It was the fact that you needed stat orbs for certain parts of it, and the game showed you no clear way of attaining these stat orbs. The ascension tree in itself, similar to Final Fantasy X’s sphere grid, wasn’t a bad way to go about character progression. Something else that Astria Ascending could have done without was the layer of complexity that came with the job system and ascension tree. In addition to that, while immediately starting out with eight characters may seem like a good thing, it made me bench certain characters outright because it felt tedious to build the entire team. The biggest flaw in its combat system however, is the lack of a turn indicator, making it difficult to plan your actions wisely. It challenged you to find the right weak spots, pick the optimal party, and be as resourceful as you could. The difficulty seemed balanced enough and would trick you at times, making it feel like a cakewalk until a boss started to evolve into multiple forms. It is what you’d expect from a game of this genre and is charming in its own regard, with a battle mechanic called “Focus” reminiscent of Bravely Default’s “Brave” and “Default” system. There wasn’t much you could do in between because quests had little payoff, the J-Ster mini game wasn’t really vital to your progress, and going on hunts was tiresome because of the lack of quest markers and badly designed map.Ĭombat, while not perfect, uses a turn-based format that would please most old school JRPG fans. A distress call would come from one of the districts, the cast of heroes would rush in to investigate, a backstory would ensue, the demi-gods would battle through Noises, and you’d wind up back at the Council Room in Harmonia. While it is indeed similar in format to most JRPGs, the way the game progressed was borderline repetitive. Just a few hours in and I already felt like the experience was a bit of a slog. It’s a shame that its visual design is its most distinctive feature, because at the end of the day “pretty” can only get you so far. In a way, I almost felt like a tourist within the game because of all the times I would catch myself merely sightseeing. There were moments while playing where I would simply pause and just admire the lush environments and the details of the artwork. What drew me into the game from the trailer alone were the fully hand-drawn illustrations and beautiful landscapes, reminiscent of a Vanillaware game. Astria Ascending shines in its visually stunning 2D world. Where I will give the game much credit is in its art, there’s no question about it.
All in all, the game lacked exposition and I felt very detached and disinterested in the narrative partly because I couldn’t grow attached to these so-called heroes, and partly because of the haphazardly-done world building. Dialogue between characters fell flat, often resulting in them mocking each other like Arpajo and Eko. Even the relationships between the demi-gods felt a little strained, being more like a motley crew of so-called heroes forced to work with each other. There are moments in the game wherein you get a glimpse of each character’s backstories, but these moments are few and far in between, and never quite hit the mark. With this as your starting point, you don’t get the proper time to get invested in each character. You learn from the onset that they only have three months left to live. The game already stumbles at the very beginning, introducing you to the cast of characters at the tail end of their reign as demi-gods. The premise definitely held promise, but was a tad disappointing in its execution. After the three years have passed, another eight champions are appointed, beginning the cycle once again. You are granted powers once chosen as a demi-god, but are also subjected to a shortened lifespan of three years. The story revolves around the world of Orcanon wherein you command a battalion of eight demi-gods who are tasked to protect Harmony from the Noises. The game was also developed in partnership with Hitoshi Sakimoto, composer of Final Fantasy XII and Vagrant Story, and Kazushige Nojima, known for his writing for Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy VII Remake.
Astria Ascending is a JRPG by Artisan Studios, featuring a team of developers who worked on Final Fantasy, Nier Automata and Bravely Default.
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