Millionull
Unlike Ocarina of Time I did actually play this one (N64 version) as a kid, so my thoughts will be tinted by a nostalgic lens. I bring this up because for as much as I may tend to favor this game over OoT, I think it’s important that this duology be read as a larger singular narrative; meaning as two pieces of art in communication with one another.
Regardless of how you choose to interpret the events of the story, there is this pervasive atmosphere of grief throughout the entirety of Majora’s Mask. While this might often overlap with what can be defined as “darkness” – horror elements, discussion of death, characters dying on screen, etc – returning to this game as an adult※ I find myself much more aware of the quiet sadnesses that sit right around the edges of the story’s periphery.
I think it’s a common sentiment to feel anxious or frustrated with the in-game time limit set on everything. Compared to the open fields of Hyrule, everything in Termina is needled by a sense of constraint. Just exploring the world can feel nerve wracking when in your peripheral vision lies a constant reminder that your time there is limited. “Limited time” might not be the exact right term here, because you do have an unlimited number of resets to make things right, rather what is actually limited is your sense of attachment or comfort with the world of Termina.
In my revisit to this game I found myself made less anxious by the short-term time limit. In fact, I think it’s a beneficial element: it forces you to be conscious in a number of ways of how you spend it. Needing to reset in the middle of a dungeon is ultimately not very punishing because you come back armed with the knowledge (or loot) to get through it much faster. Instead, what really bred a sense of frustration in me was how with each necessary reset you lose all of what I can only loosely define as "emotional progress."
Ocarina of Time in terms of both narrative and gameplay encourages you to have courage, to conquer what scares you for once and for all. Majora's Mask expands on that theme by attaching the unfortunate truth that greater horrors of existence can only be beaten back, never vanquished. For as much progress as you can make, the absolution of death, a reset to zero is ever present.
It’s frustrating in that you can save everyone, but you actually can’t save everyone. All the characters you help out through your actions lose all memory of you after each reset. After which you pass them by still struggling with that once-solved dilemma, knowing you could help them again but it would take too much time away from your current task. Of course, this isn’t just limited to individual goodwill; any secrets you uncover, any memorable moments you witness, any new records you set in minigames, all wiped clean with the reset of the clock. Nothing is ever permanent. There will always be something you lose. And this really comprises the heart of the grief that Majora’s Mask deals with.
Relatedly and in stark contrast to Ocarina of Time, there is not much of a heroic narrative here. While Link’s status as fate-chosen hero remains, his role in saving Termina is not part of some grand “chosen one” narrative predestined for him by the goddesses, instead it seems almost circumstantial that he ends up in Termina in the first place. While Link never receives any particularly special treatment from most NPCs across games (he’s just another traveler, customer, etc), here his presence is particularly anonymised underneath the variety of masks he wears – literally. Most notably, many of his heroisms are attributed by others to completely different characters he has assumed the role of, eg. Darmani III and Mikau. I find this particularly interesting compared to the more generic masked roles Link can assume because it suggests a complete subsuming of Link(/the player)’s individualized identity into another character role.
For as different as the individualities behind each mask can be, they are also at the same time – to a certain degree – interchangeable, able to be assumed by others. From a nihilistic viewpoint this means that nothing is important – no value is inherent in either the mask or the mask’s origin point because it is both replaceable and subject to the whims of time. Anyone else besides the legendary hero of Hyrule could wear those masks and do his job just as well. But at the same time, this also makes the masks incredibly important because their roles can be assumed by anyone, we can all be unified in these forms of expression through some undetectable thread, some reflex of the collective unconscious that compels us to express ourselves in the first place.
And that is ultimately what Majora’s Mask asks of you; to see yourself in others. To hollow out of yourself and scatter your shell behind you as many times as you need because everything changes, including yourself. To understand that your grief is not uniquely individual, that it will not magically disappear one day but can heal into something different, more than courage – resilience. Love.
※For as developed as my frontal lobe may be, I’m still pretty young relatively speaking, and my life has much more room for grief than what I hold now. I wonder how I'll feel about this game in 5-10 years?
Regardless of how you choose to interpret the events of the story, there is this pervasive atmosphere of grief throughout the entirety of Majora’s Mask. While this might often overlap with what can be defined as “darkness” – horror elements, discussion of death, characters dying on screen, etc – returning to this game as an adult※ I find myself much more aware of the quiet sadnesses that sit right around the edges of the story’s periphery.
I think it’s a common sentiment to feel anxious or frustrated with the in-game time limit set on everything. Compared to the open fields of Hyrule, everything in Termina is needled by a sense of constraint. Just exploring the world can feel nerve wracking when in your peripheral vision lies a constant reminder that your time there is limited. “Limited time” might not be the exact right term here, because you do have an unlimited number of resets to make things right, rather what is actually limited is your sense of attachment or comfort with the world of Termina.
In my revisit to this game I found myself made less anxious by the short-term time limit. In fact, I think it’s a beneficial element: it forces you to be conscious in a number of ways of how you spend it. Needing to reset in the middle of a dungeon is ultimately not very punishing because you come back armed with the knowledge (or loot) to get through it much faster. Instead, what really bred a sense of frustration in me was how with each necessary reset you lose all of what I can only loosely define as "emotional progress."
Ocarina of Time in terms of both narrative and gameplay encourages you to have courage, to conquer what scares you for once and for all. Majora's Mask expands on that theme by attaching the unfortunate truth that greater horrors of existence can only be beaten back, never vanquished. For as much progress as you can make, the absolution of death, a reset to zero is ever present.
It’s frustrating in that you can save everyone, but you actually can’t save everyone. All the characters you help out through your actions lose all memory of you after each reset. After which you pass them by still struggling with that once-solved dilemma, knowing you could help them again but it would take too much time away from your current task. Of course, this isn’t just limited to individual goodwill; any secrets you uncover, any memorable moments you witness, any new records you set in minigames, all wiped clean with the reset of the clock. Nothing is ever permanent. There will always be something you lose. And this really comprises the heart of the grief that Majora’s Mask deals with.
Relatedly and in stark contrast to Ocarina of Time, there is not much of a heroic narrative here. While Link’s status as fate-chosen hero remains, his role in saving Termina is not part of some grand “chosen one” narrative predestined for him by the goddesses, instead it seems almost circumstantial that he ends up in Termina in the first place. While Link never receives any particularly special treatment from most NPCs across games (he’s just another traveler, customer, etc), here his presence is particularly anonymised underneath the variety of masks he wears – literally. Most notably, many of his heroisms are attributed by others to completely different characters he has assumed the role of, eg. Darmani III and Mikau. I find this particularly interesting compared to the more generic masked roles Link can assume because it suggests a complete subsuming of Link(/the player)’s individualized identity into another character role.
