In 2008, Level-5 was coming up on its tenth anniversary and wanted to produce a project that its staff was passionate about, regardless of how well it would sell, and the world was introduced to Ni No Kuni: The Another World. A two-pronged project, one version of it came to the Nintendo DS as the Japan-only Ni No Kuni: Dominion of the Dark Djinn and the second version came to the PS3 internationally as the expanded Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch.
A love letter to the golden era of JRPGs, Ni No Kuni was universally lauded for how closely it adhered to the famous art style of Japan’s Studio Ghibli, which contributed top staff to aid in both animation and music, and the title found considerable success both in Japan and overseas. Now, six years on from the PS3 title’s release date, Level-5 has opted to port over Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch to the Switch, marking the first time that Nintendo players have been given access to the full, expanded version of the original vision for this project. Though it does feature some rough edges, Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch proves itself to be an unforgettable and fanciful take on the RPG, and it more than deserves a home on your Switch.
After a brief cold opening that hints at the magical adventures to come, Ni No Kuni launches into its primary story of a young and somewhat naïve boy named Oliver, who lives in a small town in 1950s America called Motorville. What begins as a heartwarming tale of childhood innocence quickly takes a gut-wrenching turn, however, when an accident caused by Oliver causes his mother to die, rendering him an orphan overnight.
Distraught and damaged by his loss, Oliver weeps onto a toy his mother had made for him, and is shocked when the tears bring it to life. He’s suddenly faced by an odd, fast-talking creature named Drippy who speaks in a thick Welsh accent and claims he’s the “Lord High Lord of the Fairies.” Drippy explains to Oliver how there’s a parallel world being terrorized by an evil being named Shadar and, you guessed it, Oliver is the only one who can hope to defeat Shadar. One thing leads to another, and the duo are off to the races, exploring the strange otherworld that Drippy hails from and building their team as they prepare for the final confrontation.
Although the overall plot comes off as being rather cliché in many parts – how many times have we heard the ‘Chosen One’ song and dance? – Ni No Kuni’s greatest storytelling strength lies in its stellar writing and heartwarming messages. As evidenced by that disarmingly tragic opening, Ni No Kuni isn’t a title that shies away from going to some dark places when it needs to, but it’s ultimately an uplifting tale that repeatedly returns to the central idea of becoming whole again through the support of others.
As Oliver, Drippy, and the various allies they recruit move along the path to that battle with Shadar, you can’t help but feel a sense of connection to this team as you watch them repeatedly drop what they’re doing to help out those around them. Somewhat in tandem with this, Ni No Kuni also expertly captures the concept of childlike wonder, as it presents you with this weird and wonderful new world that’s similar to ours, but not quite. Whether you’re being berated by an ancient wizard with the appearance and demeanour of a toddler or trawling through a monster-infested sewer in search of the lost Cat King, you’ll seldom be able to guess what strange new creature or errand you may find yourself experiencing next. Even next to many modern RPGs, the storytelling and worldbuilding of Ni No Kuni prove to be uniquely charming, and we found its narrative to be fantastically immersive.
The typical gameplay loop of a classic JRPG is alive and well here, with your team travelling across the vast open world to various towns as the plot calls for it. Each town naturally has a problem (or a person with a problem) which can only be solved by Oliver and friends, and their efforts inevitably lead to them entering into a dungeon-like area and battling something big and nasty at the end of it.
Ni No Kuni breaks the mould of genre conventions in plenty of ways, but its structure is certainly not one of them, which may come as a drawback for some of you. Indeed, along with this familiar structure, Ni No Kuni is also very much what one would call a slow burn, with many portions of the story feeling like they drag on a bit longer than they need to. It’s a testament to the excellent writing and enrapturing details of the world that this laborious pace is so easily accepted, but just bear in mind that if you aren’t so easily charmed by the gorgeous visuals and wholesome tone, Ni No Kuni may prove to be a needlessly time-consuming experience. It’s worth the investment, but it nonetheless will demand a substantial amount of time in order for you to really ‘get it’.
This time commitment also extends to the battle system, which proves to be equal parts frustrating and exhilarating. Not quite real-time action and not quite turn-based, Ni No Kuni employs a unique system that utilizes many of the strengths of both styles of combat. Though you can control any of the party members directly, the meat of your experience will be spent controlling Familiars (more on that in a bit) to do the dirty work for you.
