My Mad Scientist Roommate Turned Me Into Her Personal Robotic Battle Maiden?!?

Robotic Battle Maiden is new (in fact second) RPG made by Lached Up Games. A prequel you could say of Alluna and Brie. And since the start it shows how big improvement it is from the AnB - the first RPG Lached Up Games made. Gameplay is similar and it's understandable - both of those titles take inspiration from Persona series with the time and relationship management part of gameplay. However RBM polishes most if not all of the rough edges found in AnB to a far greater level - notes were made and lessons learned which gives us an overall much more enjoyable experience that previous game. Still not perfect as there is some things that could be done better - for example if we got the mouse control for the game it would be awesome but it takes at most 5 minutes to get used to keyboard control. Combat is easy to understand - since it's simple and feels pretty good. Though those who look for something with more challenge may be bit disappointed - this game is not hard. At least not yet, but hey this is suppoused to be fun kind of game. Plot and humor - the strongest part of the Lached Up Games work is their plot and jokes. This absolutely crazy but just as hilarious world, is filled with Lach's trademark humor and 2 chapters we got on 1st release provides just right amount of it. Naturally the problem of those who played Max Big Bust 2 or Alluna and Brie is that they can more or less guess what will happen here. Such is problem with most prequels without great timeskips. As such I particulary recomend this to those who have just finished Max Big Bust 1 - after the RBM final chapter they can go to check out Alluna and Brie if they like this type of games or skip it and jump directly onto the events of MBB2. I for one will enjoy discovering answers for questions we had during the AnB about few things :D

The config section is extremely barebones, to the point where all you can do is change resolution, audio sliders and windowed mode and full screen. No rebinding of keys, which is really annoying, since confirm is spacebar, cursor movement is done by the arrow keys (no mouse integration whatsoever) and backspace is going back from a menu. This is no how I like to play my RPGs and I won't play this game because of these major oversights.