For as different as the individualities behind each mask can be, they are also at the same time – to a certain degree – interchangeable, able to be assumed by others. From a nihilistic viewpoint this means that nothing is important – no value is inherent in either the mask or the mask’s origin point because it is both replaceable and subject to the whims of time. Anyone else besides the legendary hero of Hyrule could wear those masks and do his job just as well. But at the same time, this also makes the masks incredibly important because their roles can be assumed by anyone, we can all be unified in these forms of expression through some undetectable thread, some reflex of the collective unconscious that compels us to express ourselves in the first place.
And that is ultimately what Majora’s Mask asks of you; to see yourself in others. To hollow out of yourself and scatter your shell behind you as many times as you need because everything changes, including yourself. To understand that your grief is not uniquely individual, that it will not magically disappear one day but can heal into something different, more than courage – resilience. Love.
※For as developed as my frontal lobe may be, I’m still pretty young relatively speaking, and my life has much more room for grief than what I hold now. I wonder how I'll feel about this game in 5-10 years?
Playing through this game with zero nostalgic value attached I feel like, respectfully, it's overrated. Yes, Ocarina of Time is a game that does many things very well and is crucially important in the history of the medium as a whole. But is it "the greatest game ever made" for all 26 years since its release? uhh...
1986
Kinda sucks but in a cute way. Like seeing a baby animal and not knowing the blood-hungry beast it will turn into.
2006
Supremely weird game. I don't know if I'd call it "good," but it isn't exactly bad either. It's that Love-de-Lic phenotype mixed with some GHM sensibilites. Surprisingly great soundtrack (though not a surprise coming from Masafumi Takada)!
Combat system is semi turn based but also not really. Leveling up stats requires grinding for that specific stat (ie. getting hit by a physical attack to level physical defense), which takes about as long as you would expect (very). Using skills depletes an SP bar that is only occasionally refilled after defeating enemies. This makes them impractical for most situations you'd want to use them in.
There are a number of outfits the protagonist can wear, each with specific skillsets and statistical advantages. This is a fun idea, but stupefyingly there is only one location in the entire game where you can change between them, meaning you can't actually strategize around having access to more than one at a time. As you can imagine this also makes grinding even worse.
You can cook different foods for use as HP recovery items, but most of them don't restore a lot, and you'll eventually end up just relying on the out of place generic video game potions anyways. Some better dishes can be made at cooking level 55 (fifty five), which requires grinding (with the chef outfit only, of course) for who knows how long. At the end of my playthrough I had this stat leveled to 27. Most other skills have similarly high barriers, why? Well, at least they aren't terribly useful in the first place.
On another topic, the story is beyond explanation partially because there isn't really much of an explanation given. Rather it seems like the product of the devs fucking around and making something they like, which I heavily respect. At one point you travel to Akihabara and some of the televisions there seem to be showing ads for Killer7. In the depths of a(n implied) US Military base you can find images of the GHM devs and some cats (presumably theirs). Playing reminded me of playing games as a young kid because there's so little information about the game both in it and online that it feels like anything can happen.
For as frankly low quality as it feels, there's as much of an unshakeable feeling that it was a human project. That doesn't necessarily redeem it's faults but tinges my experience of it with a strange joy.
Idk man just listen to this
Combat system is semi turn based but also not really. Leveling up stats requires grinding for that specific stat (ie. getting hit by a physical attack to level physical defense), which takes about as long as you would expect (very). Using skills depletes an SP bar that is only occasionally refilled after defeating enemies. This makes them impractical for most situations you'd want to use them in.
There are a number of outfits the protagonist can wear, each with specific skillsets and statistical advantages. This is a fun idea, but stupefyingly there is only one location in the entire game where you can change between them, meaning you can't actually strategize around having access to more than one at a time. As you can imagine this also makes grinding even worse.
You can cook different foods for use as HP recovery items, but most of them don't restore a lot, and you'll eventually end up just relying on the out of place generic video game potions anyways. Some better dishes can be made at cooking level 55 (fifty five), which requires grinding (with the chef outfit only, of course) for who knows how long. At the end of my playthrough I had this stat leveled to 27. Most other skills have similarly high barriers, why? Well, at least they aren't terribly useful in the first place.
On another topic, the story is beyond explanation partially because there isn't really much of an explanation given. Rather it seems like the product of the devs fucking around and making something they like, which I heavily respect. At one point you travel to Akihabara and some of the televisions there seem to be showing ads for Killer7. In the depths of a(n implied) US Military base you can find images of the GHM devs and some cats (presumably theirs). Playing reminded me of playing games as a young kid because there's so little information about the game both in it and online that it feels like anything can happen.
For as frankly low quality as it feels, there's as much of an unshakeable feeling that it was a human project. That doesn't necessarily redeem it's faults but tinges my experience of it with a strange joy.
Idk man just listen to this
2005
The first ESPGaluda is great for beginners to the genre, with the kakusei mechanic introduced and integrated as both a means to adjust to the shmup modus operandi and as a simple yet effective scoring system. All things considered it’s not a particularly difficult game to learn or finish.
ESPGaluda II on the other hand raises the difficulty to a point where it seems like a 1cc or at least a level of knowledge and comfort with the mechanics of its forebear is required to do well. (Makes it a bit more confounding that this game has seen numerous rereleases without the other one?) Or at least that was my first impression upon opening the game and proceeding to get thrashed by everything thrown my way. With patterns much denser and faster, I’d say that the game is objectively “harder” at a baseline level. However, like most danmaku their bark is worse than their bite, and practice definitely does help. I think it’s still fair to say it’s a hard game – it took me a solid 2-3 months of on-and-off practice to eke out that 1cc.
Entering the flow state while playing this game feels really nice, with the patterns shifting in speed and color as they fly by or crumble into gold and the ethereal techno pounding in your ears – basically what I’m trying to say is that CAVE games are my version of baby sensory videos. While playing I was reminded of what Sakurai has said about risk and reward in games, and I think these games have a really good feeling of push and pull – enough resources for playing it safe, but also just enough resources to keep you trying to see how much more you can cash in for score (and those sweet, sweet cancels).
