Artisan: A Blacksmith’s Civic Duty

In numerous fantasy role-playing games, the player is tasked with selecting a class and plunging into battle as they attempt to save a princess, retrieve a dangerous artifact, or defeat an ancient evil. It’s a tried and true formula that makes for exciting adventures and memorable storytelling. However, in these adventures, there are numerous untold stories in the world, including those of the merchants and blacksmiths that players buy equipment from. A short experience made by Digital Mosaic Games attempts to answer the age-old question: what do the blacksmiths do while the heroes are away?

Artisan, a game released for the 55th Ludum Dare game jam competition, offers the player a peek into the life of a weapon maker. You play as a master craftsman, aiding one of three factions in their fight against an evil wizard and their army of vicious monsters. However, as a blacksmith, your fight isn’t a direct one. Instead of fighting the enemies with your bare hands, you’re tasked with creating weapons and magical artifacts to aid the kingdom’s strongest in their struggle against evil. It’s a simple alteration to the standard RPG formula, but the easy gameplay makes for quite a soothing experience.

Although it contains numerous tropes commonly seen in RPGs, Artisan plays like a point-and-click adventure. Heroes come to you for weapons, and you traverse your small crafting hut to gather the materials and create the weapons. The recipes are quite simple, and the process of crafting is brief and satisfying. Rather than receiving currency in exchange for his efforts, the artisan is given decorations for his house that make things a bit more lively. One of these rewards is a fishing rod that allows the artisan to fish and proudly display his fish on the side of his hut. These small details are what add to the charm of Artisan.

While the story and gameplay are pretty straightforward, Artisan really shines in the atmosphere it creates. Visually appealing graphics are complimented by ethereal music that truly embodies the fantastical nature of your work. Sure, all the craftsman is doing is building the tools, but the lurking monster silhouettes in the background and brief exchanges with the heroes act as constant reminders of the greater purpose that the craftsman serves. He’s not the one fighting those monsters himself, but the ones who are wouldn’t be able to do it without his tools. It’s a simple yet effective message that feels meticulously woven into every detail of the game.

One of the more memorable things about Artisan is how it ends. After aiding his faction to the best of his ability, the craftsman goes home and rests without any real confirmation about what happened to the heroes. He remains unsure if the evil will be truly defeated, but he knows that he’s done his job to the best of his ability, and at the end of the day, that’s all he could really do. It’s a satisfying and dignifying ending to a very relaxing gaming experience. Artisan is a short and simple game, but its message and subversion of typical fantasy tropes make it one worth trying out at least once.