How do you comply with up a sport like 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim? Earlier than that bold, phenomenal sci-fi journey, developer Vanillaware discovered its area of interest in creating wealthy, beautiful-looking worlds with a magical, medieval twist. Generally it was traditional Western fantasy, whereas others it jumped again to Edo Japan. Unicorn Overlord marks the developer’s return to the previous, going down in a fantasy realm overtaken by an evil lord. That seems like the precise reverse of 13 Sentinels’ winding plot, however Unicorn Overlord is bold in a wholly completely different means. It’s additionally completely good, effortlessly mixing a number of methods to create an exquisite tactical RPG with a twist.
At first of the sport, you witness the autumn of the Kingdom of Cornia due to a revolt led by Common Valmore. On the identical time, the younger prince Alain flees the dominion with the Holy Knight Josef, to make sure the bloodline survives. The revolt, nonetheless, is profitable, and the Zenioran Military rises up and step by step overtakes all 5 nations of Valmore. Ten years later, Alain returns to construct a liberation military to take again his kingdom and restore order to the continent of Fevrith.
The primary stuff you’ll most likely be taken by in Unicorn Overlord are the attractive visuals and unimaginable music. This is what the developer is primarily identified for, and on Change, it seems to be and seems like an absolute dream, each docked and undocked. We didn’t encounter any technical points on our OLED in nearly 60 hours, and the one distinction seems to be barely longer load instances and decrease decision in comparison with PS5. However we’re speaking a couple of technique RPG which requires hours of enjoying round, participating in myriad mechanics, and it’s good for a handheld.
Even from only a few hours in, you’ll be able to completely inform that Unicorn Overlord isn’t Vanillaware’s first brush with technique and tactical gameplay. Each single encounter feels rigorously crafted, with a number of maps with winding paths, alternating terrain, watchtowers, obstacles, and even ballistae and catapults to navigate round. No two maps are the identical, and each enemy unit you come up in opposition to requires cautious consideration and planning forward of time.
Early on, the sport throws comparatively straightforward items at you — troopers on horseback, hoplites utilizing big shields, magic casters, and many others. All of those are weak to several types of items. Cavalry is weak to flying items reminiscent of griffon riders and winged troopers, whereas hoplites are weak to magic assaults. As you progress, although, you’ll come throughout a mixture of lessons inside a unit. One unit is perhaps led by a Doom Knight, a horseback unit that depends on draining its personal well being to deal excessive harm. However they could even have hunters, bow-wielding lessons which can be robust in opposition to flying foes. This solely will get extra complicated the additional into the story you get, nevertheless it by no means will get much less thrilling to fiddle round together with your unit compositions and groups.
Which may sound like a chore, nevertheless it actually isn’t as a result of Unicorn Overlord does such a very good job of throwing new characters and lessons at you all through all the runtime, which makes experimenting enjoyable. We have been nonetheless assembly new lessons on the 40-hour mark and have been determined to attempt to make house for them in our items and see what their strengths and weaknesses have been. When you’re something like us, there’s no means you’ll have the ability to withstand having a beast man amongst your lineup. Each liberation military wants an axe-wielding lion.
The sport can also be incredible at educating you about these lessons, as you’ll step by step unlock little tutorial battles in opposition to mentioned new class which can present you what they’re good at, who they’re good with, and (importantly) what they’re weak to. Successful these bouts will get you a pleasant financial reward, and it’s additionally actually satisfying to create the right mixture of lessons in a unit.
A category, and a unit, are solely pretty much as good as its Ways are. As an alternative of constructing lively selections in the midst of a battle, you’ll be guiding your items round a map, telling them the place to go or who to assault, so establishing the suitable Ways is essential to victory. When you’ve ever performed Last Fantasy XII, these are like Gambits the place you basically program a personality’s actions relying on the scenario. There are two varieties of strikes a personality can do in battle – lively assaults that eat Motion Factors, and passive actions that eat Passive Factors. The previous is an motion in opposition to the enemy, and the latter is a response to a foe.
Like many issues in Unicorn Overlord, you’ll be able to probably get by the early levels of the sport with out touching the default Ways, however you’ll quickly need to fiddle with this as you come throughout stronger items and recruit new lessons to the liberation. Weapons and armour can additionally grant new varieties of Ways which add to the characters’ pool of choices. It’s also possible to develop items, with every with the ability to maintain 5 characters without delay.
