Child of Light (2014)

I really love the flying in this game. The story-line is okay, the fighting, movements, and puzzles are simplistic. I'm not really sure what happened and why games are being shuttled into these simple graphics or characters that are so unsatisfying to play lately. This just doesn't do it for me, too simple. I found myself finishing a few chapters and quitting because it was just eh.. when thinking about loading it up.

Fnished Child of Light today. An enjoyable game, that doesnt try to be more than it is, with nice visuals, a combat system that is much more complex and fun that it seems at first (I recommend playing on hard difficulty, something that I rarely do), and a nice story, despite it not having anything really original, with some touchy moments.

One of the most beatifull games ever made. In a time where everything is based on showing more effects, polygons, ultra detailed textures, where video cards are forced to the maximum while their fans suffer trying to cool them, Child of Light is a balm of elegant delicacy. A refreshment between so many explosions, shots, frenetic cameras and deafening sounds. It is a regression to simplicity, that we found in some old Japanese role-playing games, it is also a regression to the simplicity of childhood, the one that we found when our mother told us that story with dukes, queens, sorcerers, witches and fairy godmothers, the one that to imagine ourselves in armor with a sword in hand we did not need a screen, a joystick or a console.

Captivating. Unique. Difficult to measure.
Truly this game is a priceless treasure.
A wondrous fairytale reminiscent of the old.
And the intuitive combat system had me sold.
I played the game for hours, possibly ten.
And as soon as I finished it, I started again.
It has become something I hold very dear,
And without a doubt one of my favorite games of the year.

Okay, I'm not gonna do the entire review in rhyme, damn. I'm not that good.

Holy smokes, though, this game. Wow wow wow.

From the moment it was announced, I knew it was going to be perfect. I love turn-based RPGs. I love fairytales. For there to be a game that combines both of those things, my queer little heart just fluttered with joy. And then the seemingly endless countdown began as I anxiously waited to get my hands on it. When I tell you I bought the game the minute it came out, I bought it the minute it came out.

I've got a lot to cover but let's start with the visuals. This game looks stunning, with a unique, hand-painted art style that's sprinkled with a touch of 3D. Aurora, for example, along with a few other characters, was made 3D with a gorgeous fluid hair effect that I could not stop staring at. Most of the environment, however, was 2D in all its glory. I always took my sweet time in flying all over the many different locations in Lemuria to notice all the little details. And the score, my goodness. The score is a perfect representation of the fairytale nature of the game. One moment it's beautiful and melancholic and the next it's soaring and epic.

Now let's talk about the thing that had me excited most of all: the gameplay. The battle system in particular. I've heard the developers say that this game is a love letter to JRPGs, and I whole-heartedly agree. The battle system is very reminiscent of the JRPGs of yore, such as Final Fantasy, and more specifically the Grandia series. It gives you little moments to plan your strategy but also gets you pumped with its active battle time elements.

Each character gets to perform an action as soon as they hit the cast bar. The casting time will vary on both your character's stats and the act in particular that they're performing. However, if the enemy attacks you whilst your character is preparing to cast, you will be interrupted and bumped back on the timeline, so it's important to choose what you do strategically. Luckily the same goes vice versa. If your character attacks an enemy while it's casting, then that enemy will be interrupted as well. Although some enemies--bosses in particular--do a counter attack if you interrupt them. Bosses could either buff or heal themselves if you interrupt them, so that's further reason to strategize your actions very carefully.

In the game, Aurora has a little firefly companion named Igniculus, who is a huge help both in and out of battle. With PC controls you use a mouse to control him, and with controllers, the right analog stick. During battle, you can hover Igniculus over an enemy and use his special glowing ability to slow foes. This can be an invaluable help when you're in a pinch. Even if you don't have enough time to interrupt an enemy, you can still slow its casting time to give you enough time to defend from whatever attack it's about to do. Igniculus' glow ability is limited, however, and can be refilled by collecting the glowing flowers in battle (that also happen to be health and mana pickups) or using special potions called Firefly Elixirs, but I suggest you only use those when you're really out of options.

Outside of battle, the little guy can also be a big help. He can reach and open hard-to-get treasure chests or pickups called Stardusts, which are hidden throughout the various locations in Lemuria and can be used to raise your characters' stats. There are also blue, gem-like treasure chests that only Igniculus can open with his glow ability. Treasures are plentiful in this game and a lot of them are easy to miss, so it definitely pays to be thorough.

