Developer : Ubisoft
Release date : October 17, 2017
Synopsis :
South Park: The Fractured but Whole is a 2017 role-playing video game developed by Ubisoft San Francisco and published by Ubisoft in collaboration with South Park Digital Studios. Based on the American animated television series South Park, it is the sequel to the 2014 video game South Park: The Stick of Truth. The game’s narrative occurs one day after the events of its predecessor; it follows the New Kid, who has recently moved to South Park and becomes involved in an epic roleplay involving two rival superhero factions vying to create their own superhero media franchises. The superheroes’ game unintentionally uncovers a conspiracy to raise crime in the town, bringing them into conflict with supervillains, genetically engineered monsters, the police, crime families, and the new kingpin of crime.
The game is played from a 2.5D third-person perspective, replicating the aesthetic of the television series. The New Kid is able to freely explore South Park, interacting with characters, undertaking quests, and accessing new areas by progressing through the main story. The player can choose from up to ten superhero archetypes ranging from high-speed Speedsters, close-combat Brutalists, powerful Psychics, and healing Plantmancers; each offering unique abilities. The New Kid and up to three allies fight their enemies using attacks including melee, ranged, and powerful farts. Battles take place on a grid, around which participants can move freely. Attacks have specific areas of effect, requiring tactical positioning for attack and defense.
Following Ubisoft’s purchase of the rights to The Stick of Truth in 2013, the company moved development of the sequel from Obsidian Entertainment to Ubisoft San Francisco. South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone were unsure whether to make a sequel to the 2014 game or work on a new film project, opting for the game. Parker and Stone were involved throughout the game’s production; they wrote its script, consulted on the design, and voiced many of the characters. The show’s composer Jamie Dunlap worked on the game’s soundtrack alongside Ubisoft San Francisco, creating music that was heavily inspired by the scores of several superhero films.
Like its predecessor, the release of The Fractured but Whole was subject to several delays. The game was initially set for release in December 2016 but it was postponed for nearly a year. It was released worldwide for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on October 17, 2017. The game received generally positive reviews, which praised the improvements and creativity of combat scenarios and faithfulness to the source material. Reviewers were divided over the story; some critics called it a humorous improvement, while others said it was less effective and relied too much on toilet humor. The game received post-release, supplemental story missions as downloadable content (DLC), and a Nintendo Switch version in 2018.
Cartman and the other children decide to play superheroes with the goal of launching a superhero media franchise by finding a missing cat and claiming the $100 reward. The New Kid joins the game and Cartman provides them with a tragic backstory; having witnessed “your dad fuck your mom”, with Cartman apparently not realizing that this is normal, not an act of betrayal.
The children’s search uncovers a conspiracy led by a new kingpin who has united the police; the Italian, Chinese, and Russian crime families; and the sixth graders to steal cats and use their urine to contaminate drugs and alcohol, making the townspeople act crazily and raising crime, which will be blamed on the mayor. Coon and Friends defeat the kingpin’s henchman Professor Chaos and Cartman surmises that the mastermind is Mitch Conner, a crude hand puppet drawn on Cartman’s left hand. The New Kid and Chaos are sent to infiltrate the Freedom Pals to gain more information, culminating in the two groups co-operating to take down the police department, who are helping Mitch become the new mayor so they can have fewer restrictions on fighting crime. Afterwards, the children join Freedom Pals after learning they have developed a franchise plan that is more inclusive than Cartman’s.
The next day, Mitch kidnaps the New Kid’s parents and destroys the Freedom Pals’ franchise plan. The Freedom Pals capture Cartman, who insists he has no control over Mitch and reveals that the New Kid’s parents are being held at a genetic engineering lab. There, the Freedom Pals learn Mitch has been funding the creation of an army of mutated cats and sixth graders, which Mitch unleashes on the children. Battling through the mutants, the New Kid finds their parents and is forced to kill one of them to continue. At the exit, the Freedom Pals are ambushed by Kyle—the mutated clone of Kyle’s cousin—and Mitch. The New Kid uses a powerful fart to defeat the clone, which accidentally transports the Freedom Pals one week into the future, where Mitch is the mayor.
With aid from Morgan Freeman, the New Kid learns to time travel with their farts. They travel to the future where Mitch has completed his master plan to make every day Christmas Day, causing drunken anarchy throughout the town. They then travel to the past and confront Cartman before he can start the superhero game. Mitch reveals himself and punches the New Kid, causing a fart that sends them back to the New Kid’s superhero origin. Cartman and the New Kid’s interference prevents the New Kid’s father from having sex with their mother, changing the past. The New Kid’s parents reveal their secret; they have the superhuman ability to amass social media followers. The government kidnapped the parents to harness their powers, during which time they fell in love and had the New Kid. They escaped to protect their child and gave them medicine to suppress their powers, causing extreme flatulence.
Knowing the truth, the New Kid time travels with Cartman to the day of Mitch’s inauguration. Cartman escapes a confrontation with the Freedom Pals and prepares to be sworn in as Mitch. The Freedom Pals use social media to publicly reveal Mitch’s plot and accuse Cartman of raising crime so the Coon would have more crime to fight, giving him a bigger franchise. Mitch confesses he was traumatized as a child because “someone fucked my dad.” Mitch’s mother appears on Cartman’s right hand and reveals that it was her and asks for forgiveness. They fight and both “die”, ending Mitch’s plot, while the townspeople resolve to obtain clean drugs and alcohol from the neighboring town.
After the credits, the New Kid returns home to find both parents are alive and, unburdened by the secret they were keeping, their relationship is happier. While the New Kid’s parents go upstairs to have sex, Professor Chaos confronts the New Kid with the truth that no matter how much they change the past, “your dad will always have fucked your mom.” Chaos offers the New Kid a chance to take an alternative path.
Source : Wikipedia
