This review contains spoilers
A truly fantastic game. Easily one of the best retro-styled RPGs I've played in some time. For the purposes of this review I'm going to split it into six sections: Combat, Exploration, Worldbuilding/Lore, Music, Graphics, and Story. There may be some mild spoilers in the early sections, but the big ones will be at the bottom so even if you are reading this through the spoiler warning the big ones should be at the bottom. That said, here we go.
COMBAT
First off, the combat. Taking a cue from Chrono Trigger, you see all the enemies on the map in the actual areas you explore and bumping into them starts combat. Each of your party members's main attack is a certain element, and after an early encounter in the game you can knock energy out of foes with base physical attacks to Boost your attacks with a secondary element. There are six "elements" in this game: blunt, sharp, solar, lunar, arcane, and venom, and this is more important because when enemies are charging powerful attacks "locks" will appear that you can break via those elements. You can freely swap members in battle once you have more than 3 without a turn penalty so the strategic element of using the right members for the right attacks is there.
You'll also charge up a combo meter the more attacks you do, which function like Dual Techs in Chrono Trigger, since you team up with an ally for a powerful attack combining your existing attacks. Later on in the game, you'll start getting Ultimate attacks, charged up even further which is a powerful multi-hit attack that can deal massive damage. All in all, the combat is very engrossing.
My one complaint is you literally cannot flee from any battle, which is annoying when backtracking through older areas and getting into fights but you usually can get through trash mobs quickly. You also can, with the right timing, get extra damage on your attacks or reduce damage when attacked, so that helps too. You also can get various Relics that can give benefits (or make the game harder) that can be toggled, such as making your characters auto-block occasionally, or make more visual flair when you get the timing right, or even auto heal after battle while doubling max HP. These are all at your discretion to use (and most have to be found and/or purchased anyways) but they really allow you to fine-tune battle difficulty nicely.
EXPLORATION
Now on to the other half of the gameplay, the map exploration. Areas are split up into large areas, with an overworld map connecting them (another cue taken from Chrono Trigger). There isn't much you can do on the overworld, but in the various areas you can climb up walls with grips, shimmy across narrow ledges, and later on even push blocks and grapple across certain gaps to traverse the areas. No two areas are alike, so there is always something new. Being that you play as Eclipse Warriors blessed with the powers of the sun and moon, there are also some light based puzzles focused on manipulating the time of day to have light reflected over specific panels, among other things. It was quite fun exploring and finding secrets like this, and just as engrossing as the battles.
Near most save points there were also campfires, where you could rest or even cook if you have the right ingredients and recipes, and this is where you get your potions and ethers and such. There aren't any status ailments like poison though, so no need to worry about that. There is also a fishing minigame, which is good for getting those ingredients, and it's pretty intuitive. Keep the fish in the glowing area as you reel it in and your line is fine. Otherwise it may snap the line. Either way it's quite fun to just see where you can go in any given zone.
WORLDBUILDING/LORE
As for this part, the world the game takes place has interesting lore going on, introduced to you early on. As Eclipse Warriors, you grow up in the town of Mooncradle which is devoted to raising children such as yourself. Children born on either solstice are dropped off in the town by the Great Eagle, blessed with control over the magic of their solstice (solar for summer, lunar for winter). As you explore the world, you see many great sights and meet many great people. You also learn that Eclipse Warriors exist to protect the world from powerful beings known as Dwellers who can only be defeated during an eclipse.
Now of course it's not like your entire party is Eclipse Warriors (just your main two characters) so you find others who are equally strong. One such is your childhood friend Garl, who styles himself as the Warrior Cook and might just be one of the greatest RPG characters in history. A true friend, Garl is the type of guy who'll stay be your side no matter what and make sure you're well-fed in the mean time. The rest of the party is equally great but Garl is definitely a highlight. He is a bit of a gateway to some other lore. You'll also run into Teaks, who doesn't fight with you but has a book that, when presented with artifacts, will unlock various stories that expand the world even more with various myths and legends that, as you explore the game, are revealed to be more and more true.