The kakusei mechanic too has developed an additional layer of challenge. In addition to regular kakusei there is now kakusei zetsushikai mode, which drains gold and gems when active, often makes patterns more difficult, causes enemies to create homing suicide bullets, all for the reward of quintupling the maximum multiplier on cancels. When used right it can exponentially increase score, but it is also very easy to use wrong. While for myself (and others I’m sure) it usually only acts as a “make the game harder for no reason” button, I appreciate the additional level of challenge it can provide. Again with the risk and reward, I found myself trying to incorporate it more and more into my runs just on the basis that “maybe I can pull it off in this part,” which speaks to the excellency of its design in terms of replay value.
While kakusei gems have always been somewhat scarce, with the denser patterns I felt it really wanting here… until I discovered a hidden mechanic in how kakusei over mode works. When staying in kakusei mode with zero gems, bullets continually speed up. After staying in this mode for a few seconds, it increases the number of gems dropped by enemies. This can be maxed out right at the start of the game with practically no score detriment and makes the rest of it noticeably more forgiving on timing cancels. I was completely unaware of this mechanic and don’t get why it’s something so hidden when you probably want it active for the most part (one could argue that the faster red bullet speed is too detrimental, but for survival purposes seeing the bullets turn red in any case is grounds for a miss/bomb). This was in the first game as well and I had no idea!
I feel the one other misstep in design here is with the very last pattern in the game. The final pattern of ESPGaluda feels like a fair challenge: you’ve had the whole game to learn how to dodge, and now the training wheels are taken off – by force. The last hurdle of ESPGaluda II feels more like it was tacked on to run you a life or two. Having an absurd final pattern that you have to conserve resources for is routine for CAVE games, but the TLB bomb shield here feels unnecessary.
All in all, not a huge deal. Still a very fun game! I’m curious about what the console port(s) bring to the table so I think I’ll pick those up some time.
ESPGaluda II on the other hand raises the difficulty to a point where it seems like a 1cc or at least a level of knowledge and comfort with the mechanics of its forebear is required to do well. (Makes it a bit more confounding that this game has seen numerous rereleases without the other one?) Or at least that was my first impression upon opening the game and proceeding to get thrashed by everything thrown my way. With patterns much denser and faster, I’d say that the game is objectively “harder” at a baseline level. However, like most danmaku their bark is worse than their bite, and practice definitely does help. I think it’s still fair to say it’s a hard game – it took me a solid 2-3 months of on-and-off practice to eke out that 1cc.
Entering the flow state while playing this game feels really nice, with the patterns shifting in speed and color as they fly by or crumble into gold and the ethereal techno pounding in your ears – basically what I’m trying to say is that CAVE games are my version of baby sensory videos. While playing I was reminded of what Sakurai has said about risk and reward in games, and I think these games have a really good feeling of push and pull – enough resources for playing it safe, but also just enough resources to keep you trying to see how much more you can cash in for score (and those sweet, sweet cancels).
The kakusei mechanic too has developed an additional layer of challenge. In addition to regular kakusei there is now kakusei zetsushikai mode, which drains gold and gems when active, often makes patterns more difficult, causes enemies to create homing suicide bullets, all for the reward of quintupling the maximum multiplier on cancels. When used right it can exponentially increase score, but it is also very easy to use wrong. While for myself (and others I’m sure) it usually only acts as a “make the game harder for no reason” button, I appreciate the additional level of challenge it can provide. Again with the risk and reward, I found myself trying to incorporate it more and more into my runs just on the basis that “maybe I can pull it off in this part,” which speaks to the excellency of its design in terms of replay value.
While kakusei gems have always been somewhat scarce, with the denser patterns I felt it really wanting here… until I discovered a hidden mechanic in how kakusei over mode works. When staying in kakusei mode with zero gems, bullets continually speed up. After staying in this mode for a few seconds, it increases the number of gems dropped by enemies. This can be maxed out right at the start of the game with practically no score detriment and makes the rest of it noticeably more forgiving on timing cancels. I was completely unaware of this mechanic and don’t get why it’s something so hidden when you probably want it active for the most part (one could argue that the faster red bullet speed is too detrimental, but for survival purposes seeing the bullets turn red in any case is grounds for a miss/bomb). This was in the first game as well and I had no idea!
I feel the one other misstep in design here is with the very last pattern in the game. The final pattern of ESPGaluda feels like a fair challenge: you’ve had the whole game to learn how to dodge, and now the training wheels are taken off – by force. The last hurdle of ESPGaluda II feels more like it was tacked on to run you a life or two. Having an absurd final pattern that you have to conserve resources for is routine for CAVE games, but the TLB bomb shield here feels unnecessary.
All in all, not a huge deal. Still a very fun game! I’m curious about what the console port(s) bring to the table so I think I’ll pick those up some time.
1997
Gotta respect this game for throwing you in with almost no explanation, then turning you loose to accumulate massive amounts of debt before you can even think about buying anything from the shop. Though I think most of the game’s mechanics are pretty easy to figure out on your own. I love when devs treat the player as actually competent.
The way the story and gameplay are integrated here is kind of a masterstroke. Read the first few mission descriptions and you immediately know exactly what kind of corpo hellscape this game is set in – a dystopia you need to continue to propagate in order to have fun building your giant war machine.
Said giant war machine customization system is very engaging, not only in choosing how to allocate your hard earned cash but balancing all of the AC’s other weight and energy demands as well. That said I did have a few qualms with the actual gameplay, which is held back a little by that classic PS1 jank. All things considered I think the 3D movement here is actually pretty good, but I found myself often fighting the camera – if not the controls. At least it’s thematically appropriate here that maneuvering a giant robot is somewhat cumbersome.
I enjoyed exploring the various settings the missions take you, some with some great ambience when not backed by the (equally as great) soundtrack. Though many of these areas are very confined and labyrinthine, which doesn't lend itself well to the high octane combat the game expects of you.
The final level’s demand for platforming is a huge drag (ie: landing on moving platforms while you can’t see fully above/below you and also have to adjust for your momentum) and leaves an irritating blemish on an otherwise very solid game!
The way the story and gameplay are integrated here is kind of a masterstroke. Read the first few mission descriptions and you immediately know exactly what kind of corpo hellscape this game is set in – a dystopia you need to continue to propagate in order to have fun building your giant war machine.
Said giant war machine customization system is very engaging, not only in choosing how to allocate your hard earned cash but balancing all of the AC’s other weight and energy demands as well. That said I did have a few qualms with the actual gameplay, which is held back a little by that classic PS1 jank. All things considered I think the 3D movement here is actually pretty good, but I found myself often fighting the camera – if not the controls. At least it’s thematically appropriate here that maneuvering a giant robot is somewhat cumbersome.
I enjoyed exploring the various settings the missions take you, some with some great ambience when not backed by the (equally as great) soundtrack. Though many of these areas are very confined and labyrinthine, which doesn't lend itself well to the high octane combat the game expects of you.
