How you described "surprise as a crutch for difficulty" is exactly why I moved away from JRPGs. I used to love them, but hated that mechanic. It feels like my freedom to choose how I solve a problem is being taken away by requiring an unknown combination of skills/equipment/party. Some randomness is good, but should still allow players to solve difficulties how they see fit!
I was a champion of this game when it came out on iOS. It’s a reason I subbed! But I dropped the second act for the reasons you describe. And I find the game’s surprise as crutch both aptly described and incredibly frustrating. Just like the first few FFs, but on steroids. That said, I bought this day one and will happily tear into it on a large TV where it belongs. Great review.
I was genuinely worried what you would say here, because I had a hunch you'd be hot on this game.
There are bits of it that really shine. But do yourself a favour and play it with the Neoseek or other Guide -- written for iOS so boss hp and attack are lower for new version, not that it makes that much difference. It's like removing a pin in 10-pin bowling and saying its easier now!
There's just too many unfair tricks that mid-game bosses pull. And the inability to heal status effects off one character at a time is a huge drawback as bosses frequently use attacks that spray them to the entire party. Instant switching of party members isn't enough of a perk to combat this.
They feel similar to what the Dark Aeons or Monster Arena creations would do in FFX -- big difference, they are all are optional end-game bosses.
Haha that’s a good read. Yeah the amnesia is a bit of a crutch for the plot.
The demo is good! Gives you a decent chunk of the game free. But it’s not an accurate representation of the mid-game, the main character progression system flips!
This game really had the potential to be one of my favorites! Everything from its art, music, characters to story are amazing, exactly my taste. But when I tried this game out on Apple Arcade, I got stuck so hard on one of the bosses that I closed the game and canceled my Arcade subscription lol (to be fair, I had only subscribed because of Fantasian haha). I felt betrayed after being lulled into a false sense of security with part 1!
The difficulty on Apple Arcade was brutal so when I heard that it was coming out on Steam with tweaked difficulty, I was excited, only to see the price. I've been waiting for a significant discount before I buy it.
Sad to hear that it's still very challenging, but I think I will still give it a try when/if it gets a discount.
One of the hardest parts of reviewing a game is calling a spade a spade.
I can only imagine how many hours went into this title, and given the diorama settings how much effort. Which makes being critical of it that much more painful, and I try best to be as measured as possible as a result.
So seeing this comment was hugely reassuring to me as a review writer. For what its worth, it seems some of the endgame bosses have been nerfed, but the mid-game ones are still tough. They adjusted HP total and power of attacks, not mechanics. And often the mechanics are unfair, not whether the boss kills you in two attacks rather than one.
I agree wholeheartedly. I wanted to love this game with everything I had. I still think the battle theme 'Battle Oath' is one of the best tracks in the JRPG ecosystem, with its fast changing pace and time signatures. The Dimengeon system was an amazing take on the random battle system that I thought should revolutionize JRPGs.
Unfortunately, stuff like this wasn't enough for me to look past the frustration I had with the difficulty, and it seems like it wasn't enough for you either. That's absolutely valid. I think this was a great review that focused on both the good and the bad and gave credit where it's due. I'd call that pretty fair!
Haha, don't sweat it. I love a challenge! And my own grit meant I didn't give up the game. But yeah, it left me with a level of tilt that isn't really being discussed on the web. So I wanted to write about it!
Great review!
How you described "surprise as a crutch for difficulty" is exactly why I moved away from JRPGs. I used to love them, but hated that mechanic. It feels like my freedom to choose how I solve a problem is being taken away by requiring an unknown combination of skills/equipment/party. Some randomness is good, but should still allow players to solve difficulties how they see fit!
I was a champion of this game when it came out on iOS. It’s a reason I subbed! But I dropped the second act for the reasons you describe. And I find the game’s surprise as crutch both aptly described and incredibly frustrating. Just like the first few FFs, but on steroids. That said, I bought this day one and will happily tear into it on a large TV where it belongs. Great review.
I was genuinely worried what you would say here, because I had a hunch you'd be hot on this game.
There are bits of it that really shine. But do yourself a favour and play it with the Neoseek or other Guide -- written for iOS so boss hp and attack are lower for new version, not that it makes that much difference. It's like removing a pin in 10-pin bowling and saying its easier now!
There's just too many unfair tricks that mid-game bosses pull. And the inability to heal status effects off one character at a time is a huge drawback as bosses frequently use attacks that spray them to the entire party. Instant switching of party members isn't enough of a perk to combat this.
They feel similar to what the Dark Aeons or Monster Arena creations would do in FFX -- big difference, they are all are optional end-game bosses.
Funny, you write about it, I just started the demo on my Switch.
It is visually wonderful, but an amnesiac protagonist seems like a flag when thinking about the story.
Haha that’s a good read. Yeah the amnesia is a bit of a crutch for the plot.
The demo is good! Gives you a decent chunk of the game free. But it’s not an accurate representation of the mid-game, the main character progression system flips!
This game really had the potential to be one of my favorites! Everything from its art, music, characters to story are amazing, exactly my taste. But when I tried this game out on Apple Arcade, I got stuck so hard on one of the bosses that I closed the game and canceled my Arcade subscription lol (to be fair, I had only subscribed because of Fantasian haha). I felt betrayed after being lulled into a false sense of security with part 1!
The difficulty on Apple Arcade was brutal so when I heard that it was coming out on Steam with tweaked difficulty, I was excited, only to see the price. I've been waiting for a significant discount before I buy it.
Sad to hear that it's still very challenging, but I think I will still give it a try when/if it gets a discount.
Thanks for this comment!
One of the hardest parts of reviewing a game is calling a spade a spade.
I can only imagine how many hours went into this title, and given the diorama settings how much effort. Which makes being critical of it that much more painful, and I try best to be as measured as possible as a result.
So seeing this comment was hugely reassuring to me as a review writer. For what its worth, it seems some of the endgame bosses have been nerfed, but the mid-game ones are still tough. They adjusted HP total and power of attacks, not mechanics. And often the mechanics are unfair, not whether the boss kills you in two attacks rather than one.
I agree wholeheartedly. I wanted to love this game with everything I had. I still think the battle theme 'Battle Oath' is one of the best tracks in the JRPG ecosystem, with its fast changing pace and time signatures. The Dimengeon system was an amazing take on the random battle system that I thought should revolutionize JRPGs.
Unfortunately, stuff like this wasn't enough for me to look past the frustration I had with the difficulty, and it seems like it wasn't enough for you either. That's absolutely valid. I think this was a great review that focused on both the good and the bad and gave credit where it's due. I'd call that pretty fair!
Ok, maybe I won’t play this as a relaxing, before-bed mobile game then. Thanks for saving me from finding out the hard way!
You are fine for Part one! Part two... well, your phone may not survive it.
The mobile version is harder than Neo Dimension. They actually toned it down from the base game... to little avail I reckon!
I'm so sorry this happened to you! Everything you described is my worst nightmare in games 🫠
Haha, don't sweat it. I love a challenge! And my own grit meant I didn't give up the game. But yeah, it left me with a level of tilt that isn't really being discussed on the web. So I wanted to write about it!
I personally like to hear about the struggles! Hopefully getting through it gave you some level of satisfaction
Possibly relief? I just don’t quit easily!