Capes is a turn-based action strategy game where you play as a squad of rising heroes fighting against a villainous government. Read our review to see what makes it great, what it could improve, and if you should get it for yourself!
Capes Review Overview
What is Capes?
Capes is a turn-based action strategy game where you take control of a dissident group of heroes fighting against a villainous regime. Set in a universe where the villains won the power struggle over King City, Capes is a marvelously graphic, yet cartoony experience filled with some truly brain-twisting strategic layers.
Take to the streets with your own squad of supes and save the day yet again using a vast array of powers and playstyles. Work as a team and combine your abilities to accomplish superhuman feats and wrestle King City from the grip of The Company.
Capes features:
⚫︎ 40-hours of campaign missions and side-content
⚫︎ Three difficulty modes for the most daring heroes
⚫︎ Over 50 unique missions
⚫︎ 150 Hero challenges
⚫︎ Expansive skill trees for 8 different heroes
For more gameplay details, read everything we know about Capes's gameplay and story.
| Digital Storefronts | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 PSN |
 Xbox |
 Nintendo eShop |
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 Steam |
 GOG |
 Epic Games |
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| Price | $39.99 | ||||
Capes Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
 Simple Strategy with Complex Applications Team-Up Moves and Ultimates are Fun Cheesy in a Good Way |
Inconsistent Visual Quality Inconsistent Voice-Acting Quality |
Capes Overall Score - 78/100
Capes may have its flaws in visual and audio consistency, but it shines as a near-perfect homage to the superhero genre's themes, ideas, and fantasies. Its graphic yet cartoony depiction of classic superhero storylines, combined with well-designed strategic layers, elevates the game to superhuman levels. Capes carries on the legacy of turn-based tactical games with a show of force that can only be described as simply marvel-ous.
Capes Story - 9/10
Capes’ story is dark, gritty, and surprisingly graphic despite its cartoony exterior. Among endless waves of expendable goons, witty one-liners, and tacky outfits, you have a genuinely intriguing story filled with nuanced discussions of morality, concessions about an ongoing power struggle, and the merits of standing up for what you think is right. It’s not the most unique story out there, but it’s written well and doesn’t overstay its welcome.
Capes Gameplay - 9/10
Capes' strategic gameplay is like orchestrating a symphony of superheroes—dynamic, synergistic, and downright exhilarating. With Team-Up moves and Ultimates in your arsenal, every battle becomes a spectacular showcase of explosive power and teamwork, injecting a dose of adrenaline that's sorely missed in other turn-based strategy games. It's an emboldening experience that truly embodies the essence of superhero teamwork.
Capes Visuals - 6/10
While Capes proudly wears the colorful mantle of American comic book artistry, its visual execution swings like a pendulum between brilliance and awfulness. Some character models soar with detail, while others plummet into the depths of early MCU-level CGI. Animation and cinematography are also not the best, with some shots looking like they were made in Powtoon.
If not for its strong visual identity and brilliant set design, this game would’ve suffered a fate worse than a retconned origin story.
Capes Audio - 6/10
Capes' audio, like its visuals, suffers from inconsistency. While the music ranges from decent to catchy, the voice acting falls short, save for a few exceptions. It adds to the game's charm at times but it’s no Hawkeye and misses every so often.
Capes Value for Money - 9/10
At $40, Capes might seem like a hefty investment for a turn-based strategy game, but the sheer abundance of missions, challenges, and mission permutations speak for themselves. If you're a fan of XCOM, consider this your golden ticket to superhero supremacy—and a bang for your buck like no other.
Capes Review: Simply Marvel-ous!
Superhero games often find themselves teetering on a tightrope between soaring success and sinking into the abyss of obscurity—just ask Spider-Man 2 and Marvel’s Midnight Suns. It’s a phenomenon that puzzles many, myself included, and I attribute it to the elusive nature of capturing the essence of superheroes as a power fantasy.
Enter Capes, a game that manages to grasp that electrifying superhero sensation, albeit not without its vulnerabilities. I mean, even Superman had his Kryptonite.
So, before we leap too far into the fray, let's suit up, masks on, undies on the outside, and delve deep into our review of this marvel-ous superhero strategy game.
Let's kick off with the game's super strengths, starting with its gripping story—a cornerstone of any superhero experience worth its spandex. Capes' narrative unfolds in a world gripped by villainous oppression, where heroism is not only outlawed but exploited by a conglomerate known only as The Company.
