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12-27-17 10:24 AM
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Ni No Kuni: Flawed Masterpiece

 
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12-27-17 10:24 AM
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supernerd117
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Note: This review was pulled from my account on NintendoRadar. Can submit proof, if necessary.

I bought a PS3 for this game. Yes, I have officially become a PS-aholic. Or rather, I picked up so much I felt I “missed”. I tried to get my brother into it all...but I failed. He officially hates the controllers. And he refuses to play anything other than ModNation Racers on the PS3...and only on occasion. If only I could get him to play Ni No Kuni and get him to see! But I digress. Here’s my review:

Ni No Kuni is a masterwork. I have played no RPG nearly of its like, and the sheer quality of the game is underemphasized. Artistically, it is brilliant. The music is rousing and powerful. Its combat system is wonderful. Inventory management is streamlined and even fun. The story is emotional and moving. These things blend together into a masterpiece.

The game features Oliver, a young boy who loves to enjoy life. He loves his mother. He serves his friends. But he still does get into trouble. In the game’s first few moments, he makes a mistake, and his mother pays the price. While what happened to her was not his fault, he takes it hard. But soon fate has a hand to play in bringing him out of his stupor...and sending him to save an unfamiliar world.

And yet that world is familiar. The two worlds are tied together. If something happens somewhere in one world, it has repercussions in the other. And each person has a “soul mate”. That is, each person has another who shares similar characteristics in the opposite world...and if one dies, so, too, does the other.

Though it may seem hokey in a sense, that very plot point helps Oliver to be such a compelling character. In many RPGs, there are emo protagonists cut from a cloth, or bland heroes with a shoed-in backstory. In this one, we get a young boy, inexperienced but by no means foolish and weak. The game avoids the cliches that so often hamper these characters. Instead, Oliver is about as polite as they come, willing to fight but also willing to see beyond the character flaws of his enemies. He is certainly among the most compelling protagonists ever in an RPG. Here is proof that Studio Ghibli fanservice is among the best fanservices out there.

His companions are less compelling, but far and away some of the best secondary protagonists ever in an RPG. And not simply because their characters are great. Gameplaywise, they each serve vital functions. Mr. Drippy (later on, not a playable character), can heal the party when things are dicey. Esther can bring familiars (basic enemies) over to your side. Swaine “steals” items using his gun (yes, a gun in this game can seem odd). Marcassin is an Oliver clone. OK, I’m joking. But gameplaywise, he’s actually not quite as good. Perhaps better in the party late-game for battle…but not for trophy grinding. Well...he doesn’t join until late game. Minor spoiler there. I digress.

But perhaps the most stand-out “sidekicks” are the familiars. In a fashion similar to Pokemon, you can battle, recruit and train these Familiars. They level up, can be evolved, learn new moves, and have different types and type advantages. How they are trained stands out: You level up your familiars through direct battle (with full control over up to one at a time) and the damage they take? Well, that’s damage to you. If a familiar is knocked out, so are you. Thankfully, when available, you can call on up to 3 characters and their familiars (one at a time) to battle. If you get knocked out, simply proceed with another character still in battle.

And evolution is completely in your hands. You can level up your familiars as much as you want (up to a max level) and once they are “metomorphable”, you can evolve them anytime outside of battle, if you have the right item. These, fortunately, are fairly abundant, and if you stick to training a more specialized team (rather than grinding and grinding to get your various familiars’ levels up), then you will have all you need and more.

You even can choose between two forms in the second evolution. Each familiar has four forms: One basic, one first evolution, and a choice between two second evolutions. These usually are similar in some ways, but may be of a completely different type. This gives you more freedom when you’re training your team, so that you can yourself craft a balance that works for you.

And! You can feed your familiars to raise their stats. This food can be bought or obtained on the map and hiding places or from enemies. Each kind of familiar favors a specific kind of treat. And as your familiars’ “familiarity” levels up (to a max of five “hearts”), they may be able to use more moves, for example. In perhaps an odd choice, you have to largely favor a specific stat (using the familiar’s favorite kind of food) in order to get five hearts. A disappointment and restriction of growth choice, but understandable.

