With a brilliantly-crafted art style that still holds up, fun and customizable gameplay, and tons of charm and heart, this is a game that stands the test of time. The characters are loveable, and there are plenty of side-quests and bonus exploration you can engage in if you hit a wall on a boss in the main story. It's just a world that's fun to exist in. Would have loved to grow up with this one, but it was still a pleasure to play for the first time in 2023.
My one major complaint is that as fun as the voice-work is, the audio mixing makes it hard to understand what they're saying in cutscenes, especially if you're like me and have some struggles with auditory processing. The controls can also seem pretty ungainly at first, but you get used to it. Although some bosses and dungeons can seem like a difficulty spike, once you know what you're up against and figure out a working strategy - or if you're desperate, you can go grind for the next defense upgrade, weapon upgrade, or more health - you'll be rewarded with finding it wasn't so hard after all.
My one major complaint is that as fun as the voice-work is, the audio mixing makes it hard to understand what they're saying in cutscenes, especially if you're like me and have some struggles with auditory processing. The controls can also seem pretty ungainly at first, but you get used to it. Although some bosses and dungeons can seem like a difficulty spike, once you know what you're up against and figure out a working strategy - or if you're desperate, you can go grind for the next defense upgrade, weapon upgrade, or more health - you'll be rewarded with finding it wasn't so hard after all.