This review contains spoilers
okaaay i liked it overall but i have such complicated feelings no one told me this game wasn’t finished and everyone talked about it like it was…but anyways
in terms of gameplay, i really loved it. the minigames were a nice way of killing time in case one did not want to continue with the story in between sections. i found the demon request system was fun, allowing the player to explore the house to their heart’s content. this system is adaptable to different playstyles; a completionist vs someone who is just playing to experience the story. even if someone is the latter personality, completing requests is not hard nor do they take very long. the battle system is uncomplicated and i liked that there was variation between characters. the tools were also an interesting way of spacing out exploration. there was no overwhelming amount to be explored before moving onto the next part. overall, the experience was fun.
i feel rather complicated on the story aspect of it. the characters are a bit hard to care for at first; they come off as rather trope-y, but their backstories supplement their personalities very well. i ended up caring for a lot of the cast a lot more than i did in the beginning. however, i still find it hard to care very much about the demons even with their backstories. their designs are cute though.
spoilers begin here!
i love timeloops in media as much as the next person, but i do not think a video game is the best media for it. of course it is not impossible to execute the concept well in a way that is not annoying, but i did not find that here. i do think the story is compelling. i genuinely love it very much, but it was rather painstaking replaying the same parts over and over again, even with skippable parts. i feel even one or two loops would have sufficed, with the bonus stage taking up the majority of it.
i love the themes of grief and loss, with unending suffering that is emphasized through a timeloop scenario. noel takes on the sisyphean task to save clair and that devotion is expressed so well. i love the motivations of the other characters in addition. the emptiness that wilardo feels both from immortality as well as betrayal. ashe’s desperation to see his family again. sirius’ own devotion to lady dorothy and his unsubtle care for noel and clair as well. it was interesting to see these people from different walks of life gather here by some twist of fate for the witch’s heart. while i criticized the time it took to repeat the scenarios earlier in my review, i do think some part of it was saved by the fact that during the loops it explored the relationship dynamics of the characters. though i still believe the bonus stage does a good job of exploring such dynamics anyways.
on my final note, i loved the art. there was no shortage of art, from cgs, to transitions, and even the sprites themselves. it must have taken an incredible amount of work to produce so much art, most of which would only be view for a few seconds before moving onto the next scene. they still leave lasting impressions despite their short screentime. not to mention how cute the style is; it feels very early 2000s anime, giving off a bit of nostalgia for something made in the late 2010s. its aesthetics bring out a bit of an excitable energy with it.
that’s about all i have to say. fantastic game overall have a nice day everyone
in terms of gameplay, i really loved it. the minigames were a nice way of killing time in case one did not want to continue with the story in between sections. i found the demon request system was fun, allowing the player to explore the house to their heart’s content. this system is adaptable to different playstyles; a completionist vs someone who is just playing to experience the story. even if someone is the latter personality, completing requests is not hard nor do they take very long. the battle system is uncomplicated and i liked that there was variation between characters. the tools were also an interesting way of spacing out exploration. there was no overwhelming amount to be explored before moving onto the next part. overall, the experience was fun.
i feel rather complicated on the story aspect of it. the characters are a bit hard to care for at first; they come off as rather trope-y, but their backstories supplement their personalities very well. i ended up caring for a lot of the cast a lot more than i did in the beginning. however, i still find it hard to care very much about the demons even with their backstories. their designs are cute though.
spoilers begin here!
i love timeloops in media as much as the next person, but i do not think a video game is the best media for it. of course it is not impossible to execute the concept well in a way that is not annoying, but i did not find that here. i do think the story is compelling. i genuinely love it very much, but it was rather painstaking replaying the same parts over and over again, even with skippable parts. i feel even one or two loops would have sufficed, with the bonus stage taking up the majority of it.
i love the themes of grief and loss, with unending suffering that is emphasized through a timeloop scenario. noel takes on the sisyphean task to save clair and that devotion is expressed so well. i love the motivations of the other characters in addition. the emptiness that wilardo feels both from immortality as well as betrayal. ashe’s desperation to see his family again. sirius’ own devotion to lady dorothy and his unsubtle care for noel and clair as well. it was interesting to see these people from different walks of life gather here by some twist of fate for the witch’s heart. while i criticized the time it took to repeat the scenarios earlier in my review, i do think some part of it was saved by the fact that during the loops it explored the relationship dynamics of the characters. though i still believe the bonus stage does a good job of exploring such dynamics anyways.
on my final note, i loved the art. there was no shortage of art, from cgs, to transitions, and even the sprites themselves. it must have taken an incredible amount of work to produce so much art, most of which would only be view for a few seconds before moving onto the next scene. they still leave lasting impressions despite their short screentime. not to mention how cute the style is; it feels very early 2000s anime, giving off a bit of nostalgia for something made in the late 2010s. its aesthetics bring out a bit of an excitable energy with it.
that’s about all i have to say. fantastic game overall have a nice day everyone