I wanted to like this game a lot more than I did. Everything that Studio Ghibli touched: the animation, the music, and the overall vibe, I loved. They really don't miss, and it is what pushed me through the entire experience. Unfortunately, I don't think they made the right partner in level 5 to make a great JRPG.

I'll start with the positive. I really like the side quest design, with the stamps giving you the feeling of constant progression. I also thought the wizard's companion and the amount that you can dig into the world was interesting. Unfortunately, I don't have much positive to say for the rest of the actual game part of this game.

It's extremely handhold-y, taking away a lot of the freedom in exploration (the immediate example that comes to mind is that you can't use a spell without talking to the person first and Mr. Drippy telling you to use a spell, even when you know what to do). I'm not against structure, but I felt like I was being tutorialized through the end of the game in the exploration.

And finally, the absolute back breaker here is the combat. For one thing, it's just not very satisfying. It ranges from completely horrible to just passable. At best, you're just going through the motions, occasionally clicking all out defense of offense and using an item or spell. At worst, you're dealing with the worst partner AI I have ever seen in a game (no exaggeration) and then watching your character get interrupted as an item or spell takes 10 seconds to go into effect. I really can't emphasize enough how bad the AI is and how much it hurts the experience. They will use all their MP immediately when they don't need it and then insist on using their least powerful familiar to attack. It really stains the experience in my mind.

Luckily, the art, music, and atmosphere do a lot to uphold the entire experience. I don't think the narrative was as well executed as it could be with such a great setup, but it was still good overall. When the combat is passable, it's a fun time.