Though they all share their owner’s health and magic pool, familiars have the additional restriction of a stamina meter that limits their time on the field to around thirty(ish) seconds, after which you need to tag in another familiar or teammate. Whoever you’re controlling, you’ll have access to some mixture of standard attacks, special moves, spells, and defensive manoeuvres, each of which is governed by cooldowns. If, for example, you use the standard ‘Attack’ option, your character will auto attack your targeted enemy while a gauge on the side of the screen slowly runs down. Once its empty, you have to wait for an additional, faster gauge to empty before you can use the Attack command again.
Effectively managing all your cooldowns will be necessary to success, along with being mindful of a character’s positioning. If you try to attack a distant target with a melee attack, for example, you’ll waste some of its precious cast time while your character runs over to attack. It sounds like a lot to manage, but everything clicks into place after you experiment with it a bit and you see how combat proves to be both flexible and engaging. That is, when you’re not busy trying to mitigate your teammates’ mistakes.
Don’t let the cutesy visuals fool you; Ni No Kuni can be a ruthlessly unforgiving experience at many points, with even common enemy encounters in new areas requiring the dedicated efforts of all team members if you hope to come out on top. Unfortunately, no matter how much you invest in optimizing your team’s equipment and stats, much of that effort will be cast down the drain by the halfwitted AI. If, say, an enemy casts a fireball attack that burns the ground around the impact zone, your teammates are often happy to stand in the inferno as they’re slowly burned to death. Or, in a particularly egregious and reoccurring example, many bosses have heavily telegraphed super attacks that hit everyone on the field regardless of positioning. You’re all but required to use the ‘Defend’ command when you see these coming, and there’s ample time to do so, but your teammates are usually happy to just eat the full force of the attack and either die in the process or consume valuable healing resources to undo the damage.
In our experience, many a boss battle was as much about battling the AI as it was about the enemy attacking us, which makes for a rather frustrating experience at many choke points. The issue of suicidal teammates is somewhat assuaged when you bafflingly unlock a manual team-wide 'defend' command over a dozen hours in, but the problem with them blowing through limited resources and generally dragging down your efforts persists throughout. Ni No Kuni is generous enough with its checkpointing system that you can brute force your way through its tougher sections with enough perseverance, but on the whole, many segments are made much harder than they should be due to the required participation of your lackluster partners.
When you’re not busy worrying about your partners’ performance, you’ll no doubt be focusing on catching or training up yet another Familiar, in what is easily one of the most addictive and extensive pieces of side content in Ni No Kuni. Barring boss monsters, you have a chance to recruit any enemy creature after defeating them, and you’re often encouraged to do so to keep pace with the ever-ascending difficulty. Familiars can be evolv... er, metamorphosed into stronger variants after you level them up enough, and along the way they will also learn a plethora of special moves that allow you to specialize each Familiar’s role on the team.
There are literally hundreds of Familiars to recruit as you embark on your journey, and given that one levels up just about every time you complete a battle, this loop of recruiting, leveling, and metamorphosing keeps a fantastic sense of forward motion going consistently throughout the entire game. There’s almost always someone else that leveled up or learned a new move after your last victory, and experimenting with new Familiars and movesets proves to keep combat feeling fresh whether you’re a dozen hours in or forty.
When you’re not grinding out levels or attempting to snag an elusive Familiar, much of your time between main story beats will be spent carrying out errands for the various townsfolk in the places you visit. There are over a hundred side quests to do over the full course of the narrative, and though they largely tend to use some variant of the standard fetch quest or monster hunt setups, these little missions are critical to building that warm and fuzzy tone that makes Ni No Kuni such a lovely experience.
Even if it’s something as mundane as tracking down a woman’s missing children around town or searching a tree for a man’s missing journal, these sidequests are rewarding in their own right as you see how the party responds to helping those around them. Then, of course, there’s the raw reward offered by completing them. Beyond just the promise of extra money and equipment for your party, these missions also serve the purpose of granting you stamps, which are collected on several ten-step punch cards. Once filled out, these cards can be traded in at a special shop for special boons, like faster travelling in the overworld or increased drop rates of certain collectables. Considering the occasionally steep difficulty spikes in Ni No Kuni, it’s all but required that you do a fair bit of sidequest work when you reach a new area, but Level-5 has done a great job of making them rewarding in myriad ways.