In the world of Capes, superheroes—dubbed Capes—are hunted to the brink of extinction by The Company. But hope flickers in the form of a rebellion brewing in King City, led by none other than Doctrine, a former member of the city's legendary superhero squad—also dubbed Capes.
It's a familiar setup in the world of superhero comic book plotlines, drawing clear inspiration from iconic runs like Secret Wars, Civil War, and even Injustice. While not groundbreaking in its originality, Capes elevates the narrative through nuanced execution, presenting a diverse cast of characters worthy of any hero lineup.
Adding to the mix, Capes' narrative takes a surprisingly gritty turn, delving into darker themes than one might anticipate. While the colorful heroics may initially mask the depth, the storyline unfolds into a tense power struggle between The Company and the rising rebellion.
Amidst the chaos, the banter among the heroes is both endearing and authentic, sprinkled with just the right amount of superhero cheese to be reminiscent of classic American comics.
In many ways, Capes serves as a refreshing homage to its source material, eschewing the constant deconstruction that has plagued the genre in recent years. Authentic, creative, and downright enjoyable, it stands as a testament to the enduring allure of a classic superhero tale done right.
Speeding along to gameplay, Capes adopts a streamlined resource and progression system akin to XCOM's, albeit without the complexities of research times or base management. This simplicity provides design space for the game to explore the dynamic world of superpowers, culminating in the creation of Team-Up and Ultimate moves.
The Team-Up moves stand out as a highlight, allowing any two heroes to combine their abilities in unique and powerful ways. An early example would be the synergy between Facet—a formidable tank with crystal powers—and Rebound—a nimble rogue with teleportation abilities.
Together, they execute a devastating maneuver, with Facet teleporting a shard of crystal for Rebound to impale into an enemy's back, resulting in massive damage. Ultimate abilities in Capes live up to their name, offering game-changing maneuvers capable of shifting the balance of any battle in your favor.
One of my favorite ones is the ultimate ability of Mindfire—a character endowed with telekinetic powers. Despite his physical limitations, he can unleash a devastating deluge of debris into one target for insane damage.
To cap it all off, Capes presents a genuinely gratifying challenge. While enemies may appear relentless, your heroes always have the tools to tackle them head-on. Success isn’t just about blowing the bad guys to bits, it’s about knowing what powers to use and when. Now that’s how you assemble!
Let's revisit our earlier kryptonite-laden metaphor as we delve into the game's Achilles' heel. Unlike a hero's secret identity or moral code, Capes' weaknesses lie in more technical realms.
Simply put, the game's visuals and audio don't always hit the mark. It's not a matter of overall quality but rather the consistency of that quality throughout the gameplay.
While the stage design and 2D character art shine, some of the 3D character models got the Wade Wilson treatment—some, like Doctrine's, look fine enough, while others, like Rebound’s, would be more welcome in the Xavier Manor than anywhere else.
The same could be said for Capes’ audio quality, as it boasts some of the most epic superhero themes I've ever encountered alongside some rather questionable voice-acting performances. While not entirely unbearable, some of these reads definitely would have benefitted from a second take.
Regarding the game’s runtime, you’re getting an entire superhero saga’s worth of missions and side missions for a mere $40. It’s a 40-hour runtime all in all, which is 10 more than the average for both XCOM and XCOM 2.
In the grand scheme of turn-based tactical strategy games, I'd rate Capes as slightly below an Avengers-level threat. Despite its shortcomings, the game showcases impressive world-building and game design that caught me off guard. While it may be new to the hero scene and playing more of a sidekick role for now, Capes confidently earns its stripes as a simply marvelous strategy game.
Pros of Capes
| Things Capes Got Right |
|---|
|
Simple Strategy with Complex Applications Team-Up Moves and Ultimates are Fun Cheesy in a Good Way |
Simple Strategy with Complex Applications
In the realm of strategy game design, simplicity often reigns supreme, with creative applications of basic concepts trumping overwhelming complexity at almost every turn. As the saying goes, a shed full of tools is useless without knowing how to use them. Capes epitomizes this ethos, offering straightforward strategy elements with intricate and imaginative applications.
Later, we'll delve into the pinnacle of this elegant design: Team-Up Moves and Ultimates. For now, let's focus on the most basic moves themselves, which also embody this simple yet sophisticated paradigm flawlessly.
