This was a pretty cute preview of a game.
It's a turn-based RPG set in a post-apocalyptic future in which the Earth has undergone ecological disaster to the point of becoming a smoldering rock and what's left of humanity has emigrated to the Moon. In spite of this terrible future, the style and attitude of the game are akin to the Megaman: Battle Network games or the Starforce sequels where it's actually a pretty happy-go-lucky adventure with plenty of quips and silly characters. I found it to be pretty charming.
What I liked about this game more than anything is that unlike 90% of turn-based RPGs on Steam, this one was not just a generic RPG Maker game with the default UI, battle system, and assets. No, everything is custom and that is a lovely thing to see.
The biggest asset of the game is the battle system which is interesting in how it works. First of all, I like how battles just take place on the field of whatever environment you're on. That's a very nice touch. Your main method of battle is using skills of which you have Active Skills and Support Skills. Active Skills are abilities such as your attacks, which prompt you with a different minigame depending on which one you choose, and things like stun grenades or shield recovery. Supports are bonus abilities that are randomly presented in sets of three of which you can choose one per turn. These can range from healing to increasing attack power to negating all damage the next turn. Enemy phase is a highlight as you can dodge and shield against attacks in a manner which feels entirely similar to Megaman: Starforce or more recently Heartbound.
If there's any criticism I would levy at the game, I felt the environment design was somewhat sloppy. At first it was hard to tell what the borders of the walking areas were or whether I could move from one area to the other. I get that it's trying to convey Lunar surface and I appreciate it not being boring square environments like I've seen so many uncreative people do in RPG Maker, but a little more sign-posting would go a long way in allowing people to navigate. Otherwise, the only other thing I didn't like was the character portraits that display in conversations. I love the title art and the UI portrait for Bella, but when people are talking, they're conveyed through what look to be unfinished sketches with jagged outlines. I hope those are touched upon as the game is further developed.
All-in-all, this was a fun, charming way to kill and hour and it got me eager to play the final version whenever it comes out, and I would recommend everbody take a look. This is a rare case of a turn-based RPG on this service displaying actual creativity and it should be praised for that.
