You are a skilled thief who has stolen from the richest nobles. You were always careful, until today. This time, however, you chose the wrong noble family. Behind their wealthy facade, hides a dark secret and now you are their target. Will you manage to escape their clutches?
AUTHOR
David Ornelas
VOICE ACTOR
Nate Barham
SUITED FOR
Teens, Adults
PLAYING TIME
25 min
CHOICES
15
ENDINGS
9
Game Flow
Low
ATTENTION LEVEL
Medium
You are Umbra, a master thief who has robbed nobles of their riches in countless cities. The house of the Allegro family seemed like a worthwhile target, but after gaining access, you realize how wrong you were.
Why do the Allegros have a dungeon in the basement and why is everyone armed and on guard? You’ll be faced with a choice – get to the bottom of the family secret or save our own skin.
Play if you don’t like snobs and you want to give them their comeuppance. If you’ve always wanted to feel like Robin Hood and if you are not afraid of rats and perilous situations, this is right up your alley.
In this story, medieval fantasy meets hardcore mafia action. The story includes various role-playing elements. Sometimes the dice decide the success or failure of your action and you can choose various factions to align with.
Play when you’re in the mood for a round of role-playing, or when you are upset about the unfair distribution of wealth in the world and want to stick it to the man.
4.7 out of 5 stars (based on 3 reviews)
LOVE the premise of this story, the intense action in subterfuge, the thrill of the hunt.
Immensely gratifying ending, if only a little short.
Loved the characters and the tale you were showing through your writing.
The story flows very nicely. The mystery about Umbra is enticing. The twists arrives just when one thinks it is safe so it keeps the reader off balance in the best way. Enjoyed every part of the story. The story is so well written that I could imagine every scene of the story. The emotional payoff in the climax is strong.
The Blade in the Shadows is written in a way that is vividly descriptive, placing the listener into the action right away. We’re told just enough info at the start to know who Umbra is and his general mission, but there remains just enough mystery to get listeners invested in how the rest of the story will play out. The story allows the listener to explore different paths, which will lead them to discover new things about the Allegros and other major characters. In addition, the story allows the listener to shape the moral alignment of Umbra, in terms of if he is inclined to only think about his own goals or if he will act to help others such as the tortured man and prisoner. Listeners are inclined to replay and see all the different possible outcomes, with each route revealing more about the situation Umbra has found himself in.
One criticism is that the listener is not able to influence the more action heavy parts of the story. The listener is given a passive role in these action sequences, only getting descriptions of how these scenes play out. Personally, I wished there were more opportunities similar to the intro scene, in which we can choose how Umbra acts during these fights.
All in all though, The Blade in the Shadows was a great interactive audio story! No major spoilers, but I appreciated that there were a large variety of endings. Some were surprisingly wholesome for a dark story like this, and I actually quite enjoyed seeing these hints towards a brighter future for Umbra.
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