This game also has a very handy crafting system called Oculi. Throughout the game you'll find different types of gems, and can craft them into bigger, more valuable ones. Some combinations can even create more rarer and powerful oculi, although the game doesn't tell you those recipes up-front. I had to look up the different combinations. The buffs you get from the oculi varies from the different types there are. I thought the crafting system overall was very intuitive and a lot of fun.

And let's not forget the story. The entirety of this game is told in rhyme, and it did an excellent job of creating a bedtime-story feel, thus further adding to the fairytale theme. It's a timeless, classic story and the colorful cast of characters Aurora meets along the way makes it all the more heartwarming, since each of the side characters have stories of their own. The dialog was charming and adorable. There's one character in particular named Rubella, who's a jester that has trouble rhyming, and she made me giggle many a times. I've heard it being critiqued that the rhymes could be a bit forced at times, and I can't say I totally disagree, but I think the writers did the best they could with something that was supposed to be written entirely in rhyme.

It's difficult for me to find anything negative to say about this game. It's fun, it's magical, and it made me feel like a kid again. I've not even an iota of doubt that years from now, Child of Light will become one of the classics of the gaming world, and I'll totally be down for a sequel, even though it's highly unlikely. I can't possibly give this game a rating that's any lower than 10/10. It's a game I'd want to experience over and over again many years to come, and it's definitely worth the $15.

(Played on Xbox One) Child of Light is one of those games where I'm torn on whether to give it a 3 or a 4. As a video game maybe it's a 3, but as a whole package it's perhaps a 4. Let me first say that the game looks and sounds beautiful. Fantastic music and a gorgeous art style with tons of tiny details make it one great experience. These are not in any way being questioned. The issues that make me waver between 3 and 4 are gameplay issues, and a little bit in way of dialogue. See, the entire game rhymes. The entire thing is written in poems. From idle banter between characters to the game's conclusion. These aren't particularly well written, and it's not necessarily the fault of the writer. It's a commendable thing, to write an entire game in poem, but it doesn't make for great exposition or easy lore. As a game, it's not bad. You traverse the world in 2D side-scrolling fashion but you can fly indefinitely making travel not so bad. You move quickly and have enough mobility to rarely feel stunted. The fighting is JRPG style. It has no random battles, with enemies you can see and run into. They're almost all very easily avoidable. The battles themselves have a semi-interesting visible, scrolling battle timer at the bottom. You can see who's going next, try to interrupt them during casts and all. These fights are pretty easy, and the interruption mechanic works both ways, making some fights take longer than expected because you're being bumped back. You have some ailments and buffs as usual, and can swap members of your party of 2 (low for a JRPG) on the fly with no penalty. I liked this, because I could have more control during longer boss fights. The game is easy, and doesn't punish you for using strategy like that. No save points. The game saves after everything you do, so don't worry about that. There's no equipment, but you can swap “Oculi” (gems) in and out of 3 slots on your characters. These don't do much. Maybe “adds 10% light damage to attacks” or “Reduced fire damage 10%.” You'll fiddle with it some, but it never makes that much of an impact. Characters level up often. I mean very often. Like every other battle. The game is around 10 hours long, and you'll end it at around level 40. You get a nice cast of characters (eight maybe?) to work with that all have different skills, but you'll soon find that only about three are worth using and maybe one more if it's a boss for buffs. The game has a lot of charm but it comes down to it not being that amazing to play. It's not bad, just not that good. The reason I'm giving it a 4/5 is because I really love the visuals and the music, and the game was as long as it could have been. It was about 10 hours long, and that's just as long as you could put up with it. I also have to commend it on one more thing. Minor spoiler ahead. There was no long “ending” dungeon. I absolutely hate the 3 hour long dungeon at the end of every JRPG. Here there's a cutscene and you fight the last boss. Perfect for me. Also, let me give a hint to some of you. You'll get a magic user early on. Maybe your 3rd character. His elemental magic is what can devastate enemies and make the game a lot easier in parts. You'll want to level up “Monsoon” early on (lots of fire enemies through the middle of the game) and “Lightning Strike” after. Lightning made the 2nd to last boss a joke for me, and I liked having that power.

Anyway, it's a 3/5 video game with a 5/5 style. If $15 is too much, I definitely recommend it on a sale.