We’d be remiss to not mention the absolutely incredible presentation that Ni No Kuni so effortlessly nails throughout the whole experience. Studio Ghibili’s contributions to the art direction are evident in virtually every frame, but we were especially struck by the small attention to seemingly unimportant detail in the animation. Things like how NPCs will subtly move their heads to look at Oliver as he approaches them, or how Oliver will almost imperceptibly shift to a slightly more careful gait as he runs down a staircase go to show how much the art directors cared about delivering a truly transcendent experience.
Ni No Kuni also features some near-peerless environmental design, with each traversable area featuring a masterful blend of uneven terrain and slightly claustrophobic decorations that really sell the idea of these places being real. Best of all, performance remains consistent in docked or handheld modes, and though the resolution caps out at 720p in docked, we’d still argue that the art style makes this is one of the most visually striking releases yet available on the Nintendo Switch.
The soundtrack was composed by Joe Hisaishi and performed in full by none other than the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, and the quality of that creative force shines through in virtually every track that features. The majesty of the colourful visuals is made complete by a fittingly sweeping musical performance, with each track capturing some sense of the whimsy or oddness that permeates just about every facet of Ni No Kuni. Although the main battle theme can become irritatingly repetitive in longer sessions, we were constantly awed at the depth and range that the soundtrack offers, and we’d highly encourage that you experience this one with headphones if you happen to be playing often in handheld mode.
Conclusion
Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch is an experience unlike any other on the Switch, expertly blending standard RPG tropes with a heartwarming story, innovative art style, and an immersive soundtrack composed by some of the best in the business. In more ways than one, this is a ‘dream project’ that’s very existence is a gift to fans of the genre the world over; the privilege of experiencing it is something that shouldn’t be understated. Even so, it also notably falls short of being an undisputed masterpiece, as pacing issues and shoddy AI drag down an otherwise pitch perfect experience. Those issues aside, Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch still proves to be lightyears ahead of most other RPGs currently available on the Switch. If you consider yourself a fan of the genre – or even if you’re just looking to get your feet wet – you owe it to yourself to give Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch a shot.
Comments 103
i so want to buy this, but i'm currently sat on a 15 game (unopened) backlog
Ni No Kuni Wrath of the White Witch is one of my favourite games put close to 200 hours on the PS3 version for 100% defiantly picking it up for Switch
The graphics and music were excellent, I never felt bored while traversing that world and visiting the towns. The story kept my interest and the boss battles were excellent. But I HATED the familiars, to the point where I probably won't pick this release up.
@personauser93 What didn't you like about them?
I'll be honest, I got super bored after playing the second one. I don't know if I want to touch the first one. I also finished playing Ys 8 the moment I started Ni No Kuni 2 which is basically just a faster version of Ni No Kuni 2. So maybe that's why I was kinda bored. Not real sure.
I remember when I played this on ps3 after beating the original studio ghibli story and starting with the wrath of the white witch level-5 extra story (which was added into the story by level-5 for ps3) the quality of the writing, cutscenes dropped significantly (which stopped being animated and written by ghibli at that point and all were fully cg) also I didn’t encounter any bugs before that but once I got to that part I got many bugs and glitches.
Great game when it comes to everything ghibli and level-5 made toghether. Mediocre game for everything after that where ghibli didn’t return for additional story.
Preordered a while ago.
This is definitely a game I'm gonna get when theres a sale. mainly because there's so much stuff releasing this month
Going to have to pass on this version and opt for the remastered version on PC instead. Not sure why other platforms got a remastered version and we got a dump of the PS3 release, but it is what it is.
I’m soooo happy this did well on Switch and made the jump successfully. I bought this game on PS3 but at the time I was going to school and didn’t have much time for an RPG. That being said I think I only ever played about an hour of the game. However, now that I have a bit more time and I can play handheld where required, I’m going full bore on this one. I think I’m going to have difficulty balancing between Zelda and this. Oh and I also finally have a memory card for my N64 on the way so I can finally play ( and enjoy and save in) Castlevania 64. Just in time for Halloween! ;;vigorously rubbing hands together;;
Looking forward to playing this one. I'm not going to play it right away as there are a few other games around the same time that I want to play just a little bit more (particularly AI: The Somnium Files and Untitled Goose Game) but I'll be getting a physical copy at launch and it's pretty high up the list so hopefully I can at least find time for it this year.
@Kalmaro I find creature catching and training tedious. That's why I hated the familiars, haven't ever enjoyed Pokemon, and couldn't get into Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance.
