As one of the plebs who walked away from Breath of the Wild disgruntled with its flimsy weapons, Koudelka's weapon durability system proved to be a pleasant surprise. Seeing my characters' proficiency with certain weapons improve every time they broke one meant that I ended up welcoming the notification that a weapon had shattered, rather than dreading it. Koudelka's handling of weapon durability encouraged me to experiment with different types in the hopes of seeing the extended melee combos that came with higher aptitude. The weapons also lasted long enough that obtaining one felt rewarding rather than redundant.
In terms of tactics, the final boss was the only enemy in the game that demanded my attention. As such, the combat was only inadvertently entertaining through its oddball enemy design and quirky animations. Thankfully the customisation afforded through stat distribution, coupled with the generous levelling system, meant that sitting through the sluggish encounters rarely felt like a waste of time.
Although random encounters were tame and tended to last a few minutes too many, Koudelka's story was intriguing enough to hold my attention. Developments came at a steady pace, and seeing things unfold was consistently entertaining thanks to the frenetic CG cutscenes and solid voicework. The singular quality of the performances in this game lent the characters a weird charm, and despite only spending 15 hours in their company, Koudelka's three dysfunctional leads won me over me in a way few JRPG parties do.
Putting Koudelka up against its peers one facet at a time would probably lead to a series of unfavourable comparisons, but as an experience in and of itself, the game holds up pretty well. Its pre-rendered backgrounds don't hold a candle to those of Final Fantasy IX or Resident Evil 3, nor do its encounters warrant the tinkering that other JRPGs of its era invite, but for me Koudelka remains an endearing game that admirably reworks the tone and progression of a survival horror into a curious RPG that accomplishes a lot without asking for much.
In terms of tactics, the final boss was the only enemy in the game that demanded my attention. As such, the combat was only inadvertently entertaining through its oddball enemy design and quirky animations. Thankfully the customisation afforded through stat distribution, coupled with the generous levelling system, meant that sitting through the sluggish encounters rarely felt like a waste of time.
Although random encounters were tame and tended to last a few minutes too many, Koudelka's story was intriguing enough to hold my attention. Developments came at a steady pace, and seeing things unfold was consistently entertaining thanks to the frenetic CG cutscenes and solid voicework. The singular quality of the performances in this game lent the characters a weird charm, and despite only spending 15 hours in their company, Koudelka's three dysfunctional leads won me over me in a way few JRPG parties do.
Putting Koudelka up against its peers one facet at a time would probably lead to a series of unfavourable comparisons, but as an experience in and of itself, the game holds up pretty well. Its pre-rendered backgrounds don't hold a candle to those of Final Fantasy IX or Resident Evil 3, nor do its encounters warrant the tinkering that other JRPGs of its era invite, but for me Koudelka remains an endearing game that admirably reworks the tone and progression of a survival horror into a curious RPG that accomplishes a lot without asking for much.