You have been warned: Significant story details below. Knowing them may not spoil the experience, but you can never back out. Are you ready? Cue Ceave Gaming’s “Let's do this” (despite this not being a Mario Maker vid). Maybe Scykoh’s “Hello and welcome”? How about Wintergatan’s Marble Machine song? #MarblemachineXhype!

Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch is one of my favorite games. I gave it nearly a perfect score in my review here, and, while I acknowledged it had some flaws, praised it for its excellent cast, writing, story, music and gameplay. It is, quite nearly, a perfect game.

But what of its sequel?

Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom is a game I waited so long for. Finally, a sequel to one of the greatest games ever made! When I heard it would be somewhat darker and “more mature”, I felt a bit disappointed, to be honest. Usually, that indicates to me that a certain edge will be pushed at the cost of poignancy. For an example, gamers revolted when the trailer for “The Last of Us 2” showcased lots of bloody violence...with little to say about its story. The Last of Us is considered by many to be one of the most emotional, poignant games ever made and that the focus of the sequel’s trailer was violence was considered a terrible mistake, even an insult to some.

But Ni No Kuni II still had involvement from Studio Ghibli, even though part of the way through, only some of those involved with the studio were helping, rather than the entire studio backing the project.

The game, also, has only a few passing references to the first game. It's not clear whether this is a sequel or a spin-off, as the map and the characters are very different. In fact, not long before Ni No Kuni II’s release, it was admitted that the people behind it were not sure how to bill it.

It shows. Traditionally animated cutscenes are gone completely, replaced by 3D cutscenes with models interacting. New kingdoms are present, replacing Al Mamoon and Hamelin from Ni No Kuni I, as well as two new kingdoms. But this a problem?

Well, not really. The cutscenes are gorgeous in their own right, and while they may not have the same fluidity, they get the job done and look wonderful, to boot. Nothing else seems to be largely impacted by Studio Ghibli’s lack of involvement,save a few minor details.

The art is gorgeous, and the character models pop with color and come alive. The Ghibli inspiration is apparent, and as a result, the game feels very fluid and wonderful through its artistry.

The music is every bit as delightful as before, with a score composed by Joe Hisaishi once again. It follows familiar beats while being very distinct from its predecessor.

That said, let’s take a look at the plot. This time around, we have another orphan struggling to make sense of the world. Instead of being an “everyboy” like Oliver, this child is a king whose father recently was murdered by a rat (er, mouse? His name is Mausinger) who was his father’s most trusted advisor. Having the throne and not knowing what to do with it, it is taken over by Mausinger, who instantly begins “avenging” (as well as continuing) the wrongs imposed by a racial divide in the city literally populated with cats and mice.

It’s compelling, to be sure. But sadly, this plotline has very little made of it. Evan, the boy cat king cast out, does not see his kingdom again until much later in the game, near the endgame. Instead, he takes to the road and establishes his own kingdom with his new advisor, Roland.

Roland is a character brought to Evan’s world via MacGuffin. That is, he is transported to a new world from a world like our own with no explanation as to how. He is made instantly younger (so as to be ready for battle), and instantly gets to work protecting Evan during the coup. He is the type of person that gets things done and not the kind of person that spends valuable time freaking out or asking unnecessary questions.

After saving Evan and getting outta dodge, he and Evan establish a new kingdom, a kingdom devoted to uniting the world under a single banner, with Evan at its head. Now some of you might be joking, “oh, Evan is Hitler”. Well, no. This game is edgier than Ni No Kuni, but that’s not saying much. Evan is an eternal optimist, and uniting the kingdoms is something he wants to do for everyone’s sake and not so he can be Dictator Extraordinaire of the World.

Does the rest of the game live up to this plot, though? Are its ambitions realized? Well, not completely. There are four kingdoms scattered around the globe, as well as Evan’s own Kingdom of Evermore. Evan’s overall quest involves something like this: Go on some quests, seek to make peace and establish a formal relationship with the king or queen of each kingdom then, when things go south, face down a “Kingmaker”, a beast that supposedly gives a king or queen authority to rule the kingdom over which he or she presides. Rinse and repeat.

That said, the kingdoms to which Evan and friends travel are well realized, for the most part, and there are interesting dynamics that create a themed problem to solve. Suffice it to say that these kingdoms are hardly generic, though the plot beats followed throughout them are somewhat. Each kingdom is beautiful in its own way, and the characters met along the way are wonderfully realized...with exceptions.

One huge disappointment is Evan’s confrontation with his father’s murderer, who has assumed the role of king now. Evan seeks to make peace with him, and even is willing to leave him in charge of the kingdom if he is willing to put aside racial prejudice and move on. This leads to an emotional scene with Evan’s own father’s spirit making an appearance and forgiving Mausinger. But…

One of the main story beats involves a cloaked and masked character stealing the kingsbonds (the bonds with the kingmakers) for his own purpose (supposedly, it is to rule the world). Both Evan’s father and the character, Doloran, state the equivalent of “[Mausinger] had done nothing wrong” during the late game encounter. This is what can be referred to as “false sentimentality”, or in other words, a “white lie”. But the effort to make the player feel better by sugar coating the truth hides the bitterness on the inside and could cause the player to feel let down.

In addition, the climax feels deeply shallow, even though certain aspects of it are brilliant. Doloran “steals” the souls of the residents in order to revive the woman he loved, a kingmaker herself. That the climax rests on this is a disappointment. It sacrifices poignancy again for spectacle and false sentimentality.

You might be saying, “no way am I going to play this game now.” But what about the gameplay?