Love this game.
I'll probably get the actual remastered version someday on PC. Just to have both Nino 1&2 in my Steam collection.
Read another review that says this port is full of game breaking glitches. Unless they fix this I won't be spending my money on it...
@Multi Ha haaaaaaaaaaaaaa snap, i've even got a digital backlog now also.
Wow with Zelda and Ni No, I’m gonna become J.P. from Grandma’s Boy for the next month... adios turd nuggets!
Still my favourite game of all time. Definitely buying this again for both Switch and PS4.
@RazumikhinPG Source?
@personauser93 Ahhh I see!
Super disappointed we're only getting the PS3 port and not the true remaster that other systems are getting. Very surprised it can only run at 720p docked, so it sounds like it could very well run at sub-HD levels in handheld.
@Multi I feel your pain, I have just from this year alone, New Super Mario Bros, Tales Of Vesperia, Bloodstained, Super Neptunia, Final Fantasy X/X-II & XII, Fire Emblem, Astral Chain, Daemon X Machina and a few digital games as well.
I’ve preordered this. Considering my backlog it’s probably as an an early Christmas present to myself.
I love Ghibli and I have the PS3 version, but never got far. Switch is so much more convenient for long rpgs like this.
Between this, LM3, DQ XI and SwSh, I honestly don’t know if I’ll have time for any other games until next year
@Mauzuri I think @RazumikhinPG is referring to the NintendoEnthusiast one. They also have a video from this morning.
https://www.nintendoenthusiast.com/2019/09/16/ni-no-kuni-wrath-of-the-white-witch-review-for-nintendo-switch-we-have-a-problem/
I just got the @ all messed up... I need more coffee
Oh, God. I have to put it on my "in the near future" list because of Link's Awakening and Dragon Quest XI, but I've been wanting it forever, because I never had a PS3.
But I have to be strong. I have dozens of games in my backlog. Dozens. Really.
@Chunkboi79 I played both and was really frustrated with the 2nd because always being held back by the kingdom building waiting. I agree with 2 having slow battles. The first's battles were fun because you have to go thru menus in real time battles so it felt fast paced XD
...Wait, the game reminds me of Ghibli movies because Ghibli was actually involved in this? o.o
Guess I'll keep an eye on this game, then...gotta deal with Link's Awakening first. lol
@Agramonte yep that's the one.
@KBuckley27 Did you definitely mean defiantly? Did someone say you couldn't have it?
Wantidy want want.
I really fancy the Switch version, but the allure of the 4k on either PC or PS4 is too strong. Cracking game and can't wait to revisit.
I played this... well not this version... imported DS Version... I hope the Switch will include many of its missing piece from original PS3.
@Chunkboi79 hey, still waiting your ID to play some SMBU!!
Tidy, Ollie-boy!
One question though... what version of the game was played?
Because, I saw this video and I am staying away from this game for some time:
https://youtu.be/eRCJktoK5ds
Looks and sounds glitchy AF...
I couldn't finish this game back on ps3 cause the relentless spawning of enemies got so annoying I couldn't stand it anymore.
I’ve heard its 60€ on switch for the rerelease, ps4 and Xbox are getti g the 49€ remaster with upgraded visuals... whats up with that?
I was hyped for this one but saw some reviews saying the port is awful. I will have to wait and see (nonetheless this one was coming on the list after Zelda, DQ and hori)
@rex_rex Sorry man! That's my bad! My friend code is SW-1471-8497-6312
@rex_rex I host my own lobby 75% of the time, feel free to join when I get on!
I remember those battles. It wasn't the "difficulty" that vexed me - I made steady progress with but a few minor bumps - but the distinct sensation of NOT being in control. The lack of controls and resulting failure felt alot worse than the same scenario, played out under different aka you-screwed-it-up circumstances...
Still there was much to love about Ni No Kuni, but with the central mechanic more or less being broken, I dunno whether I will pick this up or not. Admittedly, I wasn't thrilled by the sequels move to the action genre. The actual combat was paper thin, and thus provided no long-time motivation either. Yeah, the music, animation and graphics, aesthetics and giant world and likeable characters were all still there ... but frankly, maybe this would have better been conceived off as a Ghibli('esque) movie or maybe show - by which it was obviously inspired - than the game it turned out to be.