MUSIC
The music in the game is a true masterpiece. Every song hits so hard, and there are very few songs that don't hit as well (but they're still good). The battle music is energizing, as it should be. Area music is usually relaxing but certain areas have more hype music fitting the storyline and area they're in. This wasn't going to be as big of a section as the rest, but I had to point out that this really is one of the better soundtracks this year. And we had Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Future Redeemed AND Final Fantasy XVI this year so tough competition. And yet, it holds its own. Definitely some songs I'll be coming back to for casual outside-of-game listening.
GRAPHICS
This game has some truly beautiful spritework. The characters pop, the environments are lush, the backgrounds are detailed, the enemies are diverse (with very few palette swaps), it's all wonderful. The animations are great too, and every character has unique personality that shines through in their designs and animations. There are also occasionally cutscenes that are beautifully animated like a cartoon to really emphasize certain scenes, and they're always quite welcome.
STORY
Now for the big spoilery part. The story. I touched upon it a bit in the lore section, but the story has some big surprises. As this is a prequel of sorts to The Messenger, there are some fascinating points that bring to mind areas and characters in that game, so it does help if you've played (and beaten) that game first. Eventually you also end up crossing the titular Sea of Stars after a particularly heart-wrenching moment to another world in chase of your main foe, the Fleshmancer. It is him who made the Dwellers and, as an Eclipse Warrior, your biggest foe. I quite enjoyed how the story progressed and how the world opened up more and more as the story progressed.
I was also quite delighted to find there was postgame that led into a true ending that was a lot more satisfying than the base ending. I highly recommend going for that true ending because it's worth it. You also basically end up having to get the best weapons because almost all the side quests are required (similar to how Chrono Trigger was with the quests that opened up after getting Crono back) for that true ending. One of the other requirements is finding all 60 Rainbow Conches though, and that can be tedious (even with one of the rewards for the Conches being a bird that tells you if something is left in any given region) and I won't lie I did use a guide. Still very satisfying to get to the end. There is also one final surprise even after true ending that requires almost everything else done, and that is even more worth it.
FINAL THOUGHTS
So the reason I did 6 sections was trying to be cheeky cause 6 party members throughout the game. But all in all, it excels in all 6 sections. No part of the game is held up by another because they're all fantastic. Definitely recommend the game highly, and that 5 stars is not an exaggeration. I also recommend beating the Messenger first for the best experience though, but that game is also wonderful so yeah. Either way, I quite enjoyed my time with the game and I look forward to exploring the world of it more once the promised DLC drops too.
COMBAT
First off, the combat. Taking a cue from Chrono Trigger, you see all the enemies on the map in the actual areas you explore and bumping into them starts combat. Each of your party members's main attack is a certain element, and after an early encounter in the game you can knock energy out of foes with base physical attacks to Boost your attacks with a secondary element. There are six "elements" in this game: blunt, sharp, solar, lunar, arcane, and venom, and this is more important because when enemies are charging powerful attacks "locks" will appear that you can break via those elements. You can freely swap members in battle once you have more than 3 without a turn penalty so the strategic element of using the right members for the right attacks is there.
You'll also charge up a combo meter the more attacks you do, which function like Dual Techs in Chrono Trigger, since you team up with an ally for a powerful attack combining your existing attacks. Later on in the game, you'll start getting Ultimate attacks, charged up even further which is a powerful multi-hit attack that can deal massive damage. All in all, the combat is very engrossing.
My one complaint is you literally cannot flee from any battle, which is annoying when backtracking through older areas and getting into fights but you usually can get through trash mobs quickly. You also can, with the right timing, get extra damage on your attacks or reduce damage when attacked, so that helps too. You also can get various Relics that can give benefits (or make the game harder) that can be toggled, such as making your characters auto-block occasionally, or make more visual flair when you get the timing right, or even auto heal after battle while doubling max HP. These are all at your discretion to use (and most have to be found and/or purchased anyways) but they really allow you to fine-tune battle difficulty nicely.
EXPLORATION
Now on to the other half of the gameplay, the map exploration. Areas are split up into large areas, with an overworld map connecting them (another cue taken from Chrono Trigger). There isn't much you can do on the overworld, but in the various areas you can climb up walls with grips, shimmy across narrow ledges, and later on even push blocks and grapple across certain gaps to traverse the areas. No two areas are alike, so there is always something new. Being that you play as Eclipse Warriors blessed with the powers of the sun and moon, there are also some light based puzzles focused on manipulating the time of day to have light reflected over specific panels, among other things. It was quite fun exploring and finding secrets like this, and just as engrossing as the battles.