It’s onerous to get your head round the whole lot till you truly mess around with the system and see it in motion for your self, however when it clicks, it’s thrilling. Telling archers to prioritise flying enemies, or ensuring shamans know to debuff armoured enemies or take away buffs from foes are important. And naturally, ensure that clerics are able to heal and take away debuffs. And, happily, you’ll be able to see the end result of each battle earlier than you even have interaction in it. Once we obtained the hold of it and noticed our items’ fights play out, it was like watching all of the threads come collectively in an enormous tapestry to create this good image. We couldn’t get sufficient of it, and actually, it’s a tinkerer’s paradise.
Battles aren’t restricted to unit-on-unit fight, nonetheless. Utilizing Valor factors, which you may get again by capturing an enemy base, liberating a city, or simply by defeating enemy items, you’ll be capable of benefit from expertise on the map to assist buff your allies or deal harm to foes. Want to interrupt enemy limitations? Get a warrior on the market and use Wild Swing. You may additionally need to take over enemy an ballista so you’ll be able to fireplace arrows at foes as they method you for fixed harm, and station items at watchtowers to permit magic customers, healers, and archers to assist allies from a distance. This all comes into play as you try to clear a stage earlier than the timer runs out, one thing we didn’t have a lot hassle with in Regular mode however can see these components being essential in increased difficulties.
If it’s not clear, we adore fight in Unicorn Overlord. It might appear a bit overwhelming at first, however the way in which the sport well teaches you tips on how to play, and encourages you to experiment together with your items, is totally addictive and genius. We liked getting misplaced within the weeds, tweaking our groups, selecting up new gear, and enjoying round with gambits and unit composition, to the purpose that we have been serious about it in our sleep. Mock Battles allow you to take a look at these items out, and there are battles you need to use to grind for expertise and get used to your items.
The world map itself has far more to do than simply battle on it, too. Alongside Liberation Quests, Aspect Quests, and Foremost Story quests, which all typically finish in battle, you have got Overworld Quests which activity you with discovering carvings, uncovering secret sanctuaries, and summoning magic sigils. Every area can also be residence to a Mining facility the place you’ll be able to play a minigame to get rock, stone, supplies, and even Treasure Maps. Navigating the attractive world is sort of as enjoyable as noodling round with Ways and items, and it helps break up the gameplay so it’s not a relentless barrage of fights.
Even rebuilding cities is enjoyable – it offers a function to amassing supplies, which you decide up on the world map, and typically lets you experience a ship to secret areas. Stationing guards assure you extra supplies and assist to make you’re feeling such as you’re making a distinction on the earth. There are additionally Rapport conversations, the place you kind relationships with different items. Frankly, we’re staggered at what number of of those conversations there are to find by preventing alongside a unit, gifting them gadgets, and consuming meals with them at one of many many taverns. And sure, whereas not each character has a Rapport with each single character, everybody does have a number of Rapports with a number of characters. Some finally find yourself being romantic, however this doesn’t come into play till the very finish of the sport.
The one actual blemish (and a minor one, at that) on Unicorn Overlord is that story. This isn’t the considerate, political epic you’ll discover in style classics reminiscent of Final Fantasy Tactics and even Ogre Battle 64 – the latter of which this sport feels closely impressed by via its gameplay methods. It definitely tries to embrace the thought of battle and unity, and among the particular person nations do have their very own ‘arcs’ which present you serving to to liberate and unite the continent earlier than the battle with the massive dangerous. The issue is it depends on a couple of too many deus ex machinas and ‘thoughts controls’ to get by. The narrative does transfer past that the additional in you get – with the snowy continent of Bastoria containing among the higher moments – nevertheless it definitely takes some time to transcend a surface-level examination of conflict.
Fortunately, the large solid of characters may be very charming, starting from severe and stoic to goofy and enjoyable. Right here is the place the sport evokes Fireplace Emblem greater than Ways Ogre. You’ll learn the way Travis, a former member of the Tricorns, was ousted from the group and go into his relationships with different members. Then there’s Melisandre, a noblewoman and swordsman who’s a bit obsessive about Alain. Each character has their very own identification and character – with 64 of them, some do fade into the background greater than others, nevertheless it doesn’t really feel half-baked, and no dialog takes up greater than a minute or two. Truthfully, the eye to element in each little side of the sport is astonishing, and the truth that all of it feels enjoyable, helpful, or participating is a triumph.