This is made so much worse by the fact, that I played the game around the time of games like Resonance of Fate and Lost Odyssey, which all-in-all were superior experience to me. Both were flawed games, but the mechanics in RoF were just sooo good and actually inventive, that they blew anything Ni No Kuni did completely out of the water. Equally, Odyssey was a top notch production (some framerate issues aside), with a truely mature and compelling story, esp. the Dream sequence were amazing, featuring the most engaging writing, I ever came across in a jRPG. Plus, the music was so good, I did what I really do and picked up the OST.
Ni No Kuni on the other hand was a fairytale with broken mechanics. Not necessarily objectively worse all-in-all, but certainly in part and depending on ones priority (and tastes -> LO) it just felt shallow by comparison - and it objectively was just that mechanically.
In other words, I'd REALLY like to see Resonance of Fate being released on the Switch. I'd pick that one up for sure, grindy and non-sensical as it was at the time. Combat and even the hex-grid were addictive in a good, challenging and all-around unique way.
I honestly can’t wait to get my hand on this on Friday - I adored the original release of the game on PS3, but I never got to finish it since my decrepit console gave up the ghost when I was around halfway through the game and I decided to upgrade to a PS4 rather than replace it. Still, it may have to wait until the holidays to be played - Link’s Awakening takes precedence, as does DQ XIS, as I am itching to continue the story after playing 12 hours in the demo. And with Luigi’s Mansion and Pokemon coming soon...man, it’s such an awesome time to be a Switch owner! I just wish I didn’t have a full time job so I could sink way more time into these games...
I bought the collector edition on PS3 in 2013. Never finished the game though. Now I do have a chance to replay it. Of course i'm getting the remaster version with 60fps I will enjoy the game even more. Can't wait
@LegendOfStewart 720p is HD silly!
Does it feature Japanese voice-overs? I know that the PS3 version did, but I'd like confirmation that the same holds true for Switch.
@Deanster101 I'm aware. If it's running at 720p docked, it's going to run at a lower resolution in handheld, i.e. sub-HD.
I'm going to buy this no matter what. I recently play the DS version and playing this Switch version would be a great step up from that one.
@personauser93 “I find creature catching and training tedious”
-Username is “persona user” 93-
I want to play this but I’m not a genre fan....ideal situation would be to sit and watch a fan play it while I dip in and out #lonelygamer
Or - I could just have a go and take it from there...
It's been a few years since I played through it on PS3 but I never had a complaint about your AI companions in battle. Just to put that out there.
I'm just going to exit space-time so I can actually finish all of these games. It's on my list.
@-Juice- Demons aren't the same as creatures. There is an aesthetic difference. And if you don't like it, you can lump it!!!!!!!!!!!!
Even with those somewhat annoying drawbacks, I'm a sucker for this type of animation. I'll be grabbing this at some point.
@SwitchVogel "Increidble" visuals, huh?
@personauser93 lmao
@LegendOfStewart This Reddit thread claims that Ni No Kuni runs at 720p in docked and undocked mode, which was apparently also the case for Bayonetta and other games.
https://www.reddit.com/r/NintendoSwitch/comments/bzcvlw/ni_no_kuni_wrath_of_the_white_witch_remastered_e3/
@Ralek85 I'd be all over a re-release of either on Switch!
I can’t recommend this game enough for anyone who hasn’t played it. This is one of the most charming games I’ve ever played, the story is heartwarming, the game play is really fun and it’s a stunning game. Easily one of my favorite games ever.
This game was great on the PS3 and undoubtedly will be great on the Switch. I watched my wife play through the entire game AND quite a bit of the post game stuff and she absolutely adored it. I watched her play so much I pretty much know the entire game myself! My wife is not a hard core gamer, but does love JRPGs and RPGs in general, so if they're your cup of tea, you will love this game. Lets remember if was spoken about as a GoTY candidate when it came out.
@Multi tell me about it. I've missed a lot of the big releases due to cash, but grabbed so many indies on sale. I have over 160 Switch games now, and the flood isn't stopping. What a time to be a gamer. We truly are spoilt for choice on Switch. Nintendo is back on top.
It's on my PS3 backlog so I'll probably skip out on this one since it's not an upgrade other than being able to be played on the go.
I was excited to play this on the switch. BUT, then I found this review. I think you who are interested need to take a look at it.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=eRCJktoK5ds
@gamer89
Take a loom at my comment.