Near most save points there were also campfires, where you could rest or even cook if you have the right ingredients and recipes, and this is where you get your potions and ethers and such. There aren't any status ailments like poison though, so no need to worry about that. There is also a fishing minigame, which is good for getting those ingredients, and it's pretty intuitive. Keep the fish in the glowing area as you reel it in and your line is fine. Otherwise it may snap the line. Either way it's quite fun to just see where you can go in any given zone.
WORLDBUILDING/LORE
As for this part, the world the game takes place has interesting lore going on, introduced to you early on. As Eclipse Warriors, you grow up in the town of Mooncradle which is devoted to raising children such as yourself. Children born on either solstice are dropped off in the town by the Great Eagle, blessed with control over the magic of their solstice (solar for summer, lunar for winter). As you explore the world, you see many great sights and meet many great people. You also learn that Eclipse Warriors exist to protect the world from powerful beings known as Dwellers who can only be defeated during an eclipse.
Now of course it's not like your entire party is Eclipse Warriors (just your main two characters) so you find others who are equally strong. One such is your childhood friend Garl, who styles himself as the Warrior Cook and might just be one of the greatest RPG characters in history. A true friend, Garl is the type of guy who'll stay be your side no matter what and make sure you're well-fed in the mean time. The rest of the party is equally great but Garl is definitely a highlight. He is a bit of a gateway to some other lore. You'll also run into Teaks, who doesn't fight with you but has a book that, when presented with artifacts, will unlock various stories that expand the world even more with various myths and legends that, as you explore the game, are revealed to be more and more true.
MUSIC
The music in the game is a true masterpiece. Every song hits so hard, and there are very few songs that don't hit as well (but they're still good). The battle music is energizing, as it should be. Area music is usually relaxing but certain areas have more hype music fitting the storyline and area they're in. This wasn't going to be as big of a section as the rest, but I had to point out that this really is one of the better soundtracks this year. And we had Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Future Redeemed AND Final Fantasy XVI this year so tough competition. And yet, it holds its own. Definitely some songs I'll be coming back to for casual outside-of-game listening.
GRAPHICS
This game has some truly beautiful spritework. The characters pop, the environments are lush, the backgrounds are detailed, the enemies are diverse (with very few palette swaps), it's all wonderful. The animations are great too, and every character has unique personality that shines through in their designs and animations. There are also occasionally cutscenes that are beautifully animated like a cartoon to really emphasize certain scenes, and they're always quite welcome.
STORY
Now for the big spoilery part. The story. I touched upon it a bit in the lore section, but the story has some big surprises. As this is a prequel of sorts to The Messenger, there are some fascinating points that bring to mind areas and characters in that game, so it does help if you've played (and beaten) that game first. Eventually you also end up crossing the titular Sea of Stars after a particularly heart-wrenching moment to another world in chase of your main foe, the Fleshmancer. It is him who made the Dwellers and, as an Eclipse Warrior, your biggest foe. I quite enjoyed how the story progressed and how the world opened up more and more as the story progressed.
I was also quite delighted to find there was postgame that led into a true ending that was a lot more satisfying than the base ending. I highly recommend going for that true ending because it's worth it. You also basically end up having to get the best weapons because almost all the side quests are required (similar to how Chrono Trigger was with the quests that opened up after getting Crono back) for that true ending. One of the other requirements is finding all 60 Rainbow Conches though, and that can be tedious (even with one of the rewards for the Conches being a bird that tells you if something is left in any given region) and I won't lie I did use a guide. Still very satisfying to get to the end. There is also one final surprise even after true ending that requires almost everything else done, and that is even more worth it.
FINAL THOUGHTS
So the reason I did 6 sections was trying to be cheeky cause 6 party members throughout the game. But all in all, it excels in all 6 sections. No part of the game is held up by another because they're all fantastic. Definitely recommend the game highly, and that 5 stars is not an exaggeration. I also recommend beating the Messenger first for the best experience though, but that game is also wonderful so yeah. Either way, I quite enjoyed my time with the game and I look forward to exploring the world of it more once the promised DLC drops too.