The final level’s demand for platforming is a huge drag (ie: landing on moving platforms while you can’t see fully above/below you and also have to adjust for your momentum) and leaves an irritating blemish on an otherwise very solid game!
2023
This review contains spoilers
Okay here’s my actual review.
If you clicked on the spoiler warning I assume you’ve played the whole thing, but if you haven’t, again, SERIOUS SPOILER WARNING!!!!!!!! This game deserves to be played blind!
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After exhausting almost everything I possibly can in this game (still working on that 0thRanger scorerun) I think I’m finally ready to try and sum up my feelings on this game, which is a harder task than I initially expected because of just how… much this game is.
I love what System Erasure does, and I’m really glad that people are enjoying this game so much, but reflecting on my own experience I’m left with somewhat mixed feelings. (This is not to say flawed games are automatically “bad.” My 4-star rating is usually reserved for games I think aren’t perfect but are still great experiences.)
I think mainly my point of contention is with how the story is handled. I think the game’s setting is super interesting and a pretty unique take(/fake out) on the purgatory/Dante’s Inferno tropes often seen in video games. While playing I found myself very invested in discovering more about the lore, and I’m still currently working on compiling a document of everything I’ve found to try and make sense of it all. But I found the story surrounding Gray and Lillie to be resolved in sort of an unsatisfying manner. Most of the game's endings have sort of an “happily ever after” vibe, where it turns out well for (at least one of) them, but I found myself sort of unsatisfied with how simple the conclusions are compared to the complexity of the emotional turmoil these characters experience during the game. (Speaking of which there is an often noticeable tonal clash between story and gameplay segments, and the more anime-esque elements did somewhat take me out of the setting.) In the “extra” endings there is some new information given about Add, the traitor lords, and what DIS(/Green Orange???) is, but still left me with little closure after the credits. The more I sit with it the more I think that might be the point. (ie: “The true nature of DIS is far beyond your understanding. I can’t let you come into contact with it!”)
I can’t not bring up ZeroRanger – the devs’ previous breakout (smash) hit – here as a point of comparison. One could argue that comparing these two games is an apples to oranges situation. I partially agree with this, but I also think it’s amazing how close System Erasure could push the sokoban format into being a shmup. Save for the difference in real-time decision making, the core gameplay loop (emphasis on it being a loop) for both games here is surprisingly similar. Memorize a route, get as far as you can, and then see if you can keep pushing it a little further.
I think shmups are actually a great medium for storytelling, despite being so geared around pure gameplay. I think this generally boils down to a “don’t think, feel” mindset present in the design of these games. While their plots tend to be pretty simplistic, it is the build up of visuals, music, level design, and the engagement actually finishing the game demands of you that makes you invested in what emotional stakes it does offer. (While ZeroRanger similarly borrows tropes from anime/pop culture, it makes more sense in its context as a passion project and tributary to the roots of the medium. And also just flows better with the narrative minimalism.)
Void Stranger, for the most part, accomplishes this as well albeit in a slightly modified format. Where it falls short for me is that it introduces so much more that isn’t clearly followed up on. Solving each puzzle, deciphering each brand, and breaking into each new secret is so much more involved in both constructing a narrative and absorbing the player’s attention, yet it also leaves so much more left unsaid. Additionally, while a single loop of a shmup usually pushes 30-45 minutes at most, no such time constraint is issued here, making the required distance between breakthroughs that much more.
That is not to say that this game is bereft of memorable, engaging, and/or emotional moments, far from it in fact. Particularly standout to me is the “voided” sequence. I was absolutely floored by how well the visuals, music, and gameplay elements work together to create this pure expression of grief… and the struggle that comes with it.
Great care has generally gone into the game’s visuals, and it works really well in all departments save for 0thRanger, where visibility takes a small hit compared to the more easily sight read two-tones of ZeroRanger. And the soundtrack is incredible as usual. The BGM for the eight main portions of the game are all excellent accompaniments to the gameplay (even when the gameplay in question is just thinking about how to solve a puzzle) and great expressions of the character of each void lord. I often found myself playing to the beat even though it’s completely unnecessary.
I am not particularly intelligent so I did have to look up a few of the puzzle solutions. Most of them I gave my college try and was pretty close to getting on my own but just needed that little push. The only one I think I really couldn’t get was Eus’ brand, again I was pretty close from my own attempts to put the screenshots together, but the images fit together in a number of ways that don’t form the right brand.
When I was able to figure out solutions or secrets on my own, it felt near magical. So much care has been put into every detail of this game to the point that the devs actively account for you to be trying to break it at any given opportunity (again, shmup mindset?). I’m not really into sokobans, but how many other ones require you to trick the game into warping you to an out of bounds floor by manipulating HUD elements? When I figured that out on my own I practically jumped out of my seat.
Something that sticks out to me is just how much the love of playing video games is imbued into System Erasure’s games. Not only in the sokoban design elements actively expecting you to work against them, but also in how many other forms of gameplay appear. Between the RPG facades, DDR minigame, picross puzzles, bomberman and centipede (also literally) elements, dating simulator snippet, and of course the shmup/sokoban-shmup hybrid segments, this game was made with the ethos that playing video games is fun!
A common point of detraction for this game is that discovering many of its secrets is very time consuming and can become somewhat of a slog. I do understand and partially concur with this sentiment, however you do get access to “power-ups” pretty early on that trivialize much of the actual sokoban puzzle content in the game. After this point the game basically expects you to find the majority of the puzzles impeding progression trivial, after which you can amass a bunch of locust idols and learn where floor skips are, which then makes it easier to test theories and discover secrets, etc etc. In practice though, this can be somewhat slow and tedious.
Well, as usual, I’m not sure how to end this review. I’ll just say that I enjoyed this game for the most part, even if I found the story to be somewhat overambitious or the gameplay slightly flawed. I eagerly look forward to what System Erasure continues to produce as many games don’t even get close to this ballpark of engaging for me.
If you clicked on the spoiler warning I assume you’ve played the whole thing, but if you haven’t, again, SERIOUS SPOILER WARNING!!!!!!!! This game deserves to be played blind!
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After exhausting almost everything I possibly can in this game (still working on that 0thRanger scorerun) I think I’m finally ready to try and sum up my feelings on this game, which is a harder task than I initially expected because of just how… much this game is.
I love what System Erasure does, and I’m really glad that people are enjoying this game so much, but reflecting on my own experience I’m left with somewhat mixed feelings. (This is not to say flawed games are automatically “bad.” My 4-star rating is usually reserved for games I think aren’t perfect but are still great experiences.)
