In
The Guided Fate Paradox, you become god. What, really, just like that? What are the implications of a mortal becoming god? How can one wrestle with the moral implications of such power? What secrets would one learn about the human condition, about life, about time, about the universe?
Don’t get too excited. I’ve seen this bait thrown out by other games and anime in the past, and I’ll let you know up front: The Guided Fate Paradox does nothing to step out of the confines of its predecessors. Instead, it’s filled with predictable tropes and character types. Renya, the main character, is a very ordinary, very familiar Japanese high school student. He has very predictable (sometimes naughty) desires for a boy in an anime, very predictable misgivings and fears, and is surrounded by a very predictable group of angels in cute maid cosplay uniforms. The writers were at least clever enough to insert some self-awareness into the dialogue. Renya often comments about the ridiculous idea that heaven is populated by anime stereotypes like maids and butlers with traditional Japanese names. But again, this game’s story treads very carefully in a narrow and predictable path set for it by anime that has come before. Don’t expect any moments of revelation. Don’t expect anything deep because it borrows some elements from religion. Certainly don’t expect anything too heavy to happen because you play the game as "god."
Also, all god ever does is explore dungeons and fight generic RPG monsters. Yep, guiding fates of believers is shoehorned into the classic RPG setup, somehow. God also apparently wears anything on he finds on the ground, including the kitchen sink as armor. Ok, maybe not the kitchen sink, but do expect to walk around with tank treads for legs, a pink bow for headgear, and a dual-wield shotgun and spear for weapons. I guess god can do what he wants.
The game does have a lengthy dialogue problem at times. There’s a point when you have introduced something interesting or cute about a character, or you’ve dangled a foreshadowing plot point in front of the audience, and you should move on to the next scene. Instead, this game drags and drags like a poorly edited fanfic. You forget what the point of the scene was supposed to be and it turns into a button-mashing scene to skip through to pointless chatter. It tends to get better after you get through the third level, but still, it’s quite tedious at times.
That being said, some of the writing is very funny. There are pop culture references, and the writing is very self-aware at times. And you might miss some funny bits if you keep the Japanese audio on, although the voice acting is hit or miss depending on the character. And overall there is something interesting about the story. Renya is being manipulated by the angels, and the demons might not be as evil as they seem. As things unfold, Renya slowly uncovers the truth. The angels reveal a bit of depth to their characters and the devil also reveals himself to be a bit more complicated than you’d assume.
As fair warning, the game is going to be straight up blasphemous if you’re coming from a religious background (or potentially hilarious, depending on your feelings about the subject). Renya is god, and he is addressed as "lord" and "god" all the time. He rolls into scenes saying, "Sup, I’m god." He also transforms into a second form that has three halos - an obvious nod to the Trinity. Those are just a few examples, but the game is obviously light-hearted enough that none of this is meant to be taken seriously. You definitely get the feeling all these references come from reading a book about religious themes (which they then used to name some things and build a general fantasy world), not from the creators trying to make a commentary on religion. It does get to be kind of funny, as your personal angel puts "lord" in front of everything she says to you. Unintentionally or not, she ends up sounding like a stereotypical southern belle at times, which is pretty hilarious.
