Game Over - A Musical RPG??

I streamed this game. A link to the video is at the bottom of this review. Overall, I think there is an audience for this game, but I certainly am not the right target for it. If you like Undertale and the various "lol le quirky" games that have followed in the likes of Earthbound or popular titles from the RPG Maker world then this game likely would appeal to you. The game starts off strong, with a charming monster design and diving straight into the main game play mechanic of the game. The music is...debatable in quality, but functions well for the purpose of the game. After this intro it will be a long period of walking and talking before seeing any game play ever again. For the most part, I found a lot of the dialogue not very enjoyable; it was often long winded and lacking meaningful content to the story. It mostly felt like filler. Additionally, jokes were often hammered home to an insufferable level and occasionally characters even took time to explain the joke - which as we should all well know, ruins the joke. All this walking and talking culminates in a trial the recaps all of your deeds, which may have landed better had it not just happened moments ago, but also all of the choices and deeds had pretty obvious the consequences that did not need to be explained moments later. Finally, getting to the regular game play *proper*, things do pick up, and I think for the better. Combat is at regular intervals and spaced apart with overworld puzzles that require rhythm. With that being said, these rhythm-based puzzles were far too unforgiving and tedious that this was ultimately my quitting point having grown bored from all of the talking previously, this nuisance on top made me reach my tipping point. I'm not really a fan of the overall "vibe" of the game, feeling too derivative of Undertale, and doing 4th wall, "meta" stuff that seems to be obligatory in every top down pixel art indie game now. To me, I would have hoped to see a more unique exploration of world and its themes, so these by far are definitely the most lacking part. The "combat" is the most interesting - if you are a fan of rhythm games - but it too has some frustrations, where wild gimmicks feel more like a nuisance (and a "lol le quirky XD" unnecessary addition) to being able to just focus on the music. I'll give credit where it is due, there are lots of lovely flourishes in the world, with plants dancing to the music, music adjusting dynamically to the environment, and more often than not, the music sounds pretty lovely (the regular BGM is good, the battle tracks - ironically - are rather lack luster). There are lots of little touches that I think can be appreciated. If you are someone who enjoyed Undertale, and the many quirky titles to have come from the RPG Maker scene, then I think you'd like this. It does a lot, and in my opinion, does none of it well, a clear mark of "this is very much an indie game", and I think that can also be part of it's charm. I am, however leaving a recommendation on this game because I know every review matters for indie games, and one negative review can greatly impact the game. It is well put together, and clearly made with love, and therefore deserves all the support and success such passion is owed - whether I enjoyed it personally or not. If you'd like to see my experience with the game, you can watch the VOD below: https://youtube.com/live/mvKHQBG9vhk?feature=share

I'm only a few hours into the game (the second area), and wanted to leave a thumbs up. Slightly pricey imo, but its like finding a rare collectible. There may be treasure here :D Pros: + The musical aspects, whether its the music, its use of sound, characters actually being instruments, etc Nice! + Music battles/duets are fun and all unique. Probably a highlight of the game... + Early interactions are well done, like something out of Chrono Trigger's trial section, where all your actions seem to matter. + A potentially unique story is unfolding ... Neutral: = Beware, Hard is the default difficulty in options. And it may take a little time to get used to the controls at least in my case... The music battles can frustrate the perfectionist in me. Cons: - Character graphics may be an acquired taste at first. At least until you get into the groove ;) - No quick text skipping. Mostly a non-issue except replaying... - No manual saving, just auto saving. Choices are somewhat permanent if not careful! (Could be a pro... with replay value) - Uneven amount of dialogue in some sections. Minimal party banter. EDIT: I feel like you lose health far too easily in battle. I can press a wrong combo of buttons and be at half HP in an instant during a long song. Also there's no quick retry button, you have to lose and start over... Honestly, I quite enjoy the RPG parts, but the music battle is driving me nuts... at least on default Hard all of a sudden. In Hatsune Miku, you get a little more leeway with mistakes; maybe based on the total amount of notes, or your HP recharges over time with correct notes... A problem with extra HP in a game like this though... the better you get the less you need to work with. I need more forgiveness earlier on, so I have more time to get gud. Restarting on parts that I'm already good at does little to help... just wastes time... till I get back to the tough parts... Would be nice if there was a way to replay any battle I've already come across so I can practice though. Without beating my head on the same one over and over... Also double HP or maybe a HP loss limit that prevents you from losing all your HP within a set period of time. Perhaps like invinciblity frames after hit? Or a regenerating shield that prevents more than X amount of HP loss for a moment, then if you keep missing you take full damage? I guess I could just try it on Less Hard... I mean it's fun as is, just unforgiving... I kind of wish there was an option for Nigel Mode to kick in if I fail; so I can keep practicing, but then have a chance to try again or continue. I suppose I can always do that manually...