This game shines in its gameplay. Many people point to Ni No Kuni II’s combat as being “better” than Ni No Kuni I’s. I feel this is not the case, however, but rather shines a different way. Why then would they say that?

Well, we tend to favor what we are familiar with, as we can be more comfortable with it more easily. While Ni No Kuni I had a mixture of real-time combat and menu-based attacks and tactics, Ni No Kuni II is almost entirely in real-time. Every attack you make is in real time, dodging or guarding is done with the press of a button, and the only menu managing deals with healing or supplementary items. This means the combat tends to be stressful and demanding, in contrast to the relaxed combat of the first game.

That change means a change in focus. Blocking attacks is no longer as favorable as in the first game. Instead, careful dodging is sometimes required, followed by a staggered offense.

General encounters with enemies encourage more aggressive play. The more enemies you take out, the fewer can attack you. On Normal difficulty, these generally are very easy to breeze through. On higher difficulties, and especially later in the game, you will find abilities that help with crowd control help a lot.

As for abilities themselves, the game innovates. For each character, you can have up to three weapons. Attacking an enemy builds a meter for that weapon, up to 100 percent, as well as build MP. Using one of four assigned abilities at this point will cause a powered up version of that move to be used.

Gold glims are handled differently than the the first game, as well. To replace the miracle move (a single move that is assigned to each character), you are allowed to use powered up versions of your abilities as often as you can until time runs out. As you can still take damage in this state, some battles may have you questioning whether you should use an ability at all then, as doing so may leave you vulnerable to powerful attacks.

A lot of strategy is required for some encounters. There are certain “tainted” creatures on the map that are far more powerful than the usual creatures of their kind. You need to learn their attack patterns and timings and react. Many of these might have you dodging attacks just go get a few hits in over and over again.

This is where another mechanic comes in handy: ranged attacks. Ranged attacks are attacks done with bow or gun or staff and can lock onto and hit enemies from a distance. But as you use these attacks, an MP meter decreases that is required for your other abilities as well. Completely deplete MP and your ranged attacks will slow down and do less damage.

Enemies don't stand by while you do this. They will always try to close the gap between them and you, sometimes with great speed. Knowing whether to play the long game or strike the enemy hard and fast is essential.

Staggering also makes a return from Ni No Kuni I. In that game, if you hit a boss enemy in a specific way and hard enough, they would become vulnerable to “free” attacks for a short time.

In this game, staggering an enemy focuses more on the hard-hitting aspects of it. With a greater assortment of bosses, Ni No Kuni II also has less obvious ways to stagger. I still am not clear entirely how the system works.

Also making a return is the party system. In Ni No Kuni II, you can switch characters with the press of a button, between 3 selected for battle, each with their own strengths, weaknesses, and mixture of weapon types (between spear, sword, and axe/hammer in physical, and staff, bow, and gun in ranged). Weapon types determine how each character feels to play, and a weapon in one character’s hands will feel different in another's.

In addition, there is a combo system that takes advantage of light and heavy attacks, also different for each character. But each character’s combos are never explained by the game, and must be learned individually. If you choose not to learn these combos, you likely will still beat the game without a ton of trouble. But knowing them helps you take full advantage of battles.

One thing that makes the combat stand out even more are creatures called Higgledies. These indestructible creatures of nature are attuned to elements, and, when commanded/activated, can do amazing things. These may be powering you up, creating shields against certain elements, and even attacking the enemy. The tradeoff is that you are vulnerable as you go to the circle in which they can be commanded and “activate” them. This creates a level of strategy that may be more apparent in some battles than in others, but still, they can provide welcome options no matter the battle.

There is one other type of battle I would be remiss if I didn't mention: Skirmish battles. Skirmish battles take place on the map of the world. Chibi character models of troops are pitted against one another in strategic, cartoony clashes. There isn't a ton of depth to the battles of this mode, but there are a lot of options and significant strategy in approach. There are 50 of these throughout the game, and some can be replayed on a “hard mode” if you have enough of your kingdom’s gold to pay for it.

This gold is earned separate from normal gold, in a mode called “Kingdom Builder”. This mode affects nearly EVERYTHING in the game, including character gear and spell learning/upgrades, skirmishes, and even, to an extent, story progression. Items you gain in battle or scattered throughout the land can be used to make or upgrade things.

In addition, quests are an integral part of building your kingdom. While the Kingdom Builder mode is similar in execution to Farmville, it distinguishes itself by having specialized micromanagers in your kingdom. These micromanagers? People you recruit via quests and story beats. Some of these people run specific stores that fulfill certain tasks (a cookery and a higgledy creator/leveler are among these) and each has a different specialization. There are also buildings that grind materials, quickness determined by who you have stationed there.

One thing that can make the kingdom builder mode frustrating is limited progression. Your progress in every single building is determined by how many times you have upgraded it, and what research you have done (which is done in real time...after you pay for it). You can speed up research by spending kingsguilders. But your kingdom is also limited in what it can hold, in part determined by how many people you have recruited (up to 100), and you cannot max out your kingdom until you have recruited everyone...which means some research and quests are gated behind this. This can be frustrating and can make the mode feel more like an exploitative, “freemium” mobile app than it should have. This should not be in a full-fledged game, and might be expected in one without microtransactions...which this fortunately is...despite the disappointment.

Ni No Kuni II is a game that reinvents the wheel, and not always for the better. While its world, music and gameplay are strong, it lacks certain aspects that Ni No Kuni I nailed. It may be worth experiencing, but the lack of a more relatable protagonist, a too mobilesque Kingdom Builder mode, and a plot that undermines itself make it not come as recommended as its predecessor, if recommended at all, despite its abundance of strengths.

Score 8.0/10