Pozdrav
Aw, price on this is off-putting.
@ChromaticDracula Oh I feel that. I've been trying hard to get through C64 without checkpoints, but it just isn't happening.
@Trellgoth
I agree. Wait a bit for patches. A shame really. Was so looking forward to it
One bad review claiming lots of bugs (which was shown on video), yet NONE of the other reviews have even mentioned it.
So either the entire community is being misled or Nintendo Enthisiast had unique issues like a faulty SD card.
I find it very odd no one else has mentioned any such issues. In fact I find that near impossible if were something everyone was experiencing.
@JaxonH yep, and I saw a comment from the reviewer that said other people weren’t experiencing it, but be cautious. Plus the reviewer said he was going to be away for a while due to his mother’s death 😢
This game looks utterly charming and sweet.
Surprisingly never finished this on the PS3, too many other great games out or coming out to give it a second chance.
Better than the sequel and an overall great RPG, but it's also a seriously grindy one. The score is also a thing of wonder. (it's by Joe Hisaishi)
Thats a tidy thing you have there Ollie my boy!
Its a very enjoyable game; the familiar system is broken when you know where to go for the powerful familiars. Not super streamlined either.
However, the world of Ni No Kuni is magical. Defintely worth checking out.
@JaxonH
I hope you are right.
Hey @SwitchVogel, I'm maybe in the minority here, but one thing I always appreciate in a review of a Japanese game is, is there an option to switch the voice-acting to Japanese w/subtitles? I know the western industry's come a long way in the past two, three decades, but as guy who was into anime in the bad old days, lack of Japanese voice options can be a deal-breaker for me.
I just couldn't get into this on the PS3 even though I really wanted to because it looked fantastic, so I'll be skipping this on the Switch.
Nintendo Enthusiast has shown a lot of audio glitches, bugs, bad framerate and poor visual quality on his review. None of the other reviews mention it. i'm still going to wait before i decide if i actually get the port or not, after all it's priced the same as the remaster of the other platform but it isn't a remaster.
The pill is hard to swallow when a game from the ps3 is a direct port but cost cad 69.99
@aVagabond
Oh I certainly hope so too.
I think we’re ok though. Let’s think about this logically.
Let’s assume for a moment that the issues Nintendo Enthusiast had are not unique to him (microSD going bad is my suspicion, or read rate inadequate for this game). That would mean the issues, given how extreme and common they were in his case (so bad he gave a 5.5/10), would be unequivocally present and noticeable by all other reviewers. They’d have to be. There’s no way two dozen other reviewers played a game for 20 hours and didn’t encounter even so much as a single hiccup to be mentioned in their reviews. There’s no way.
So one of two things are going to happen. Either we’re going to start hearing a lot of reports from other reviewers corroborating the evidence, which will confirm the game indeed has serious problems, or... we’re not going to hear anything, which will all but confirm his issues were somehow unique to him and not indicative of the product at large.
As of right now though, quite a few reviews have come in, and I have still yet to find one leveling similar complaints, or docking it with such a low score.
How does this game compared with Forgotton Anne?
I love all these great RPGs coming to and on the Switch! The sheer volume of great content on the console is the reason I have decided to not buy a gaming PC. I just don't need it. Why spend 2000 on a high end PC when I already have access the a plethora of amazing content on a device I can take anywhere or play on my 60 4K TV?
This game oozes charm and I want it, despite not being much of an RPG fan. The challenge will be finding time to play, given the avalanche of games coming out lately.
Hmm. I will have to see about this one. I love Level-5, but I think I might play Divinity 2 first.
@Bakajin Yes, that option is available right on the title screen when you boot up. You can swap between English and Japanese at will, too, you're not locked in to one or the other.
@JaxonH
I am drawn to this game. It has certain... magic to it. But I'll wait. Check this out.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=thevHes4q1s
@SwitchVogel
Sorry to bother you, but have you experienced crashes/glitches/corrupted save files in your playthrough?
@aVagabond There was one time the game crashed, but that was the extent of any bug-related issues. I saw the footage from Nintendo Enthusiast, and I'm reasonably confident that it was an isolated case. I didn't see anything like that, and I have yet to talk to another reviewer who did.
Games like this make me wish I actually liked the genre. It looks like a great, fun story, but then I remember what gameplay in those is like and... Eugh.
@SmaggTheSmug what about it?