I think mainly my point of contention is with how the story is handled. I think the game’s setting is super interesting and a pretty unique take(/fake out) on the purgatory/Dante’s Inferno tropes often seen in video games. While playing I found myself very invested in discovering more about the lore, and I’m still currently working on compiling a document of everything I’ve found to try and make sense of it all. But I found the story surrounding Gray and Lillie to be resolved in sort of an unsatisfying manner. Most of the game's endings have sort of an “happily ever after” vibe, where it turns out well for (at least one of) them, but I found myself sort of unsatisfied with how simple the conclusions are compared to the complexity of the emotional turmoil these characters experience during the game. (Speaking of which there is an often noticeable tonal clash between story and gameplay segments, and the more anime-esque elements did somewhat take me out of the setting.) In the “extra” endings there is some new information given about Add, the traitor lords, and what DIS(/Green Orange???) is, but still left me with little closure after the credits. The more I sit with it the more I think that might be the point. (ie: “The true nature of DIS is far beyond your understanding. I can’t let you come into contact with it!”)
I can’t not bring up ZeroRanger – the devs’ previous breakout (smash) hit – here as a point of comparison. One could argue that comparing these two games is an apples to oranges situation. I partially agree with this, but I also think it’s amazing how close System Erasure could push the sokoban format into being a shmup. Save for the difference in real-time decision making, the core gameplay loop (emphasis on it being a loop) for both games here is surprisingly similar. Memorize a route, get as far as you can, and then see if you can keep pushing it a little further.
I think shmups are actually a great medium for storytelling, despite being so geared around pure gameplay. I think this generally boils down to a “don’t think, feel” mindset present in the design of these games. While their plots tend to be pretty simplistic, it is the build up of visuals, music, level design, and the engagement actually finishing the game demands of you that makes you invested in what emotional stakes it does offer. (While ZeroRanger similarly borrows tropes from anime/pop culture, it makes more sense in its context as a passion project and tributary to the roots of the medium. And also just flows better with the narrative minimalism.)
Void Stranger, for the most part, accomplishes this as well albeit in a slightly modified format. Where it falls short for me is that it introduces so much more that isn’t clearly followed up on. Solving each puzzle, deciphering each brand, and breaking into each new secret is so much more involved in both constructing a narrative and absorbing the player’s attention, yet it also leaves so much more left unsaid. Additionally, while a single loop of a shmup usually pushes 30-45 minutes at most, no such time constraint is issued here, making the required distance between breakthroughs that much more.
That is not to say that this game is bereft of memorable, engaging, and/or emotional moments, far from it in fact. Particularly standout to me is the “voided” sequence. I was absolutely floored by how well the visuals, music, and gameplay elements work together to create this pure expression of grief… and the struggle that comes with it.
Great care has generally gone into the game’s visuals, and it works really well in all departments save for 0thRanger, where visibility takes a small hit compared to the more easily sight read two-tones of ZeroRanger. And the soundtrack is incredible as usual. The BGM for the eight main portions of the game are all excellent accompaniments to the gameplay (even when the gameplay in question is just thinking about how to solve a puzzle) and great expressions of the character of each void lord. I often found myself playing to the beat even though it’s completely unnecessary.
I am not particularly intelligent so I did have to look up a few of the puzzle solutions. Most of them I gave my college try and was pretty close to getting on my own but just needed that little push. The only one I think I really couldn’t get was Eus’ brand, again I was pretty close from my own attempts to put the screenshots together, but the images fit together in a number of ways that don’t form the right brand.
When I was able to figure out solutions or secrets on my own, it felt near magical. So much care has been put into every detail of this game to the point that the devs actively account for you to be trying to break it at any given opportunity (again, shmup mindset?). I’m not really into sokobans, but how many other ones require you to trick the game into warping you to an out of bounds floor by manipulating HUD elements? When I figured that out on my own I practically jumped out of my seat.
Something that sticks out to me is just how much the love of playing video games is imbued into System Erasure’s games. Not only in the sokoban design elements actively expecting you to work against them, but also in how many other forms of gameplay appear. Between the RPG facades, DDR minigame, picross puzzles, bomberman and centipede (also literally) elements, dating simulator snippet, and of course the shmup/sokoban-shmup hybrid segments, this game was made with the ethos that playing video games is fun!
A common point of detraction for this game is that discovering many of its secrets is very time consuming and can become somewhat of a slog. I do understand and partially concur with this sentiment, however you do get access to “power-ups” pretty early on that trivialize much of the actual sokoban puzzle content in the game. After this point the game basically expects you to find the majority of the puzzles impeding progression trivial, after which you can amass a bunch of locust idols and learn where floor skips are, which then makes it easier to test theories and discover secrets, etc etc. In practice though, this can be somewhat slow and tedious.
Well, as usual, I’m not sure how to end this review. I’ll just say that I enjoyed this game for the most part, even if I found the story to be somewhat overambitious or the gameplay slightly flawed. I eagerly look forward to what System Erasure continues to produce as many games don’t even get close to this ballpark of engaging for me.
2023
What if a bunch of she/theys ran purgatory
Most of this review will be in comparison to Shiren DS2 as it was chronologically the most recent release before this game (and the one I played most recently). That said as Shiren DS2 was a port of a GBC game that seemingly retained most of the original’s limitations, Shiren 4 by comparison is a large upgrade in basically every aspect.
In terms of design this game is much closer to Mystery Dungeon 2/Shiren the Wanderer DS[1] (don’t you just love how these game titles are so confusing?) than Shiren DS2, as the main goal is to progress through one long dungeon with intermittent rest stops.
A bunch of changes have been made to game progression including:
• Bananas are now the primary food source, which ripen and spoil over time (if not inside a pot). Banana peels can also be set as highly useful traps.
• There is now a day-night cycle which switches up survival strategy and item management, as during the night your weapons become next to useless so you must instead rely on moves you learn from NPCs, which can only be used once per floor.
• Equipment can now level up and gain new passives over time which makes progression feel much more natural. Bless and plating scrolls are also more common.
• Tag system lets you recover equipment after collapsing (for a negligible fee) which greatly reduces the consequences of failure.
• On top of that, the Undo grass item is basically a get out of jail free card (warps you back to start with all of your belongings upon death) and is an occasional find on the ground and in shops.
• There’s also some quality of life stuff like being able to name storage pots for easy organization, being able to move the camera around, and bracelets being no longer able to crack/break.
This ultimately makes the game much easier, but honestly I think that’s okay because these games can still be pretty punishing anyways, and you are never immune to dying to random bullshit. You are never immune even at a postgame level, some monsters at higher levels can destroy your items and even erase runes from your equipment.