Transgender pandering at its finest

Short Version: Take Persona's "Life Sim" vibe and upping your relationships with various companions and friends, or spend time doing things. Add a classic JRPG combat system with elemental strengths/weaknesses. Throw in utterly hysterical dialogue and you being turned into a robot for a literal mad scientist and you're forced to work for the "bad guys" and pretty darn great voice acting. It's pure magic and a must-play for any fan of Life Sims, TG/TF or just fun comedy games! Long Version: This is, without a doubt, the best game I've played from Lached Up Games to date (I haven't gotten to Max's Big Bust 2). And if you've played Allune and Brie (which I highly recommend), this game will give you everything that game gave you, but it's so refined! This is a brilliant evolution of Allune and Brie's concept of a Life Sim (AKA Persona-style time interacts). I've been in the TG/TF community for a very, very long time, but I only recently went through and played the first title of this series. I highly recommend both Visual Novels set earlier in this universe, Gender Bender DNA Twister Extreme (especially for one specific insane catgirl) and Max's Big Bust (which sets up the entire origin of this story!) Note: I played on Steam Deck, and there were some minor compatibility and bugs due to the designer not having access to a Steam Deck for testing. The only major issue is sometimes the game won't load right, but rebooting the Steam Deck and starting the game up a couple times will eventually get you in the game. Trust me, it's worth this. Characters: The first thing to really understand is just how flipping hysterical the writing in this game is. Each character is wonderfully written with unique personalities and quirks (and sometimes their whole personality is a freaking quirk). Ellie is the perfect mad scientist who simply does what she wants, including turning her roommate into a robot for using her toothbrush. And programming certain mental restrictions into poor SERA, who now must go along with all this madness. SERA stands out as the sole voice of reason for the entire group, but because they're all bonkers, almost no one actually listens to her. She's the one pointing out the absurdity of everything they're doing, and that's one of the reasons that makes her so magical as a character (a bit like Kyon vs. Haruhi if you know your anime). I could break down each character, but I'll sum this up: each has a dedicated character arc of growth and change. Sometimes that growth and change is unwilling or caused by absolute insanity, but it happens! I ended up caring for these characters as much as I do for my friends in Persona 5. They may occasionally be idiots, but they're my idiots. And I love them. The character roster grows substantially over time, though you stay with the same battle team for the entire game. I am utterly in love with Tabitha, who is that catgirl in brown with steampunk-style clothing on the main header. She's one of the nice ones, really! Sadly, there were no romances available yet. That being said, that's slated to come in Chapter 6. And yes, I'll be picking Tabitha! Combat: If you've played the standard JRPG (think Final Fantasy 7), you're used to the turn-based combat this game and many others use. The nice thing is that all the enemies are (usually) tuned to work with your existing team. You're almost always going to have someone who can strike at an enemy's weak point, making the combat fun without it being overwhelming. Bonus, the later equipment makes you think about the build you want each party member to have. You can decide if you want a well-rounded brawler or a glass cannon. Each party member has a particular style, such as Jasmine's Samuri-style katanas, Kathy's friggin' rocket launcher (no, I don't wanna know where she stores it), and Ellie's crazy bubbling death flasks. Aisha, your Battle Support Guide, has tons of fun dialog. She's snarky and hysterical (let Ellie go down a couple times to see how Aisha reacts, trust me). She warns of silences, poisons, low HP and low MP (usually by berating a party member in properly quippy ways). She also loves to give all sorts of comments about bosses, including warnings… or that apparently everyone is hot for sexy werewolf men (I mean, I'm down). And SERA? She definitely fits her role as the Robotic Battle Maiden. Complete with lasers that shoot out of her hands/wrists when she does a standard attack (and her voice actor will even say "PEW PEW PEW" It's so damn cute). UI: Honestly, this is where Battle Maiden shows the most amount of improvement from Allune and Brie. While the game doesn't perfectly fit the Steam Deck's screen, it's only noticeable in a few places. Movement between different zones is easy, with each zone being cool and unique in its own way. Even better, the various companions/friends you make along the way (who are all tracked with the "Heart Beats" app on your phone, accessible through the same menu where you can find Max Heart Minute and your equipment) show up on the main world map as icons, so you don't have to go hunting each zone for them! Max Heart Minute, a daily short skit that tells the story of Chloe and Ashley, wanna-be morning reporters, being trapped in this world while also telling you what stores are having sales that day (which, for some items, is the only way to make things affordable). Sometimes, there are no sales, and it's just the two girls either trying to make sense of the world, getting in trouble (it's usually that) or coping with the horrific trauma of living in a world where octopus girls are very real (I don't really see the downside, but whatevs). The Stats are now much easier to read. Though this game was designed for a much bigger screen than the Steam Deck, it's still much, much better than Allune and Brie. Events: Another fun improvement is the amount of detail in activities. After all, this isn't all about conquering the dungeons. It's about enjoying yourself! Events you can partake in include Minotaur Boot Camp, 3D Printing Money, Fairy Dance Halls, enjoying a Wishing Well, and having a Snowball Fight with a city of catgirls. The best part is that selecting the same activity more than once will result in unique story snippets. I recommend Meditating. Ellie really enjoys it. The other element I wanted to bring up is that as you explore the dungeons, you will stumble across encounters with a short story introduction in the standard Visual Novel style, then get interrupted by attacking enemies, then continue the conversation. It made the combat feel like an even bigger part of the story. Sound: Morning, afternoon and night all have different music. You'll also enjoy music from the previous games (I especially love the track from Gender Bender used for the "Select Character" screen). There's a ton of good music in here! The voice work is excellent! Each character has their own voice in combat as they sound just like a true magical girl should: shouting out their various attacks! Ellie, after a certain EVENT, is definitely the standout. I don't wanna spoil it, but her VA just freaking nailed it. Even better, the victory comment is random, and most of them are funny as hell. It's frankly AAA studio quality. Summary: This is a hysterical and utterly epic game that I can't recommend enough. I've been yapping about it for anyone who stands still for 5 seconds. It's killing me not telling my partner about every single special moment that made me giggle like a lunatic (because they want to play it too!). It also hits all my buttons, including transformation, monstergirls, transgender zaps, mind control, robot girls, giant mechas, all while having real characters who you'll end up caring about and loving. This is now one of my favorite indie games and I can't wait for Chapter 6! Also, if anyone knows a mad scientist like Ellie, can you put me in contact with them? For reasons.

This is a review after playing the two currently available chapters. This game was a lot of fun due to all the humour and shenanigans going on. The characters can sometimes be casually cruel - any scene involving AquaBike comes to mind - but it's all in a humourous, over the top, and cartoony style. The combat is simple, and breaks up the story segments nicely, although it would be nice if there was a bit more content in the towns. What do I mean by that? After finishing the chapter's dungeon and clearing out all the Heartbeat Events, which is spending time with the different characters and having fun little side adventures, there's not much to do other than repeatedly farm the same activities to level stats and earn money. And if you're efficient you can definitely clear everything at around or just before the halfway point in Chapter 2. It isn't particularly interesting after you've seen all the variations and you're just waiting for the next story segment or when more HB events are available. They're really fun and I just wish there were more of them! A few other things would be nice, like more complete text history, mouse control, and a way to speed up already read dialogue. An in-game database to let people look at sprites and learn more about the characters would be nice as well - these games have developed a really large cast over the years and an encyclopaedia and image gallery would be a great feature. It could even include director's commentary and behind the scenes info! I do recommend this game if you like quirky genderbending, Australian humour, comedic sociopathy, with a sprinkling of JRPG gameplay. The developer has been very quick to respond to any bugs I have reported and I'm confident that the next chapters will be a blast as well.

