Crystal Ortha

So, normally, I am a die hard Kemco fan. But this is honestly one of the worst games I've played by them. The battle system is exactly like Monster Viator (which IMO is already pretty awful), and there are no healing items, no real point to battles, no fun search spots for items, and for once, the dialogue is just....bad. Like, not even cringe bad, just downright, zero thought put into it bad. The game just feels rushed and lacking any sort of stand out quality. Save yourself the money on this, and put it towards one of their better titles instead.

This is a preliminary first impression review based on the first three hours of game. First I'd like to say that this is not the worst indie JRPG you can get. It has some neat ideas and competent if rough execution. The story is very much inspired by Breath of Fire, with lots of references/elements from other classics, like Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, etc. Characters are also pretty cliche archtypes. Also story/map progression is pretty linear and handholding is very strong (with lots of invisible walls/story driven requirements to do specific actions). Localization quality is on the level of a fan translation. A lot of lines read stilted, or outright incomprehensible. Some terms used are also questionable. Overall it's still possible to get through, and proper pauses on punctuation are appreciated. Dungeons are only pretend to be classic labyrinth, you're even given a minimap with all the treasures on the screen so you can plan your route. Combat difficulty is more of a puzzle than anything. You have to take out monsters in specific order to prevent party wipe. That is until you fight them a couple of times in the area and gain a level or two, then it's autobattle time, as t…

This is just a preliminary review from around 1 hour playtime. A more in-deep one will follow. My first thoughts about this game: It looks charming. A pixelated game like those on the S-NES. The story: so far a former soldier now mercenary hires as a bodyguard for a young girl. The girl is in search for the mother of all crystals aka a sea of crystals that could make you rich. Like most games KEMCO published this is very linear. You go from one quest to the next and there is no free exploration. Also looking for items is...ehh, no fun. After you enter a location you can see ever chest or item on the map. Dungeons are an endless row of battles (nearly every 2-3 steps). Now something that shouldn't be done: there is no option for item use, means that if you are low on HP or poisoned you can only use a skill (bad luck if you run out of skill points). After each battle you HP is restored. Without the option of item use there are also no shops for weapons/armor. You must find material and than you can craft them in special shops. Outside of dungeons you can travel between locations: walking, useing an steam scooter of warp (last only to locations you have already visited). ATM I …

NICE! this game is great, nice pixel graphics, nice animations, and you can guarantee that it will be a pretty excellent game considering its a colab between Kemco and Hit-Point.

So, you probably already know if you will enjoy this game, but if you are on the fence, I have to say this game is pretty fun and the retro style plus the easy to use interface makes it really fun to play. I love JPRPG's and this one is pretty fun.