There are plenty of very challenging postgame dungeons you can attempt to clear too if the main game leaves you wanting more. Including:
• The main story dungeon, now extending to 99 floors.
• Banana Kingdom, probably the “easiest” challenge and works sort of like the N’fuu dungeon from DS2. Though I find Banana Prince to be a much less helpful ally.
• Trapper dungeon makes a return, though slightly more tolerable here.
• I think my favorite one conceptually is Static Forest, where you cannot level up but equipment upgrade items are very common. Works sort of like a hyper condensed version of the main game grind. That said I could only get to about the halfway point with a combination of the strongest weapon and shield you can find on the ground (and some luck).
• Jaguar’s Hunting Forest is the easiest 99F clear if you bring in upgraded equipment and lots of revive grass, as revive grass basically trivializes the dungeon’s gimmick of unrestorable HP.
Most carry-in dungeons can be trivialized to some extent by bringing good items, but the preparatory grind is dull at best. I’m not super interested in tackling the harder ones because I don’t think I have the determination or skill to get even as far as halfway.
Weird difficulty (exponential) curve aside, really the only things I can detract from the game are:
• Most of the NPCs look like racial caricatures, which really doesn’t sit right with me. The game’s artist is clearly very capable of not doing that and yet here we are.
• The music feels pretty generic and forgettable. While the previous entries’ soundtracks aren’t much to write home about either, Hayato Matsuo has made some pretty good dungeon crawling tunes before. You probably won’t be playing this with the sound on anyways.
Oh, and there's a story, I guess. Not super different from other narratives in this series about an ancient destruction god getting revived and Shiren having to defeat it. Very similar story beats to DS2 as well.
Try this one out if you were put off from Shiren DS1 much like I was, the difficulty here feels more balanced in favor of the player (if not elaborated on enough in this review), while still retaining elements of challenge that makes the roguelike attractive.
In terms of design this game is much closer to Mystery Dungeon 2/Shiren the Wanderer DS[1] (don’t you just love how these game titles are so confusing?) than Shiren DS2, as the main goal is to progress through one long dungeon with intermittent rest stops.
A bunch of changes have been made to game progression including:
• Bananas are now the primary food source, which ripen and spoil over time (if not inside a pot). Banana peels can also be set as highly useful traps.
• There is now a day-night cycle which switches up survival strategy and item management, as during the night your weapons become next to useless so you must instead rely on moves you learn from NPCs, which can only be used once per floor.
• Equipment can now level up and gain new passives over time which makes progression feel much more natural. Bless and plating scrolls are also more common.
• Tag system lets you recover equipment after collapsing (for a negligible fee) which greatly reduces the consequences of failure.
• On top of that, the Undo grass item is basically a get out of jail free card (warps you back to start with all of your belongings upon death) and is an occasional find on the ground and in shops.
• There’s also some quality of life stuff like being able to name storage pots for easy organization, being able to move the camera around, and bracelets being no longer able to crack/break.
This ultimately makes the game much easier, but honestly I think that’s okay because these games can still be pretty punishing anyways, and you are never immune to dying to random bullshit. You are never immune even at a postgame level, some monsters at higher levels can destroy your items and even erase runes from your equipment.
There are plenty of very challenging postgame dungeons you can attempt to clear too if the main game leaves you wanting more. Including:
• The main story dungeon, now extending to 99 floors.
• Banana Kingdom, probably the “easiest” challenge and works sort of like the N’fuu dungeon from DS2. Though I find Banana Prince to be a much less helpful ally.
• Trapper dungeon makes a return, though slightly more tolerable here.
• I think my favorite one conceptually is Static Forest, where you cannot level up but equipment upgrade items are very common. Works sort of like a hyper condensed version of the main game grind. That said I could only get to about the halfway point with a combination of the strongest weapon and shield you can find on the ground (and some luck).
• Jaguar’s Hunting Forest is the easiest 99F clear if you bring in upgraded equipment and lots of revive grass, as revive grass basically trivializes the dungeon’s gimmick of unrestorable HP.
Most carry-in dungeons can be trivialized to some extent by bringing good items, but the preparatory grind is dull at best. I’m not super interested in tackling the harder ones because I don’t think I have the determination or skill to get even as far as halfway.
Weird difficulty (exponential) curve aside, really the only things I can detract from the game are:
• Most of the NPCs look like racial caricatures, which really doesn’t sit right with me. The game’s artist is clearly very capable of not doing that and yet here we are.
• The music feels pretty generic and forgettable. While the previous entries’ soundtracks aren’t much to write home about either, Hayato Matsuo has made some pretty good dungeon crawling tunes before. You probably won’t be playing this with the sound on anyways.
Oh, and there's a story, I guess. Not super different from other narratives in this series about an ancient destruction god getting revived and Shiren having to defeat it. Very similar story beats to DS2 as well.
Try this one out if you were put off from Shiren DS1 much like I was, the difficulty here feels more balanced in favor of the player (if not elaborated on enough in this review), while still retaining elements of challenge that makes the roguelike attractive.
1994
In the second spoken line of VISIONNERZ ~ 幻視人 does the vocalist say "close your head" or "close your heart"? This is critical to my enjoyment of the game btw
It's a CAVE shooter, you already know it's great, I just wish I didn't feel like playing it is gonna put me on a watchlist.
I love the platonic ideal of what megaten could be. This game is about as close as it gets to that ideal, at least for me. Note that that means it doesn't exactly exceed my expectations, but does what it does well with a few minor-to-noticeable flaws depending on who you ask.
One of my gripes with the previous entries I've played is how disconnected the protagonist's world feels from the story/stakes. This game does a great job at establishing the world and the positions you can take in trying to change it. The main story isn't incredibly dense, I don't think most cutscenes last over three minutes, but it doesn't have to be to convey to you all of the necessary information and let you draw your own conclusions about it. I found a lot of the decisions in the game to be very difficult ones to make, even with the ones I felt the most conviction about I could understand the opposing viewpoint. This works especially well because as the characters you travel with have their own reactions and develop their own convictions as the game continues; you may choose to side with them due to an emotional attachment, or force yourself to sever that attachment for what you think is right. The previous entries do this too, to an extent, but I didn't feel as much personal attachment to other alignment heroes even though they journey with you as well. Lots of characters will debate or rebuke your viewpoint in very legitimate ways as opposed to just saying "fuck you, die," which I think goes a long way in actually getting the player to think about the consequences of their actions. This is the fate of the world we're talking about here! I think this is also greatly bolstered by a lot of the NPC dialogue and side content. This game is full of NPCs, who each in their own way contribute to really fleshing out the setting. I have my own thoughts on the messaging of the game's story as a whole, but I think that would be for another review.