I’ve enjoyed everything from Lached Up Games, ever since I first discovered them. I’m usually not one to do reviews, but I decided to finally put my hat in, so to speak. Game series like this that heavily involve TF and monster girls and the like, especially ones that aren’t just outright or thinly disguised porn, are few and far between, it feels, and deserve more visibility for those who enjoy these concepts. Robot Battle Maiden is technically the fifth game in the series, though Max’s Big Bust, the second, is the true start of the plot line that has run through every game since. And as other’s have mentioned, this game is actually a prequel, taking place between Max’s Big Bust and Alluna and Brie. Like the latter, it’s an RPG with a life sim aspect, yes, a bit like Persona. Except, less school and more monster girls. Now, I for one, enjoyed Alluna and Brie’s systems, and everything here improves on that. That said, there are some hiccups still, that might turn some off. (Things like items being only usable in battle for example, or the lack of mouse control that’s been mentioned in other reviews.) So, YMMV. However, the real star of the show is the plot. All of the games since Max’s Big Bust focus on the utter insanity taking place in and around a fictional Australian city by the name of Axon City. A city where illegal drugs and science experiments, and other nonsense, that tends to cause transformations of all kinds, abounds. A place that’s connected to a magic dimension, called the Frakk, that’s filled with tribes of warring monster girls. Of course, all of this is covered with a dressing of comedy, which is always very well done and often legitimately hilarious. And I think taking place in Australia, a continent that is always joked about as trying to kill you, is part of the charm. And even though, these games are comedy at heart, I feel Lached always does a good job of not letting that get in the way of actual character development. Characters aren’t stagnant and sometimes can end up in unexpected places later on. Which only adds to the strength of these plots, in my opinion. This is especially true for S.E.R.A., the main character and titular Robot Battle Maiden. As this is a prequel, S.E.R.A has been making appearances for quite a while, and while I’ve always liked her, by the time I finished Battle Maiden, she’d managed to catapult to being my favorite MC of the series (Sorry Max.) Speaking of Max, though, while you’ll get the most from this having at least played Max’s Big Bust beforehand, you can still start here, as enough is explained even for newcomers. So don’t be afraid to jump in here and then check out the other games later, with the caveat that, as mentioned, it might be a bit harder to go back and play Alluna and Brie after this. Luckily, Alluna and Brie will be getting an update at some point to bring it more in line with this, systems wise, so even that caveat isn't the biggest deal. In short, this is a great game and a fine entry point for any TF enthusiasts, or even just those who enjoy comedy and some light RPG fun. Also, S.E.R.A. deserves more games as the MC, and Iliana is truly best girl. And no, I totally didn’t write this whole review just to say that, I swear.

Sera:battle maiden Takes the Simrpg elements From "Alluna and Brie" And greatly Improves Apon them to make a much nicer experience to play, The Jokes are still the classic Lach style that really hit home for me, the combat is a nice change of pace from the story sections and the game is overall Pretty great would recommenced to anyone who likes Gender bender or turn based rpgs.

Pros -Enjoyed the story. Liked the story in all your games so far. -Found a equipment glitch randomly that helped me speed up the combat process (Glitch below) Cons -Repetitive at times due to combat (Didn't come for the combat and didnt like it in Alluna and Brie Re-Tentacled) Glitch [spoiler] 1.Need 2 of the same equipment 2. Equip one character with the first one 3. equip the second one to another character 4. Backspace backspace to the menu that shows your money and watch MHM at the top 5. go back into equipment it will show the last item still equip. before you did it or if you had no items it will be blank but your stats will be increases. (Stats may reset after turning off the game only happened once.) 6. if you want that equipment on other characters just repeat the process with the second item will say its not equip to any other character. (process 3 and 4). 7. Side note was able to do the glitch with just one item but it didnt work 100% off the time. Similar process. [/spoiler]

I highly recommend this game if you like the premise. It's so enjoyable that I even got interested in its prequel, 'Max's Big Bust'. The game's strong points are its engaging writing, appealing art, and entertaining humor. The music and sound effects add to the fun experience. However, there's a small drawback regarding accessibility. The game only supports standard keyboard inputs, making it incompatible with remote play apps like Moonlight or Sunshine. This limitation means you can't play it on devices like iPads without extensive keyboard remapping, as the game doesn't recognize controller inputs sent by these apps. This aspect could be improved for a better gaming experience. I know this setup is rare but there are dozens of us... dozens!

honestly i havent finshed the game yet and im typing this in a bit of a rush but its incredible i love everything about it I had a bit of trouble figguring things out at the begining but I got the hang of it slight problem at some points theres not much to do and i have to chose to try to level up stats very minorly or skip the phase entirely but all in all it is a realy enjoyable game and id give it an 8/10