There's so much to love about this story. So many themes and ideas are handled exceptionally well, especially thanks to a multilayered protagonist who always thinks more than he says. There were emotional character moments that completely broke me for days. There was a mystery that was compelling enough whenever it was the center of attention.

But then there was the Slice of Life nonsense that was the actual focus for most of the story. And I get it, I know that it served a purpose! I know that it was used to establish the character's relationships for the emotional segments to properly hit! I know that there was tons of hidden foreshadowing for the culprit of the serial killings sprinkled throughout those seemingly mundane moments!

But it just felt like the cheapest way to go about it. Instead of crafting compelling scenarios to flesh out characters, you are meant to connect to them through extended exposure. Instead of hiding clues throughout a proper investigation, it's much easier to hide the needle in the haystack of seemingly irrelevant conversations.

In the end, there was still a lot to enjoy within this first part of Lucid9 - until it felt the need to jump out and REALLY rub in the fact that it is, in fact, a first part. I don't know why the cliffhanger ending was necessary, I really don't. It felt like such a well-rounded experience that was able to stand on its own - now, it feels degraded to the prologue that it always was. Was still worth experiencing! But I'll have to hold out on any final judgment until the full game is out.

I often wondered what a JRPG would feel like, if it got rid of RNG in its entirety. If it cut out most of the stats relevant for combat, to the point where you can realistically keep all the numbers in mind while picking your next action. Where you would always know whether an attack would kill the enemy in front of you - and if it didn't, exactly how much health they would have left over.

Helen's Mysterious Castle answers that question and I fucking love it. Every attack feels meaningful, every enemy feels like a puzzle to learn and understand, until I figure out a way to defeat them with the minimum amount of damage taken. No matter how often I die, it always feels like I'm improving - both through knowledge and stats.
Since there aren't any actual game overs, every time I woke up back home still felt like progress: an opportunity to rethink my strategy, upgrade or swap out my equipment and often gaining an additional healthpoint - almost as if given a reward for trying again and again.

As the game culminates with some truly difficult boss fights, all the little systems snap together to create a coherent whole: most of my equipment has been upgraded to the max (or at least close to it) and it all became about creating a setup that would allow me to withstand the enemies' attacks for long enough to get through those final encounters.

A short experience, extremely focused on its unique systems that I just wish I could find in more games of its kind. Absolutely worth checking out.