My first experience with Lufia was after reading something about Fire Emblem Awakening that put me off from the series forever. I was browsing the Nintendo 3DS' eShop, specifically the Virtual Console section, and found that therr was available a fantasy game for the Game Boy Color (Lufia: The Legend Return of course). That looks promising! And in 2019, I actually bought the game, without having ever spoiled anything online beforehand. And I loved it.
It has a weird flavor of cuteness to it. I'm not talking about the designs; the character designs are true Body Horror, but I still think they do fit the game, as sort of a time capsule of the early 2000s.
The thing I find "cute" about this game is that how honest it feels. It's a typical Medieval European fantasy JRPG, and it doesn't really try to deconstruct, subvert or parody anything; for some it could be a flaw and just make the game boring, but for me, it's a great way to scratch that JRPG itch. Not that this game doesn't do anything original: the 3x3 grid and Spiritual Force system help it stand out, and it's implemented very well.
Aside from not being a very unique JRPG and having weird character designs, another flaw would be the translation errors, which are often quite embarrasing; however, for me that doesn't take away from everything this game does right.
I love exploring this huge world to find the secret items, I love actually having to think during battles, I love trying out the various spells and equipments, I love the quirky cast of playable characters, and I even love the tiny yet finely detail UI and animations. The only thing that truly disappointed me, surprisingly, was the music: the songs have well-made melodies, and some of the boss themes are really good, but it's very obvious it's a soundtrack for an 8-bit game. And this game came after the generation II Pokémon games, and their soundtrack aged BEAUTIFULLY. But it still doesn't ruin the game for me.
It's JRPG goodness, distilled and put into a Game Boy Color Cartridge.
Everything I love about JRP Gs in a Game Boy Color package
My first experience with Lufia was after reading something about Fire Emblem Awakening that put me off from the series forever.
I was browsing the Nintendo 3DS' eShop, specifically the Virtual Console section, and found that therr was available a fantasy game for the Game Boy Color (Lufia: The Legend Return of course).
That looks promising! And in 2019, I actually bought the game, without having ever spoiled anything online beforehand. And I loved it.
It has a weird flavor of cuteness to it. I'm not talking about the designs; the character designs are true Body Horror, but I still think they do fit the game, as sort of a time capsule of the early 2000s.
The thing I find "cute" about this game is that how honest it feels. It's a typical Medieval European fantasy JRPG, and it doesn't really try to deconstruct, subvert or parody anything; for some it could be a flaw and just make the game boring, but for me, it's a great way to scratch that JRPG itch.
Not that this game doesn't do anything original: the 3x3 grid and Spiritual Force system help it stand out, and it's implemented very well.
Aside from not being a very unique JRPG and having weird character designs, another flaw would be the translation errors, which are often quite embarrasing; however, for me that doesn't take away from everything this game does right.
I love exploring this huge world to find the secret items, I love actually having to think during battles, I love trying out the various spells and equipments, I love the quirky cast of playable characters, and I even love the tiny yet finely detail UI and animations.
The only thing that truly disappointed me, surprisingly, was the music: the songs have well-made melodies, and some of the boss themes are really good, but it's very obvious it's a soundtrack for an 8-bit game.
And this game came after the generation II Pokémon games, and their soundtrack aged BEAUTIFULLY. But it still doesn't ruin the game for me.
It's JRPG goodness, distilled and put into a Game Boy Color Cartridge.