This is the first megaten I've played that incorporates the press turn system (I know I skipped Nocturne, I will play it eventually oTL), and I really love how it works. I have... mixed feelings about the smirk mechanic, as it takes away some of that reward you get for understanding the press turn system when the enemy can randomly smirk and obliterate you. That said, it also does a great job driving the player to use the press turn system to their advantage as much as possible. As far as I can tell, randomly getting your team wiped is kind of the essence of megaten, so it kind of continues the tradition of trial by fire? Speaking of, the early game is definitely the most difficult part, I think I might've gotten a game over in my first or second encounter. Frustrating as it may be, I think this early section of the game does a great job at making sure you understand the basics of its mechanics before turning you loose on the wider world, something especially important as it was probably a lot of people's (in the west at least) first exposure to megaten. And I think the game does trust you to be competent, after the first bit of tutorials there's really nothing else.
On the visuals, I wasn't sure about the combination of art styles for the demon portraits but it ended up not really bothering me, surprisingly. (Though some demons look better than others, but again that's a conversation for another time.) The game's visuals in general aren't all that outstanding but I actually think it is noticeably improved with the 3D on. This is actually one of the few 3DS games I could recommend playing with the 3D on the entire time, and I suggest doing so if you have the hardware. Also I loooove all of the little details they put into the 3D environments, I can actually recognize streets and buildings I've been to in real life (which yeah, maybe isn't a huge deal for the graphical standards of the time but adds to the believability of the setting, at least for me)! Sometimes when I got lost I would just pull out google maps to find what I was looking for and it would work. That said, there is a lot of walking around you have to do in this game, especially if you're doing those sidequests. On my first playthrough this didn't prove to be much of an issue to me because every area has tons of little nooks and crannies to explore, plenty of demons to recruit, etc, but second time around when I was just aiming to get to the alignment lock it really became noticeable. I really like how encounters are now visible, but when in a 3D space you need to attack a demon with the Estoma Sword skill active in order to prevent the encounter (as opposed to the overworld where they just vanish on contact). This can be tricky to do as demons often move erratically, which unfortunately means you can't really avoid all encounters in a backtracking session.
If you want a big, easily 70+ hour JRPG with a good story, great battle mechanics, memorable characters, and a fucking killer soundtrack, I would easily suggest this one. Not perfect, but a standout among its kind for sure. My main advice is to take your time with it!
One of my gripes with the previous entries I've played is how disconnected the protagonist's world feels from the story/stakes. This game does a great job at establishing the world and the positions you can take in trying to change it. The main story isn't incredibly dense, I don't think most cutscenes last over three minutes, but it doesn't have to be to convey to you all of the necessary information and let you draw your own conclusions about it. I found a lot of the decisions in the game to be very difficult ones to make, even with the ones I felt the most conviction about I could understand the opposing viewpoint. This works especially well because as the characters you travel with have their own reactions and develop their own convictions as the game continues; you may choose to side with them due to an emotional attachment, or force yourself to sever that attachment for what you think is right. The previous entries do this too, to an extent, but I didn't feel as much personal attachment to other alignment heroes even though they journey with you as well. Lots of characters will debate or rebuke your viewpoint in very legitimate ways as opposed to just saying "fuck you, die," which I think goes a long way in actually getting the player to think about the consequences of their actions. This is the fate of the world we're talking about here! I think this is also greatly bolstered by a lot of the NPC dialogue and side content. This game is full of NPCs, who each in their own way contribute to really fleshing out the setting. I have my own thoughts on the messaging of the game's story as a whole, but I think that would be for another review.
This is the first megaten I've played that incorporates the press turn system (I know I skipped Nocturne, I will play it eventually oTL), and I really love how it works. I have... mixed feelings about the smirk mechanic, as it takes away some of that reward you get for understanding the press turn system when the enemy can randomly smirk and obliterate you. That said, it also does a great job driving the player to use the press turn system to their advantage as much as possible. As far as I can tell, randomly getting your team wiped is kind of the essence of megaten, so it kind of continues the tradition of trial by fire? Speaking of, the early game is definitely the most difficult part, I think I might've gotten a game over in my first or second encounter. Frustrating as it may be, I think this early section of the game does a great job at making sure you understand the basics of its mechanics before turning you loose on the wider world, something especially important as it was probably a lot of people's (in the west at least) first exposure to megaten. And I think the game does trust you to be competent, after the first bit of tutorials there's really nothing else.
On the visuals, I wasn't sure about the combination of art styles for the demon portraits but it ended up not really bothering me, surprisingly. (Though some demons look better than others, but again that's a conversation for another time.) The game's visuals in general aren't all that outstanding but I actually think it is noticeably improved with the 3D on. This is actually one of the few 3DS games I could recommend playing with the 3D on the entire time, and I suggest doing so if you have the hardware. Also I loooove all of the little details they put into the 3D environments, I can actually recognize streets and buildings I've been to in real life (which yeah, maybe isn't a huge deal for the graphical standards of the time but adds to the believability of the setting, at least for me)! Sometimes when I got lost I would just pull out google maps to find what I was looking for and it would work. That said, there is a lot of walking around you have to do in this game, especially if you're doing those sidequests. On my first playthrough this didn't prove to be much of an issue to me because every area has tons of little nooks and crannies to explore, plenty of demons to recruit, etc, but second time around when I was just aiming to get to the alignment lock it really became noticeable. I really like how encounters are now visible, but when in a 3D space you need to attack a demon with the Estoma Sword skill active in order to prevent the encounter (as opposed to the overworld where they just vanish on contact). This can be tricky to do as demons often move erratically, which unfortunately means you can't really avoid all encounters in a backtracking session.
If you want a big, easily 70+ hour JRPG with a good story, great battle mechanics, memorable characters, and a fucking killer soundtrack, I would easily suggest this one. Not perfect, but a standout among its kind for sure. My main advice is to take your time with it!
2023
So... I spent the last month or so of my life getting a V rank (perfect clear) in every stage, partially out of a completionist urge and partially to see if it was even humanly possible. And after all that I can say that Vividlope is indeed a game worth your attention, though maybe not with the exacting lens that I took to it.