@Alucard83 I just find the JRPG gameplay loop tedious and boring. Especially in the linear ones, which too often boil down to "watch overly long cutscene - travel between cutscenes points with nonsensical random fights between them - watch another boring cutscene". That's why I couldn't get into Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest. The fact that the combat system is usually a simple menu thing doesn't help. It just makes the combat not really engaging.
I liked Chrono Trigger, which wasn't as linear and Live-A-Live, which has shorter narratives and somewhat tactical combat. I also like SRPGs and old Western RPGs like Fallout or Planescape: Torment. But the recent demos of Octopath or Dragon Quest just turned me off.
I guess it's like watching people praise milky ice cream when you're lactose intolerant.
@Multi Really 1 more doesn't make the difference, it feels good to have it, even unopened.
I am going to wait till it price drops and if it doesn't then I ll just buy Pokemon instead then.
@SmaggTheSmug Ok. Thank you. Just play games that you like. Then this isn't for you indeed. You know in some games I do like to watch cutscenes because the story interest me, but when it's get to long and quite often it kinda gets annoying. I can skip in most games, but not in all. It feels like i'm in a locked cage wanting to get out so I can play... takes some time with some RPG games. But Ni No Kuni is fine to me because it has something magical and I love that . That's why it works for me, but also in this game you can skip all actually. But then again you won't get the story if it would be your first time. Each his own and that's fine right. Enjoy gaming
I can't wait to play this! Hearing the composer of my favourite Ghibli movies did the soundtrack is icing on the cake!
The thing they got me with this game how charming it was. And then those little monsters you can collect. Kawaii and they can evolve as well and they are on your support team. Love it. Pitty to see that this reviewer put that in the negative point... to me it's a plus point
@SwitchVogel Is there a day one patch?
Are the familiars pretty much like collecting personas in Persona 5?
@Chunkboi79 fiiinnaly I added you buddy! Let's Smash!
@kingeo Couldn't find any notes online, but my version is at 1.0.1. So, yes, but I don't know if it does anything significant beyond a bug fix or two.
@kokirii More or less, yeah, but these are a lot more dependent on chance. Kind of frustrating if you're going for 100% collection, I suppose, but the rates seem to be pretty forgiving. Also, no fusion here, though many of the higher tier Familiars take a couple Metamorphoses to obtain.
@SwitchVogel Thanks for the answer,can you tell how many mb it is?
Nice review and nice score. Got it today in the mail (and Link's awakening). Only played a very short portion so far. Looking forward to full delph into the game (whenever that will be).
I really enjoyed this game on PS3. Having a Switch release makes perfect sense. Being a big fan of the original Final Fantasy VII and the Breath of Fire series it’s a must have. And let’s not forget I am a huge Studio Ghibli fan. The story really builds up until the end. It gave me my money’s worth.
Played this a bit on my PS3 a while back, liked it from what I played but may get it for Switch when there’s a sale.
It is on sale now for $15.... could not pass up at that price....
@Multi remember, buying game is easy, but finish it is difficult. I make the same mistake many times.
@tka060681 I did buy this (physical) completed and loved it. Highly recommended for those sat on the fence.
But my unopened back to of is now 30+ deep 🤣
Just picked it up for 10 bucks for black Friday, can't beat that!
I feel Ni No Kuni nails every aspect other than combat, which is a big chunk of the game and one of your main inputs into it.
The idea that you actually get to run around with your guy and fight the enemies sounds fun, but then you realise that you don't actually get to fight you get to run around the battlefield and click a button that makes them fight for you, but only for a certain amount of time. Then if they get too tired, they're gonna pop out of existence for a minute while Oliver just runs away snarfing away on the 99 breads that you own. And also, expect your ai teammates to be worse at the game than your uncle accidentally sitting on the joycons for two hours.
That is how almost every boss battle goes. Send out Sturgis (I named my Mitey Sturgis) and have him hit the boss for as long as he's allowed to, then send out another creature to take Sturgis' place only to remember that Sturgis is the only good playable monster in the game, then run away and eat bread while Esther and Swaine lay dead on the floor since 30 seconds into the battle.
Overall, the presentation, art, acting and everything else was done exceptionally well, but after running into the boss in Mummy's tummy I decided it was time to shelve the game for good. Ni No Kuni 2 supposedly has all the charm from the art and an enjoyable combat system, so i might give that one a try. But if you can get thru the combat, I'd recommend the game.
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