yes

I am comically bad at the rhythm game part of Game Over, but have fallen in love with the characters and world. This game has a wonderful cast of weirdos scattered throughout. The first few characters we meet are designed to make you chuckle. I was sold from the start. From the names of the businesses to the sprites, the game genuinely charmed me into caring. Initially, I didn’t think I’d care about the world or what happened to the characters. But the small bits of help and control the dev sprinkled around really help the game feel less linear and allow the player to ride the rails their own way. The NPCs will also give you different titles/nicknames based on your choices! The dialogue in the game is accompanied by music notes representing the speech patterns of the characters/their language. It’s very cute. The beginning of the game gives you a lot of time to adjust to the world around you and fall in love with it. The puzzles in the game are also music-related! Who woulda thought… It took me a bit to notice, but during these rock puzzles, little seeds appear where the rocks need to go for the correct note. It’s incredibly subtle! I did want to mention again that this is a rhythm game. I’ve been enjoying the songs/charts but found the default key binds to be a bit difficult. The moment I rebound my keys to [SDF, JKL,] I did leagues better. Thank you, Dev for the option to rebind keys AND THANK YOU FOR NIGEL MODE! Overall, it's a truly amazing narrative experience, and I didn't feel railroaded into caring about anything. Nothing about it felt forced. The 8 years it took to perfect the humor and gameplay/puzzles were well worth it! A charming game overall and well worth your time and money! I LOVED it!

The story is compelling, the humour is fantastic, and the gameplay offers unique and interesting rhythm challenges. Plus Micky Monkey Business says it's good, and I think we can trust him. He is an independent third-party adviser, after all.

Wahay, Game Over: A Musical RPG is a brilliant game full of zany characters and brilliantly crafted music. The story is full of charm and humour but not without mystery, along your journey there will be things to test your musical skills and trust me it's definitely a test because oh boy was I tested. You'll be rewarded handsomely talking to all the NPC'S and exploring the charming areas throughout the game, so I highly recommend doing so, not only because of what you might discover but to take in all the all the love that was put into this game. I'm excited to play this game multiple times to find out what dialogue paths I could of taken differently and to see what silly stuff they have to say, also of course to listen to music again. <3

Absolutely phenominal game. I discovered it at Pax Australia, and have been eagerly awaiting it since. If you love Undertale or Earthbound and Guitar Hero, or other rhythm games, this is the game for you! Such a polished and funny game. Absolutely split my sides laughing so much. I love both Gusto and Gusto. Just be sure to skip waterfall on your first try, unless you enjoy pain. I spent 30 hours on it and wish I'd continued on sooner.

Very fun game!

So partially leaving this review because I do like the game BUT I am at a point where there are bridge related puzzles, and apparently I made the mistake of unloading the area and reloading it. This has left the game in a soft locked state where I cannot get the bridge puzzles to work and I can no longer progress. The next "pinball" style puzzle can load the bridge and I cannot walk on it, and the bridge behind me unloaded itself so I cannot go either way. I have sunk a considerable amount of time into the game already. This is a MAJOR thing that needs to be addressed in some way, because I would love to continue but am unable without some sort of fix- I would have to restart the game all over again which I kinda don't want to do. If you get this game be VERY careful once puzzles make bridges.

At first I wasn't sure if I liked it, but after playing it for a while, I thought it was super fun! I really like the silly dialogues, and the sudden twist. It really did make me laugh, I do wish that there was an off-set button since I realized it didn't match too well sometimes. I will definitely be playing more and see what the rest of the game has to offer!