Been playing the game the last few days. I got the to final boss but I'm messing around in the bonus dungeon before fighting him.
Xanadu Next kinda gives me the same feel that the PC Ys games do in that it's pretty easy to get comfortable with it - a "pick up and play" game. There's an inventory to manage and Skills, Guardians, Magic take a little getting used to, but all in all I found it quite intuitive.
One game it reminded me a lot of was Vagrant Story. The writing probably isn't as good, but I thought it shared a lot in common, structurally. Xanadu Next features a lot of small, interconnected rooms with light block-type puzzles. As you progress you unlock shortcuts to earlier areas, and there's even reason to backtrack a little bit when you get new items to use on the field. You spend the game exploring the ruins of the island, and you find Tablets and Memoirs which slowly unveil the mysteries of Xanadu and how it relates to the characters/events of the present setting. The game isn't very heavy on story. Most of it is done through Tablets/Memoirs you find. It's not especially intricate, but I still found myself compelled by the unraveling the plot secrets and realizing
(vague spoiler).
I think the game meets a good balance between simplicity and mechanics. There's enough there to keep things fresh and interesting as you progress but it never becomes overwrought an remains a comfortable play. (The bonus dungeon is proving difficult enough to power through.) Music is lovely. I need more time to gather my full thoughts though.
Oh also, for achievement people: "Lore Lord" (Found and translated all tabulae and memoirs) didn't unlock for me.
Xanadu Next kinda gives me the same feel that the PC Ys games do in that it's pretty easy to get comfortable with it - a "pick up and play" game. There's an inventory to manage and Skills, Guardians, Magic take a little getting used to, but all in all I found it quite intuitive.
One game it reminded me a lot of was Vagrant Story. The writing probably isn't as good, but I thought it shared a lot in common, structurally. Xanadu Next features a lot of small, interconnected rooms with light block-type puzzles. As you progress you unlock shortcuts to earlier areas, and there's even reason to backtrack a little bit when you get new items to use on the field. You spend the game exploring the ruins of the island, and you find Tablets and Memoirs which slowly unveil the mysteries of Xanadu and how it relates to the characters/events of the present setting. The game isn't very heavy on story. Most of it is done through Tablets/Memoirs you find. It's not especially intricate, but I still found myself compelled by the unraveling the plot secrets and realizing
who is who
I think the game meets a good balance between simplicity and mechanics. There's enough there to keep things fresh and interesting as you progress but it never becomes overwrought an remains a comfortable play. (The bonus dungeon is proving difficult enough to power through.) Music is lovely. I need more time to gather my full thoughts though.
Oh also, for achievement people: "Lore Lord" (Found and translated all tabulae and memoirs) didn't unlock for me.
. But I also did pretty much everything I could do in 1 playthrough, including the secret boss.
