Capcom’s new game Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is a fun mix of hack-and-slash action and strategy wrapped in Japanese mythology and historical culture. But this blend of different genres can be a bit tricky at the beginning of the game, when players are thrown into the mechanics and day-night cycle right from the start. Here are five tips to help players get started with Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess.
In Kunitsu-Gami, players control Soh, a spirit warrior protecting the Maidan Yoshiro, a priestess dedicated to purging the villages of her home mountain of demonic taint. Each of the villages is a stage in its own right, composed of a starting point and an end point: during the day, players must lead Yoshiro to one or more defiled Torii gates which, at nightfall, pour out a flood of demonic creatures, the Seethe.
This day-night cycle takes a bit of time to master. During the day, players guide Soh through the level, purifying various tainted spots to earn crystals (the in-game currency) and freeing villagers from their cocoon prisons. Soh can then spend crystals to assign villagers to combat roles to fight Seethe after dark. Be sure to save some crystals to use for Yoshiro, who consumes them as he marches to purify the end-of-level gates.
Between stages, players can revisit completed stages to assign freed villagers to perform repairs and earn rewards, as well as equip different combat skills and talismans for various passive effects. You can also upgrade your villagers’ combat roles using Musubi, a rarer in-game currency earned by performing the aforementioned village repairs or completing challenges while playing through stages or defeating bosses.
Villagers can be assigned to one of several combat roles, from melee lumberjacks and ranged archers to treasure-digging thieves and more. You’ll unlock more combat roles as you defeat more bosses, which you can face after completing their respective stages.
This is a basic overview of Kunitsu-Gami’s gameplay, but here are some tips to get you started with the game.
Keep Yoshiro moving throughout the day cycle
When you enter a village and start a stage, it’s easy to rush to cleanse every corruption point (getting them all will earn you a new talisman), free every villager, and prepare for the demonic assault when night falls. Just remember to get Yoshiro moving before you do so: stand in front of her and hold down the interact button (square on PS4/PS5; X on Xbox One/Xbox One S/X) to “pave a path” for her to walk on to cleanse the main gate.
If you forget to keep Yoshiro moving, you may have to survive an extra night or more if she doesn’t make enough progress on her march towards the demon-spewing gates. You’ll start each stage with a certain amount of crystals, so use a few to give her a little lead before rushing off to clear the village, and remember to come back later to keep her moving.
The player can spend crystals to assign villagers to combat roles such as the melee Lumberjack (yellow outfit) and the ranged Archer (blue outfit).
Balance your crystal budget, including in combat
Since you’ll be using crystals to get Yoshiro on the right track and to assign combat roles to villagers, you’ll need to balance these needs. During the day, don’t worry about the latter: just get Yoshiro moving and go clean up the village. You’ll get a batch of crystals every time you purify one of the pillars of corruption around the village, as well as a small amount to attack the frond-like corrupted plants that regenerate each morning for a more reliable flow of crystals.
But you’ll also get crystals from defeating Seethe’s enemies at night, which will certainly help you dig deeper into Yoshiro’s path in the morning, but is even useful when the enemies are still coming. Yes, you can wait until nightfall to assign combat roles to your villagers. This can be useful for changing your strategy on the fly – for example, first assigning someone as a thief during the day to dig up treasure (which may contain a bounty of crystals), then reassigning them to a combat role at night. More advanced villagers’ combat roles cost more crystals, so you may have to wait until you’ve collected more crystals from a defeated Seethe.
After defeating the bosses, players will unlock new combat roles for the villagers. From left to right, next to Yoshiro is the enemy-slowing Ascetic, then across from Soh is the melee-oriented Lumberjack, the ranged Archer, and finally the resilient Sumo.
Replay stages for more rewards
After playing a level, you’ll see if you’ve successfully completed a set of three hidden challenges, or if you’ve managed to defeat a boss within a given time limit. It’s a bit unfair, but there are other reasons why you’ll want to return to a level. Each village level contains a previously mentioned sunken treasure (or more) half-submerged in the earth; you’ll need a villager assigned to the role of a thief, which you’ll unlock after defeating the game’s third boss. Remember to move the thief villager directly above the chest so he can dig it up.
Each level contains one or more valuable black treasure chests, which often contain talismans or even combat arts. Later levels will place some of these in hard-to-reach locations that will require some upgrades to Soh’s combat abilities. Yes, you will eventually be able to upgrade Soh alongside the village’s combat roles, making revisiting levels more crucial for Musubi rewards.
Returning to a later stage will allow you to complete challenges that you couldn’t complete the first time, such as assigning multiple roles to villagers. Other, more difficult challenges, such as not taking damage, are easier to complete after unlocking and equipping certain talismans.
At the end of each stage, Priestess Yoshiro will cleanse the Torii gate of demonic taint, making the village free for rebuilding.
Between stages, repair the villages
After liberating your first village, the game will guide you to revisit it to perform repairs. This is fairly straightforward, as you’ll assign the villagers you freed during the combat phase to different parts of the village to repair. There’s not much strategy to be had here, though you may want to opt for the repairs that let you upgrade Musubi villagers over the lore-filled Ema Plates. You’ll want to complete all of the repairs, as returning to Yoshiro’s tent afterwards will net you permanent rewards like increasing your crystal cap.
Repairs will only be done after you complete one or more activities, such as playing (or replaying) a stage or defeating a boss (each repair site will tell you how long it will take). The trick is to remember to return to the villages between these activities: collect the rewards, make new repairs, then move on to the next stage or boss fight.
You will need to return to the villages anyway to make changes to Soh’s equipped combat skills and talismans, as well as to upgrade the villagers and, eventually, Soh’s skills.
The builder can be tasked with building platforms for villagers to attack and traps to slow down enemies.
Upgrade villagers and deploy them according to the specifics of each stage
When spending Musubi upgrades on villager combat roles, note that villagers will gain enhanced abilities at levels three and six, including special abilities that stagger enemies, attack multiple enemies at once, or extend the area of effect of support role abilities. But it’s a good idea to focus on archers, as they seem particularly powerful with their long range and ability to hit flying targets. At 50 crystals, they’re also fairly affordable, and they synergize well with the tougher village combat roles you’ll unlock later.
Within a level, know where the roles are best positioned, usually with melee units in front and ranged units behind them. No two levels are the same, with some splitting the flow of Seethe into lanes while others have multiple gates pouring enemies towards Yoshiro from different directions. Players will need to split their attention with Soh running around, especially as more powerful demons are summoned and take time to wear down and defeat. You’ll need to set up your units wisely so you can leave them alone for long periods of time.
Levels can also feature different traps and tools that can be built during the daytime phase. A special NPC, the Builder, accompanies Soh and Yoshiro and can be tasked with building these structures. All you need to do is approach their foundations and give him the task. You may not be able to build them all before nightfall, but they will help you contain the enemy horde in their own way. Keep this in mind when positioning your villagers on the battlefield. Raised platforms give archers greater range, while slowing traps allow your melee units to deal more damage.