Capes Review (Xbox): Cape or no cape, it packs a punch

What superhero power would you want? It’s a question most people have been asked or thought about. Considering the popularity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe or whatever DC is doing on the big screen, comic book characters aren’t going anywhere, but are their games living up to the hype? When it comes to superhero games, only a handful hit. Those that do so pack a worthy punch, while others are but a blip. Capes is one such title that packs a punch in the superhero genre. The XCOM-inspired turn-based strategy game’s strategic gameplay, user-friendly mechanics, and cast make it a unique addition to the roster of hero games available. But there are a few areas that act as kryptonite to the otherwise captivating world, delightful characters, and superhero tropes.

My name is (insert superpowered character name). Cue Iron Man music

Capes puts you in the costumes of a handful of super powered individuals as they fight to reclaim a city overrun by supervillains. In this dystopian world, anyone with a superpower is hunted down and killed. As a small group with powers, you select a team and fight back against The Company to save the city and free it of villains. The concept may be typical for stories related to superheroes, but it’s the characters that really matter.

People connect with characters and stories and Capes understands what it is and what it needs to be. It’s a video game about people with superpowers. The idea has been around since the early 1900s and people have been captivated by heroes with red capes, S symbols, and marvels flying through space with pet cats ever since. Capes takes all of these ideas and unites them to create a game full of tropes — that work in every way possible — and delivers a standout superhero game full of diverse characters.

Without giving too much away on who you will meet, the first three offer unique playstyles for you to try out. Facet uses crystals to power up his armor and has high defense and attack. Whereas Rebound teleports around the map and attacks enemies from behind like a rogue to gain a bonus to attacks. Mindfire is a telepath — basically Professor X, complete with wheelchair but with a full head of hair — who uses his mind to fight. He can make enemies weaker to ally attacks and hurl rocks and Facet’s crystals at them from afar.

Each character is diverse and has their own story and goals to accomplish in the game. While you’re focused on the overall mission, each also has a mission they want to complete. You’re free to pursue them as you wish or tackle the main story. Doing the character side missions is not only a great way to gain experience, but allows you to dive into their backstory to learn more about them and why they’re part of the team.

Assemble and overcome, or divide and fall

You playthrough the game in a series of story missions. You choose a team of heroes you wish to play as and are dropped into the mission with one objective you must complete. Generally, your goal is to defeat all the enemies on the map before they kill you. There are side objectives you can complete for extra experience as well. These range from don’t get knocked out to saving a person before they’re attacked. They are great for farming experience but can be a bit profuse in just how many there are to complete.

Successfully completing missions rewards you with experience you can spend to level up team members. However, you only have a finite amount of points you can spend each time you finish a mission so you must choose who you want to level up. You could spend them all on one character or choose to divvy them up to other members.

As it’s inspired by XCOM, the combat has you control individual team members when it’s their turn. Every character on the map, from NPCs to your controlled group, take turns moving and performing actions. Each one of your members can move, attack, team up, or perform their Ultimate ability. Using actions cost points and you only have a limited amount per turn. You’ll need to strategically focus on what you want to spend your points on. If you’re playing Rebound and want to attack an enemy but need to get closer to them, you can use her attack to teleport behind an enemy to slash them in the back and quickly teleport back to where you were. However, using her second attack leaves her within striking distance of an enemy, so you’ll need to make sure you have enough movement to get away safely. Also, moving out of range of an enemy will trigger an attack option from them, meaning even if you manage to run away they get a chance to hit you. In the beginning, it was a learning curve to understand everyone’s skillset. So if you haven’t played an XCOM type game, it may be overwhelming in the first few hours.

This back and forth of using points and knowing what you have left at your disposal makes for engaging fights. No turn will be the same as enemies move into position to cleverly take out your team as quickly as possible. Even the middle difficulty option was challenging as enemies are smart and outnumber your team if given the chance. You’ll need to utilize all of your team’s strengths to beat the mission. Leaving one member alone could be the downfall of the entire objective.

Though, the combat is also where the game feels bogged down. While it’s true turns don’t feel the same, it can be quite challenging to come out on top and find a winning strategy. I was frustrated multiple times when my characters were surrounded and beaten down only to be revived and squashed again. If one character is killed, you lose the mission and must start over. Capes is a challenging game where you need to think strategically and one wrong move could cost you an hour of planning.

Artistically pleasing

When it comes to Capes’ art design and style, I’m hit or miss on it. On one hand, the characters each look and sound amazing. The voice cast is great and having fully voiced cutscenes — real interactions between character models on screen — made the game feel like I were reading a comic book. The art is straight from a comic as well with characters having proportions you’d find on the pages of your favorite comic. Even the dialogue between them during missions is cheeky and full of tropes. It’s charming.

On the flipside, story missions play out in a 3D style with characters running around on the map. You’ll get cutscenes beforehand with them in 3D as well, but other cutscenes switch to a 2D viewpoint. It’s a great way to showoff the various art styles of the team, but choosing one would make for more streamlined interactions. I would vouch for the 2D option as it feels more comic booky and artistically satisfying.

Final Verdict

Capes is a superhero game made for superhero fans. It’s full of tropes that have been around since comics first appeared and they all work. You know that character is going to have mind powers or this one will use fire to attack because of their name and that’s what makes it all the better. It has a steep learning curve if you’re not used to controlling multiple characters and the writing could be tightened up, as well. It’s a game I recommend to any superhero fan, especially one that is looking to add a new indie comic to their pull list.

Capes was reviewed on Xbox Series S with a code provided by Spitfire Interactive. It is available for PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, and Xbox One as well.

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