Asdivine Hearts

Asdivine Hearts starts like your average RPG Maker JRPG, which set my expectations very low. I was ready to give up on it after a few minutes of gameplay, but I'm glad I didn't, because the game just kept getting better and better. After beating the game on expert with 100+ hours of gameplay, I can confidently say that this is a hidden gem among RPG Maker-esque JRPGs and it does a lot of things right, especially the battle system. The game never felt too easy at any moment, and never so hard that I couldn't overcome with some clever usage of game mechanics or some more grinding, even on expert. There are a lot of customizations and possibilities in how to approach the battles and what to prioritize with systems like the jewels and formations. The plot is nothing to write home about, but the ending(s) is satisfying and I've laughed more than once while playing it. Overall, the game is very fun to play thanks to its battle system and good difficulty. The grind is not that bad for a JRPG and there are a lot of small details that makes you appreciate the game even more, like special weapons, hidden passageways, sidequests, special challenges and more. All in all, I really liked the experience of playing through it, I will remember this one for a while. [h1]The Good[/h1] + The battle system is amazing, there are many layers of customizations like jewels and formations + Limit breaker and thrust gauge add even more variety to the battles + Automated combat in the form of repeating last action or always auto attacking + Many items have their uses inside battles, which is very rare in a JRPG + Status ailments matter a lot and work even on bosses + The sprites are beautiful and the animations inside and outside the battle are great + Random encounters have some extra variety with titan, dwarf and leader types of monsters + There is a difficulty setting, and the game difficulty is on point, which is rare for a JRPG + Multiple endings that depend on the affection bars + There are items to prevent random encounters from happening and to teleport you around so you don't lose time with pointless stuff + The grind is fair for a JRPG, you don't lose that much time grinding for resources instead of progressing the game + A lot of optional sidequests and other stuff for completionists + Many hidden passageways on the dungeons and towns that reward you when you find them + There is a hidden campaign after you beat the game for the first time + There is an arena where you can battle stronger enemies and earn special stuff + You can challenge yourself to see how far you can get in a special battle mode (I made it to 1041 on expert and gave up lol) + The English translation is very high quality + waifus and tits [h1]The Neutral[/h1] * The music is good but with just a few tracks it becomes kinda repetitive after a while * The story is ok, nothing special but not bad, kinda cheesy but just good enough to keep you interested * Controller support, but its kinda bad to move with the analog stick * The game may go out of its way to hand hold you too much, but you'll learn to ignore it [h1]The Bad[/h1] - Locked at 30 fps which produces some nauseating motion blur when running - The same few sprites are reused through the game with a pallet swapping for regular monsters - The gameplay loop is way too linear and predictable, its always the same patterns, like when encountering strong enemies (healing pentagram and an option to fight/wait) [h2]9 / 10 - IGN[/h2]

This game was truly terrible. When I moved, the camera jittered. The buttons flashed like they were in a 70s disco. The writing was putting me to sleep. If it hadn't come in one of a bundle, I'd be asking for a refund.

The playstyle is typical to what you may expect from a JRPG - exponential difficulty spikes that are to be mitigated with hours of monotonous grinding. If you're considering picking up the title, do keep the above in mind as it will feel like a slog at some point. That aside, this is quite well made and fairly enjoyable. The story does make less sense the further you progress into it though. $10 is a little too steep, wait for a 50% sale.

While far from groundbreaking, I think this is the kind of JRPG comfort food that people seeking out this kind of title are drawn to. If you're interested enough to read this review, go ahead and give it a shot. You can certainly do worse for your money in this space.

Good game fro jrpg

A large world. Grind your way to the end credits. As opposed to getting chest pains from the intensity or stuck and/or discouraged in the middle. Cheap too. Which is important when the danger exists of spending $60 and getting stuck, overwhelmed or just not liking it.