Now to weaknesses:

Grinding may be this game’s biggest weakness. While grinding may rarely be necessary (unless you don’t decide to pursue all the optional quests like me), it can be daunting. If you want to max out one familiar’s stats (and optional bonuses), you have to participate in hundreds of battles AND feed it hundreds of treats. The best of these treats cannot be purchased...they must be made or found. And gathering all the necessary ingredients...well, that’s a grind. You’ll have to search the map or battle many enemies that you perhaps far outlevel.

Another weakness is conflict of tone. While this is hardly a problem in the main story, you’ll find yourself going on optional “bounty hunts”, which amount to you hunting specifically generated enemies down in the overworld for, well, money and bonuses. Some of the best abilities in the game (or rather, enhancements) are not available until you participate in many of these. And you get a sentence or two about why you should hunt them down. No villages seemingly in danger, and you can proceed at your own pace. There is no seeming urgency to these hunts, in large conflict with the tone of the main plot.

EDIT: Hearing "We have no choice but to fight!" as a battle entrance response when grinding against enemies far below my level (and from whom I could flee at any time) is silly. Of course, no choice if I want that Platinum trophy. But I'm not outmatched, these enemies do little damage, and I don't know what these enemies have been doing (have they terrorized towns? Ransacked villages? They look cute). Another tonal oddity.

And the weapon descriptions can be iffy for a game of this tone. It’s supposed to be cheerful and upbeat despite all problems. Yet some of the descriptions speak about how they pierce flesh easily or are super dark, etc. etc. etc. Considering that The High Lord of the Fairies (AKA Mr. Drippy) says early on not to worry about attacking, that the creatures you fight are “sent off” instead of slain, is he pulling one over on Ollie-boy? No, probably not. So therein lies the problem.

Also a la Pokemon, there is a casino. Now, I won’t rag on this a lot. Especially not since in one game (Blackjack cough cough), the odds are highly in your favor if you know how to play (I guess they like giving out credit?). There’s even a cool minigame available only there (and one earlier section of the game, briefly).

Overall:

Ni No Kuni is a masterpiece hampered by a few odd design choices and tonal weirdness. But you will be hard pressed to find a more enjoyable RPG. My main reason to buy a PS3. And I’ve loved every minute of the 75+ hours I’ve spent with it, with many more to go. Flip, mun!

Rating: 9.8/10
Note: This review was pulled from my account on NintendoRadar. Can submit proof, if necessary.

I bought a PS3 for this game. Yes, I have officially become a PS-aholic. Or rather, I picked up so much I felt I “missed”. I tried to get my brother into it all...but I failed. He officially hates the controllers. And he refuses to play anything other than ModNation Racers on the PS3...and only on occasion. If only I could get him to play Ni No Kuni and get him to see! But I digress. Here’s my review:

Ni No Kuni is a masterwork. I have played no RPG nearly of its like, and the sheer quality of the game is underemphasized. Artistically, it is brilliant. The music is rousing and powerful. Its combat system is wonderful. Inventory management is streamlined and even fun. The story is emotional and moving. These things blend together into a masterpiece.

The game features Oliver, a young boy who loves to enjoy life. He loves his mother. He serves his friends. But he still does get into trouble. In the game’s first few moments, he makes a mistake, and his mother pays the price. While what happened to her was not his fault, he takes it hard. But soon fate has a hand to play in bringing him out of his stupor...and sending him to save an unfamiliar world.

And yet that world is familiar. The two worlds are tied together. If something happens somewhere in one world, it has repercussions in the other. And each person has a “soul mate”. That is, each person has another who shares similar characteristics in the opposite world...and if one dies, so, too, does the other.

Though it may seem hokey in a sense, that very plot point helps Oliver to be such a compelling character. In many RPGs, there are emo protagonists cut from a cloth, or bland heroes with a shoed-in backstory. In this one, we get a young boy, inexperienced but by no means foolish and weak. The game avoids the cliches that so often hamper these characters. Instead, Oliver is about as polite as they come, willing to fight but also willing to see beyond the character flaws of his enemies. He is certainly among the most compelling protagonists ever in an RPG. Here is proof that Studio Ghibli fanservice is among the best fanservices out there.

