Developer: Ubisoft
Platform(s): PC, PS4, XBO, WiiU, PS3, X360
Reviewed On: PC
Release Date: April 30th, 2014
Genre: RPG, puzzle-platformer
My Rating: 10/10
Aurora, a young girl from 1895 Austria, awakens on the lost fairytale continent of Lemuria. To return home she must fight against the dark creatures of the Queen of the Night, who have stolen the sun, the moon and the stars. At stake is not only Lemuria, but Aurora’s true destiny.
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.
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