Don't be fooled by the cutesy characters into thinking that this will be an easy game; the difficulty ramps up fast, especially on hard mode (originally the only difficulty level). Said difficulty doesn't come from the stages themselves as much as it does from the overwhelming presence of enemies, most of which have semi-random movement patterns. While many are predictable and can be played around, if you're running through a level at full speed you sometimes get so little reaction time that it might as well be random. When aiming for a V rank, one enemy randomly choosing to move in a different direction than planned can have significant consequences for a run, if not just ending it immediately.
That said, if you don't care about rank you can use additional items in stages which makes accounting for enemies much easier. I think that this game has a great concept and is genuinely fun when you're in the rhythm of it that I don't want to make it seem like it isn't worth a playthrough, or at least a try. Perhaps a testament to that is me finishing the entire thing despite finding aspects of it pretty frustrating. Because there is a lot of game to play (135 stages and 2 other modes!!), it's better to take this game pretty slow, as rushing to your goal (no matter what it is) is not going to go quickly either way.
I'm not afraid to admit that some of the levels are unfair as fuck though lol
Don't be fooled by the cutesy characters into thinking that this will be an easy game; the difficulty ramps up fast, especially on hard mode (originally the only difficulty level). Said difficulty doesn't come from the stages themselves as much as it does from the overwhelming presence of enemies, most of which have semi-random movement patterns. While many are predictable and can be played around, if you're running through a level at full speed you sometimes get so little reaction time that it might as well be random. When aiming for a V rank, one enemy randomly choosing to move in a different direction than planned can have significant consequences for a run, if not just ending it immediately.
That said, if you don't care about rank you can use additional items in stages which makes accounting for enemies much easier. I think that this game has a great concept and is genuinely fun when you're in the rhythm of it that I don't want to make it seem like it isn't worth a playthrough, or at least a try. Perhaps a testament to that is me finishing the entire thing despite finding aspects of it pretty frustrating. Because there is a lot of game to play (135 stages and 2 other modes!!), it's better to take this game pretty slow, as rushing to your goal (no matter what it is) is not going to go quickly either way.
I'm not afraid to admit that some of the levels are unfair as fuck though lol
This is a game I feel like everyone should play at least a little bit of.
In discussion of the MOON-likes, games like Endnesia and Chulip, I'm surprised this game isn't brought up more often. Besides being made by many of the same people, it shares many similarities in terms of gameplay as well.
I bring this up because this game is also bursting with the seams with charm in a similar manner. Every location, line of dialogue, animation, and musical sting has an almost shocking amount of care put into it. It's also unafraid to be weird, which I really like.
I feel like this game is mostly known in western communities as "that wAcKy JaPaN game" in the Zelda pantheon because of its presentation (and probably the incredibly unsubtle sex scene euphemism), but I think it has much more to offer than just the goofy parts. It's a little hard to articulate exactly, but this is genuinely one of the few video games which playing through it made me feel like I was going on a journey, not just moving from objective to objective. I know how strange that sounds for a game that is so heavily focused around resource management and exploiting the world around you for monetary gain as efficiently as possible.
Unfortunately, it does fall a bit short in terms of the core gameplay. There is a noticeable amount of what can be considered tedium to some, walking around each location takes some time, and collecting some ingredients can similarly require a grind. Personally I didn't find it irritating enough to be a dealbreaker but if you haven't played this know that the most riveting action you will be seeing on the screen a good 70% of the time is a 35 year old man walking through a field.
My only real issue is with the way that you haggle, one of the central mechanics of the game, is heavily skewed out of favor of the player. In many instances if you give an NPC too low of a compensation they will refuse to take whatever action you request of them but still take your money. This can be hugely detrimental if you misjudge by only a small amount, because you will then actually need to grind to recuperate your losses. There is leeway provided when you are bartering for a reward, which I wish applied elsewhere as well. Even so, if you underestimate how much you can squeeze out of the NPCs you won't have enough rupees to progress, which again makes grinding necessary. Honestly it's difficult for me to recommend this game without using a guide, at least for the latter half of the game because over or underspending can really make or break your experience. However I do appreciate the tension that is created from these stakes, having to near constantly put your money where your mouth is really forces you to manage it wisely.
And yeah, the messaging is incredibly on the nose, but there's nothing wrong with that from time to time. I really like the way the story is delivered. I think this game will always hold a special place in my heart despite its issues, again for reasons I cannot entirely explain.
In discussion of the MOON-likes, games like Endnesia and Chulip, I'm surprised this game isn't brought up more often. Besides being made by many of the same people, it shares many similarities in terms of gameplay as well.
I bring this up because this game is also bursting with the seams with charm in a similar manner. Every location, line of dialogue, animation, and musical sting has an almost shocking amount of care put into it. It's also unafraid to be weird, which I really like.
I feel like this game is mostly known in western communities as "that wAcKy JaPaN game" in the Zelda pantheon because of its presentation (and probably the incredibly unsubtle sex scene euphemism), but I think it has much more to offer than just the goofy parts. It's a little hard to articulate exactly, but this is genuinely one of the few video games which playing through it made me feel like I was going on a journey, not just moving from objective to objective. I know how strange that sounds for a game that is so heavily focused around resource management and exploiting the world around you for monetary gain as efficiently as possible.
Unfortunately, it does fall a bit short in terms of the core gameplay. There is a noticeable amount of what can be considered tedium to some, walking around each location takes some time, and collecting some ingredients can similarly require a grind. Personally I didn't find it irritating enough to be a dealbreaker but if you haven't played this know that the most riveting action you will be seeing on the screen a good 70% of the time is a 35 year old man walking through a field.
My only real issue is with the way that you haggle, one of the central mechanics of the game, is heavily skewed out of favor of the player. In many instances if you give an NPC too low of a compensation they will refuse to take whatever action you request of them but still take your money. This can be hugely detrimental if you misjudge by only a small amount, because you will then actually need to grind to recuperate your losses. There is leeway provided when you are bartering for a reward, which I wish applied elsewhere as well. Even so, if you underestimate how much you can squeeze out of the NPCs you won't have enough rupees to progress, which again makes grinding necessary. Honestly it's difficult for me to recommend this game without using a guide, at least for the latter half of the game because over or underspending can really make or break your experience. However I do appreciate the tension that is created from these stakes, having to near constantly put your money where your mouth is really forces you to manage it wisely.
And yeah, the messaging is incredibly on the nose, but there's nothing wrong with that from time to time. I really like the way the story is delivered. I think this game will always hold a special place in my heart despite its issues, again for reasons I cannot entirely explain.
2023
I don't think I'll be "playing" this for any considerable length of time, but I do appreciate that all the classic delayed gratification mobile game tactics are implemented here except instead of for the purposes of getting the player to spend as much money as possible on the game, it's to encourage an arguably objective lifestyle improvement.