His companions are less compelling, but far and away some of the best secondary protagonists ever in an RPG. And not simply because their characters are great. Gameplaywise, they each serve vital functions. Mr. Drippy (later on, not a playable character), can heal the party when things are dicey. Esther can bring familiars (basic enemies) over to your side. Swaine “steals” items using his gun (yes, a gun in this game can seem odd). Marcassin is an Oliver clone. OK, I’m joking. But gameplaywise, he’s actually not quite as good. Perhaps better in the party late-game for battle…but not for trophy grinding. Well...he doesn’t join until late game. Minor spoiler there. I digress.

But perhaps the most stand-out “sidekicks” are the familiars. In a fashion similar to Pokemon, you can battle, recruit and train these Familiars. They level up, can be evolved, learn new moves, and have different types and type advantages. How they are trained stands out: You level up your familiars through direct battle (with full control over up to one at a time) and the damage they take? Well, that’s damage to you. If a familiar is knocked out, so are you. Thankfully, when available, you can call on up to 3 characters and their familiars (one at a time) to battle. If you get knocked out, simply proceed with another character still in battle.

And evolution is completely in your hands. You can level up your familiars as much as you want (up to a max level) and once they are “metomorphable”, you can evolve them anytime outside of battle, if you have the right item. These, fortunately, are fairly abundant, and if you stick to training a more specialized team (rather than grinding and grinding to get your various familiars’ levels up), then you will have all you need and more.

You even can choose between two forms in the second evolution. Each familiar has four forms: One basic, one first evolution, and a choice between two second evolutions. These usually are similar in some ways, but may be of a completely different type. This gives you more freedom when you’re training your team, so that you can yourself craft a balance that works for you.

And! You can feed your familiars to raise their stats. This food can be bought or obtained on the map and hiding places or from enemies. Each kind of familiar favors a specific kind of treat. And as your familiars’ “familiarity” levels up (to a max of five “hearts”), they may be able to use more moves, for example. In perhaps an odd choice, you have to largely favor a specific stat (using the familiar’s favorite kind of food) in order to get five hearts. A disappointment and restriction of growth choice, but understandable.

Now to weaknesses:

Grinding may be this game’s biggest weakness. While grinding may rarely be necessary (unless you don’t decide to pursue all the optional quests like me), it can be daunting. If you want to max out one familiar’s stats (and optional bonuses), you have to participate in hundreds of battles AND feed it hundreds of treats. The best of these treats cannot be purchased...they must be made or found. And gathering all the necessary ingredients...well, that’s a grind. You’ll have to search the map or battle many enemies that you perhaps far outlevel.

Another weakness is conflict of tone. While this is hardly a problem in the main story, you’ll find yourself going on optional “bounty hunts”, which amount to you hunting specifically generated enemies down in the overworld for, well, money and bonuses. Some of the best abilities in the game (or rather, enhancements) are not available until you participate in many of these. And you get a sentence or two about why you should hunt them down. No villages seemingly in danger, and you can proceed at your own pace. There is no seeming urgency to these hunts, in large conflict with the tone of the main plot.

EDIT: Hearing "We have no choice but to fight!" as a battle entrance response when grinding against enemies far below my level (and from whom I could flee at any time) is silly. Of course, no choice if I want that Platinum trophy. But I'm not outmatched, these enemies do little damage, and I don't know what these enemies have been doing (have they terrorized towns? Ransacked villages? They look cute). Another tonal oddity.

And the weapon descriptions can be iffy for a game of this tone. It’s supposed to be cheerful and upbeat despite all problems. Yet some of the descriptions speak about how they pierce flesh easily or are super dark, etc. etc. etc. Considering that The High Lord of the Fairies (AKA Mr. Drippy) says early on not to worry about attacking, that the creatures you fight are “sent off” instead of slain, is he pulling one over on Ollie-boy? No, probably not. So therein lies the problem.

Also a la Pokemon, there is a casino. Now, I won’t rag on this a lot. Especially not since in one game (Blackjack cough cough), the odds are highly in your favor if you know how to play (I guess they like giving out credit?). There’s even a cool minigame available only there (and one earlier section of the game, briefly).

Overall:

Ni No Kuni is a masterpiece hampered by a few odd design choices and tonal weirdness. But you will be hard pressed to find a more enjoyable RPG. My main reason to buy a PS3. And I’ve loved every minute of the 75+ hours I’ve spent with it, with many more to go. Flip, mun!

Rating: 9.8/10
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