Consider the interaction between Facet and Weathervane—a potent duo combining crystal and elemental powers. Facet's Growth ability can conduct Weathervane’s chain lightning attacks, allowing it to extend further without sacrificing safety.
Then there's Mindfire's Focus ability, which sacrifices mobility for an additional Action Point—a strategic move tailored to his role as a ranged attacker.
These synergies lie at the heart of Capes' strategic design, forming a web of interconnected tactics that culminate in a meticulously orchestrated assault on the enemy. There’s nothing more satisfying than planning out a team-wide attack and successfully pulling it off like a pro-hero team.
Team-Up Moves and Ultimates are Fun
As I’ve alluded to many times in this review, I’m rather fond of the Team-Up and Ultimate moves present in this game. Not only do they provide additional strategic layers in an otherwise simple system, they’re just so darn cool to look at.
Cheesy in a Good Way
When I say cheesy in a good way,
I mean that Capes intentionally embraces imperfection in its narrative and dialogue to channel specific eras and styles from comic book history.
The sarcastic banter and satirical take on superhero teams echo The Boys and Jupiter's Legacy, while the coming-of-age themes and witty one-liners pay homage to the Golden Age of American comics and the superhero TTRPG Masks.
It’s a fun and respectful mix of references that never seems derivative and completely at home with the Capes’ world-building.
Cons of Capes
| Things That Capes Can Improve |
|---|
|
Inconsistent Visual Quality Inconsistent Voice-Acting Quality |
Inconsistent Visual Quality
Capes' visual identity earns commendation, but like any hero, it's not without its flaws—there are a few bullet holes in its super suit, so to speak. While I've touched on the inconsistent quality of the 3D models, I haven't yet addressed the game's weakest visual aspect: its cinematography.
I'm certainly no Wes Anderson when it comes to critiquing cinematography, but some shots in Capes resemble stock angles from free online 3D animation programs. While effective, they lack creativity and, at times, are downright awful to look at. Paired with the inconsistent 3D models, the game can sometimes look like an amateur animation effort.
Inconsistent Voice-Acting Quality
While I appreciate the diversity of accents, timbres, and registers within Capes' voice cast, there's a noticeable discrepancy in performance quality. While some voices resonate like Superman-level heavy hitters, others come across more like pre-serum Steve Rogers.
Doctrine's voice actor delivers a stellar performance, but characters like Facet and Rebound seem a bit too eager or lively for the situations they find themselves in. While this contrast could be intentional, it doesn't quite hit the mark for me.
Is Capes Worth It?
It’s Worth a Try, Just Don’t Get the DLC
Capes may initially seem steep at $40, but in the realm of turn-based tactical strategy games, this price point is par for the course. However, don't let the sticker shock dissuade you; the game more than justifies its cost purely based on the sheer volume of content in the base game.
As for add-ons, my advice is to steer clear of the DLC. While it's only a $5 increase over the base game, what you get—a digital art book and some costume recolors—doesn't quite match up to the asking price.
Similarly, the Supporter Pack, though tempting with its promise of 4K backgrounds, doesn't quite hit the mark in terms of added values. You can just enjoy Capes in its unadorned glory.
| Digital Storefronts | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSN |
Xbox |
Nintendo eShop |
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| Steam |
GOG |
Epic Games |
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| Price | $39.99 | ||||
Capes FAQ
How Many Heroes are Available in Capes?
There are 8 unlockable heroes in Capes, all of which you can add to your team after finishing a specific mission in the game’s campaign mode. The unlockable heroes include, in order: Facet, Rebound, Mindfire, Weathervane, Mercurial, Ignis, Kinetic, and Hyde.
How Do You Charge Ultimate Abilities in Capes?
Each hero has a unique way of charging their Ultimate Ability in addition to a common way to do so. For example, Facet gains a charge whenever he takes damage, while Rebound gains her ultimate charge by dealing backstab damage.
All heroes can also choose to skip their turn to convert all remaining action points into an appropriate amount of Ultimate charge.
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Capes Product Information
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|
| Title | CAPES |
|---|---|
| Release Date | May 29, 2024 |
| Developer | Spitfire Interactive |
| Publisher | Daedalic Entertainment |
| Supported Platforms | PC (Steam, Epic Games, GOG), Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch |
| Genre | Action, Strategy |
| Number of Players | 1 |
| ESRB Rating | RP |
| Official Website | Capes Website |
