E3 2017: South Park: The Fractured But Whole Hands-On Preview

June 23, 2017

South Park: The Stick of Truth had a fair amount of controversy when it was released. The game was one of the first titles in Australia to receive an R18+ rating by the OFLC, however, it was initially refused classification and had to have certain scenes cut from the final product. Based on Adam’s time with South Park: The Fractured But Whole at E3, the sequel is looking like it will cause just as much of a stir when it releases on October 17, 2017, although hopefully it survives the OFLC’s judgement this time around.

Unlike the first game which saw the kids role-playing as fantasy characters, this time they’re playing as superheroes in the middle of their own civil war. The demo introduced the player-created character and Captain Diabetes (Scott Malkinson), who are in a strip club searching for a particular stripper who has information they require.

The demo clearly selected this particular section from The Fractured But Whole to show just how gross and boundary-pushing it can be. The kids were trying to get information from the clientele in the establishment – literally a couple of creepy-looking customers who say they will talk only after receiving a lap dance. Cue for a lap dance mini-game! You’re required to gyrate, twerk and fart on your target in time with prompts, and this goes on for quite some time. It’s quite gross, and before long the clients give you the stripper’s name, but before you go they insist on a battle.

Much like the previous game, The Fractured But Whole is one-part adventure game, and one-part RPG. A lot of your time is spent exploring environments and collecting items to complete quests. It looks identical to the show, too. There’s a new grid-based battle system that is more complex than The Stick of Truth, but things like orientation and position don’t matter so it isn’t quite a tactical RPG. Instead, you have a set of special abilities which have different areas of effect that are highlighted on the grid, indicating whether your attack will have any impact or not on targets. It is a little more strategic, and remains turn based.

Following the battle, Captain Diabetes reasons that because strippers come out in the bar when the DJ calls their name, that’s the easiest way to find the stripper they’re looking for. They decide to drug the DJ’s gin and tonic, so you have to search around the bar for something to spike it with. This is where a few more of additional interactive elements in the open field come into play – not only can you fart on people and objects to get a reaction, you can throw firecrackers. These can rock objects and create bridges, or in one case, combine with your farts to create a mini-explosion. Eventually, you find the items you need; rat feces, boogers and seamen, how lovely!

The spiked drink sends the DJ to the bathroom, which allows Captain Diabetes to take over the microphone and call out the name of the stripper. However, the stripper runs as soon as she sees the boys, prompting them to give chase and end the demo.

This was only a very short slice of the game, but it gives an idea of how gross, funny and weird The Fractured But Whole is going to be. It truly does feel like an actual episode of South Park – let’s just hope it doesn’t get refused classification!