I didn’t find anything too offensive nor exciting throughout - and that is what I think is the game’s biggest problem.ĭespite looking to be an innovator in the JRPG realm, Astria is a game that couldn’t really hold my attention for too long. Par for the courseīeyond these few innovations, Astria Ascending‘s battles are a pretty rote affair. It’s a nice “risk versus reward mechanic” and a good solution to the “bad party member” problem. You can get more focus points by hitting an enemy with their weakness. Their damage will increase 50% with every focus charge, which can be done up to four times. Instead of attacking during a turn, a character can charge their focus and deal more damage. To further push the idea of no party member being useless, Astria Ascending introduces another new mechanic of “focus points,” or FP. You have to keep a check on these attributes as enemies have them as well, which means swapping out characters to directly counter them is a must if you’re going to quickly wipe the floor with foes. This brings in new strategies and tons of creativity when it comes to handling different situations, as each character has their own strengths, weaknesses, and unique skills. First, there’s the ability to swap between the eight characters of your party at will throughout the turn-based combat. Getting to the actual battles, you’ll find that it’s your standard JRPG affair with a few new caveats. You are given a ring that can freeze Noises, allowing you to simply get around them and continue on your adventure. One thing that I liked was the ability to easily skip encounters, should you not be up to the task at that point. Should the opposite happen, or a Noise attack you from behind to start the brawl, your opponent will always get the first swing. Doing so gives you a better chance of getting the first attack when the true fight begins. Upon running into one of these creatures, you have the option of getting the first swing in by attacking to start the actual battle. Before the actual battle, you have plenty of options to preemptively attack or completely avoid the Noises you’ll encounter. Battle tweaksīattles are yet another area where Astria brings new ideas to the table. It also eliminates the problem of earlier party members being stronger than new ones that can be so prominent in other JRPGS. Having all the characters along for the ride from the get-go presents tons of opportunities for character banter. That’s a welcome change of pace for the genre. These eight demi-gods are one of the main attractions of Astria Ascending, each of whom has their own stories that are explored throughout “five cities, 25 dungeons, and 30 hours of gameplay.” Unlike other JRPGs, you don’t meet these characters one by one throughout your travels you’ll have them in your party from the beginning.
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