Curse of Resthaven Review - Six days to save a cursed island

After I played through the demo for Curse of Resthaven, I knew I wanted more. More investigating, more trading, more expeditions, and more time to finally get to the bottom of what the hell is happening in that town.

Some games grab you right away, while others take a bit of time before they truly sink their claws in, and Curse of Resthaven is one of those games. Nothing will be clear to you at the beginning, and you’ll probably feel as lost as our protagonist, but you know how they say, good things usually need some time.

It’s a game which you’ll think about when you’re not playing it, trying to resolve some of the mysteries it brought. You’ll go in curious, like I did, and come out completely hooked.

Absolution day celebrations

Our main guy is called Ambrose, and he is the newly appointed governor of Resthaven, a remote island colony standing on the edge of the Aurelian Empire. The settlement is in a bad state, local businesses are mostly struggling, and people are hungry. Nothing really sounds too appealing about this island, but then again, Ambrose didn’t accept this post because he wanted to visit an exotic place, but because he needed it.

His niece, Amalia, is missing, and there are very few clues to follow, besides that she lived in Resthaven before she disappeared. Ambrose accepted the post of the governor so he can look for her, track down clues and try to uncover the mystery of her disappearance.

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You'll need to go through a lot of talking to find the truth.

Finding her is what drives the whole story, but she’s far from the only mystery that this island has to offer. The townsfolk all have their own issues to deal with, and they are wary of foreigners, and especially those that are asking a bunch of questions. As you dig in deeper, you’ll come across corruption, power struggles, an unusual disease, and a bunch of other secrets. Ambrose never knows who he can trust, or who might be involved in some bigger mystery.

To make things worse (if that is even possible), the entire island is caught in a six day loop, after which a cataclysm destroys the entire colony, and everyone but our favourite governor loses their memory and basically gets reborn. You’ll see it for yourself, but to die in this way seems really like an awful way to go. I can’t say if the fact that they don’t know that they will be reborn is a good or bad thing but nevertheless, I wouldn’t want to be in their shoes.

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The trading mechanic is fun and never feels stale.

The story doesn’t follow just one path as you play. There are three timelines, each giving a different path to follow, and the deeper you dive, the more additional branches you will open up for you to discover. The game also has multiple endings, so if you want to get the true ending and uncover all the secrets of Resthaven, multiple playthroughs are a must.

Cards, coins, and confessions

Curse of Resthaven is an adventure and narrative RPG, and as their new governor, your schedule is packed. You’ll be interrogating people, going on expeditions, and dealing with trading and your townsfolk. Each of your actions takes a set amount of time out of your day, so thread carefully. With only six days to work with, you’ll need to think carefully about how you spend your time.

Interrogations are at the heart of your investigations, and the only way to get information about Amalia and other mysteries. You question the townspeople and try to piece together what’s really going on, but you will also remember everything that you found out in your previous conversations. As the loops go on, that is the most important thing, as each new loop Ambrose can approach a character with a few aces up his sleeve, which he learned in their previous conversations.

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The bard's performances are always worth your time.

Expeditions bring something new to the gameplay, as they are based on a card system inspired by rougelites, deckbuilders, and choose-your-own-adventure games. They can play out differently and they can also net you different rewards, such as goods, coin, or knowledge. Sometimes you’ll even bring something back to one of your townsfolk. They also play a role in finding Amalia, as the more you go on them and expand, the closer you’ll get to Amalia, as every few expeditions you come across one of her camps.

While you can go alone, it’s not wise to do so. Which is why you have Agata, your seer, who you can consult for a few tips, but they won’t come cheap. You can and should also hire companions for some of your expeditions, they will prove more than a good investment.

While it’s easy to get lost in the investigations and expeditions, you can’t forget that you’re a governor after all, which means you need to improve the island’s finances and restore the colony. Merchant ships will arrive with goods and expect trade, ready to buy, sell, and haggle with you (but not too much). Sometimes they will expect specific things for which they will pay more, and the more you trade, the more trade secrets you will uncover about them, which are essentially tips and tricks of the trade. For example, if there is a war or a rebellion in the merchants colony, they will pay more for weapons and armor. 

You can upgrade the different local businesses in your town, such as the local food shop, the manufactory, and so on. Resthaven offers more than enough establishments and people to meet and visit.

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Expeditions bring a nice change of pace.

You do your best during the six days, and then the cataclysm hits and the restart button is pressed. Everyone else forgets, but you keep your memories, upgrades, and perks. Your money doesn’t carry over, but everyone who came to the island in the previous loop will stay there, and any completed expeditions stay completed. With each restart, you get a boon card that has its own pros and cons, and with each loop done, you also get a blessing that you can spend on helpful things for the next run.

It’s basically all about learning, investigating, failing, and repeating. You go through this until you finally succeed, and this is really all about the small victories, about finishing up a lead or finding out something important. With every loop, you get better at the game, you know more and can use things to your advantage. 

With each loop you’re closer to finding Amalia.

The sound of impending doom

Curse of Resthaven has a cinematic 2D world, and while it looks rundown and shabby, there is beauty to it.

The camera (don’t worry, I won't complain) works very nicely and it plays a bigger role than it might seem, as sometimes it is the reason why you find a piece of information, and sometimes it’s exactly why it stays hidden, which does suit a game where things aren’t as they seem.

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You won't go into a new loop empty handed.

The expeditions also stand out visually, as they’re presented in black and white, and as soon Ambrose leaves Resthaven, everything feels tense and more cinematic. The black and white colour also plays a bigger role here, as they appear in expeditions but also when trading, as merchants are in black and white. It’s almost as if the moment you step out of Resthaven, reality starts to shift. Usually the lack of colour signals something bad, but here it’s the opposite, as Resthaven doesn’t seem to be a place where you’d want to stay for too long for obvious reasons.

The music blends 19th century classical influences with some horror and atmospheric elements, and it fits the gothic tone of the game perfectly. The best thing about it by far is the bard at the Black Pony Tavern, who performs original songs. Both the music and the singing are truly a work of art, and you should definitely listen to him when visiting the tavern.

The game is fully voiced by a cast of Canadian theatre and screen actors, with 11 actors bringing to life 25 characters and nearly 7,000 voice lines. The characters sound natural and believable, which means a lot in a game where you have to talk to people more or less all the time.

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Something ominous looms over Resthaven.

It pains me to say that I did encounter some technical issues. In one instance, a woman appeared instead of Garet while Ambrose was talking to him. Some assets also went missing in cutscenes, and perhaps the worst one was my screen getting stuck on the merchants while I could hear the game working fine behind it. I had to restart my game to continue.

Back to the beginning

Curse of Resthaven does ask for a lot at the start. It may feel confusing and overwhelming, as a lot of things get thrown at your face as you boot it up. There are many systems, characters, and secrets for you to discover. But once everything comes together, it becomes one of those games where you easily lose a bunch of hours in.

What impressed me the most is how it all fits together once you get going. The investigations, trading, expeditions, and even the loop itself, it all feeds into each other, and each loop you go through pushes you closer to the truth. Even when you fail, and you will fail, it never really feels like wasted time as you get to bring all your findings.

It has a few rough edges, but it’s not something that will take away any enjoyment in this game, I guarantee it won’t pull you away from Resthaven.

With every loop, everyone forgets everything that happened. However, I don’t think I’ll be forgetting this one anytime soon.