Cassette Beasts

It is unfortunate that my review will have to be full of comparisons with Pokémon because I think this game is able to stand out on its own. But modern Pokémon is too disappointing, and I haven't found anything else that fills that gap quite like Cassette Beasts. Cassette Beasts is a charming monster-collecting game. The art style is reminiscent of the 2D GBC and GBA era of Pokémon. The map is colourful, there are caves and secret areas to explore and plenty of fun little puzzles that usually reward you with something. The puzzles are usually simple: I think they could have amped the difficulty up a little. Catching some specific monsters will unlock field moves that let you get to new places or move around faster, and I also love they can serve a purpose in battle instead of being a forgettable move. The "find your way back home" premise of the story is perhaps a little cliché, but I honestly enjoyed the way it unfolds. Some twists can be pretty impactful, and it is especially made more memorable by the companions you can have with you. I personally liked all of them to varying degrees and the ending felt bittersweet because of them. I would 100% recommend to the developers that, in a sequel, they go all in on party chat and events to make these characters feel even more alive. I think there was room to expand a bit more on the lore of the island too, potentially by having more inhabited settlements with characters that tell you more. I've never really minded the overall innocence and simplicity of the themes in Pokémon after all, part of the appeal was relaxation and escapism. Videogames can be a medium for good, but the modern Pokémon titles cannot even manage the mild pushback against pollution of Red and Blue. For this reason I have to say I'm glad Cassette Beats introduced some slightly more mature themes, like criticisms of profit-driven ideologies or mindless cult-like followings. And obviously romance. The monsters can be a hit or miss, but that's the case for Pokémon too; overall it was easy to find a team of creatures that I liked to keep in my party. The designs are always up to anyone's taste, but it's hard to deny that they are original and have a unique identity. Even without the DLC, there is a decent variety of them. I was pretty stunned by the fusion mechanic and just how many ways there are of fusing those monsters. The tech that handles the merging of sprites, names and also the colour of bootlegs works very well. I have some minor criticisms that I don't think impacted my enjoyment of the game: First, some evolutions require alternate conditions, and that's great, but a player should be given some way to figure it out. I hope I didn't miss anything obvious, but at least have some random NPCs drop hints. Having to look them up on a Wiki is immersion-breaking. Second, infinite ghost invincibility is a cheap trick. Phase shift is pretty much required to keep on a tape just in case you happen to come across an encounter with that buff. I would have maybe made a whole type able to overcome the invincibility or at least have again an NPC warn the player that such a thing can happen. I feel a little guilty about this next point because I enjoyed the music, especially how the lyrics kick in when something major happens in battle; that's where the music shines the most in my opinion. However, the lyrics in Harbourtown got a bit old after a while, given it's one of the areas where you spend the most time. I suppose this is a matter of preference, though. Last, there are some missable achievements, and I'm not a fan of those. Slightly related, I was able to accidentally engage the [spoiler] black shuck [/spoiler], but, as someone that likes to find and experience everything the game has to offer, the several layers of luck needed to see it are a bit much. Overall, I'm happy I gave this a chance: it is a little weird or rough around the edges at times, but it doesn't change that this is what I want from monster collection games. I think people looking for an old-school Game Boy experience would like this if they can let go of all the things they have come to expect from Pokémon. Huge props to the devs who made this happen despite being a very small team; you can tell this game was born out of passion. I really hope there will be a sequel and that it's even better than this. You bet I'll be waiting for it!