modified version of Dungeons and Dragons' rule set for storytelling and light combat.
In the game, you play as a cleric who's recently been revived after an unfortunate and suspicious spill into the river. Your task is to solve the mystery behind an exploding tea shop, all while grappling with the city's first-ever democratic election, which is looming over the narrative.
But, why is our character a cleric? Despite being one of the most useful classes in Dungeons & Dragons, clerics are hardly as popular as their more magical counterparts, like the wizard or sorcerer, and they don't fulfil the power fantasy of ripping people apart like fighters or barbarians. The answer lives in the versatility of the humble cleric.
In an interview with PC Gamer, Esoteric Ebb's solo developer (with a few collaborators!) Christoffer Bodegård revealed his rationale for making the player character a cleric.
"They're overpowered," he explained. "I'm sorry to say they are just overpowered. The first prototype had a cleric for a bunch of different reasons. Most specifically, the cleric is...
