Review for 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim. Game for PlayStation 4, the video game was released on 22/09/2020
After a story of about 23 hours and a freshly acquired platinum, we have concluded the atypical adventure of 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim; game developed by Vanillaware and published by ATLUS for PlayStation 4. In our preview we were left with positive impressions, albeit with some reservations regarding the presentation of the battle sections. After completing all that 13 Sentinels has to offer, our opinion hasn't shifted much, however, embellishing itself with some important details that the game has been able to perform at its best.
We will try not to repeat ourselves too much in this review.
As we already mentioned, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is not a title we believe to be for everyone. In an industry that has slowly found its own identity, for better or for worse, Vanillaware's game completely ignores any conventions about what works and doesn't work in the video game and creates a completely original experience, both in content and execution. By the very nature of the opinion of the writer, this is in no way considered a defect, indeed we tend to reward when a project shows something new and strange when well done, as we explained in that of 2019 with the review of Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes.
To reiterate what 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim consists of, let's say that it is an amalgam of graphic adventure reminiscent of the labors of Lucas Arts, albeit with a focus on narrative seen from multiple points of view rather than enigmas, and Strategic RPG in which the narrative will give way to battles against the Kaiju aboard huge Mecha. What immediately makes the Vanillaware title extremely atypical is that these two halves are actually quite distinct, you will not play the narrative and then be interrupted by some fight or vice versa, instead the latter are all set after the conclusion of the 13 stories of the characters, which instead will focus on how the protagonists prepare for the war against the Kaiju and on the mysteries of their world.
With this stratagem Vanillaware manages to find a way to circumnavigate the limits of the videogame medium, in which sometimes telling a story can be complex precisely because of the need to alternate narrative with gameplay.
Obviously it is possible to tell a story through the gameplay itself, as the most talented individuals and studies of the industry have shown with titles such as the MGS saga or the two The Last of Us, just to name two examples, but this does not mean that some stories are complex to tell taking into account the nature of the video game. 13 Sentinels' fiction falls into this category; it could never have been told without this great idea thought up by its developers.
The graphic adventure sections are undoubtedly the focus of the title and is where the game offers the best of itself. We will take part in 13 stories, one for each warrior destined to fight in the titular Sentinels and these will intersect at practically every opportunity and will develop over a period of about 160 years (although we will only experience the events in leaps of 40 years).
The world of 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim may seem quite classic at first glance, after all the concept of the Kaiju destroying the world is not new, however Vanillaware takes a different approach to the story: the focus is not Kaiju and how to fight them, but the how the characters interface with this strange world where mysterious monstrosities will appear. Essentially the game is proposed in a science fiction context, but where science fiction itself is just a pretext to set a thriller in which the "mystery box" is its greatest strength.
At the end of the adventure we were extremely satisfied with the narration of 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim. It is an unusual and strange story to live in a video game, but it works in every respect. The characters are fantastic, the s between them as well (although perhaps a bit too dull in the epilogue) and discovering the truths behind the Kaiju catastrophe in no particular order is fun from start to finish. Obviously, since it is a game with 13 points of view and 5 different timelines, following events can be complex, not because they are poorly told but because by the very nature of the story you have to keep track of who does what and where.
In fact, one of the reasons why 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim may not be for everyone is precisely because it demands extreme attention to what happens on the screen, skipping even one scene can lose important terms or revelations that, in dominoes, will lead to failure. to understand subsequent events.
However Vanillaware has masterfully managed to repay the commitment it demands, thanks to a very solid writing, an extremely well conceived pacing that works regardless of the order in which the stories will be played (which is partially influenced by the player) and above all thanks to very satisfying final scenes that connect very well with the strategic gameplay sections, which essentially represent the ending of the story.
So let's talk about the other side of 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, strategic combat. First of all there is a clarification, although this is set following the events of the narrative, it will not be dealt with in bulk once the story is over, but it will be necessary to continue up to certain points to unlock some scenes in the stories of different characters. In terms of pacing, this section, although separated from the plot, integrates itself well and can serve to break the monotony of the basic gameplay of the graphic adventure. Unfortunately, in these fights we see the greatest flaw in Vanillaware's work: the graphic presentation of the battles.
As mentioned in the preview, strategic battles are presented by a bird's eye view of a very barren map, with enemies and allies essentially consisting of arrows or colored dots, with the occasional very simple model for more important enemies.you. Unfortunately, this not only makes this part of the game seem inferior to the narrative, presented with magnificent artwork as only Vanillaware is able, but also makes it difficult to understand which type of enemy you are fighting against.
This is essentially the only flaw we encountered in 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, but that's a huge shame considering the gameplay is also a lot of fun, with tons of ways to approach battles, a character overload system that leads you to having to use them all by improvising different tactics based on who is available and a surprisingly high variety of enemies. The level of difficulty is also excellent, and varies from casual for those who just want the plot and see these fights as little more than a burden, to insane for those who want to think about the various situations.
We played a large part of the game in insane, then retraced a few levels in casual to aim for an all in all easy platinum trophy, and we must say that we are extremely happy with the experience, but it remains a bitter taste to think what they could be the fights when presented with the classic Vanillaware style. It should be emphasized that even the character enhancement system, although all in all excellent, is presented in a rather confusing way and that oozes low budget.
Finally, another small flaw, using a couple of particularly destructive skills when there will be a multitude of enemies on the screen it is possible to run into some drop in framerates. The soundtrack is good, usually only used to convey the atmosphere with just a couple of exceptions, but it does the job very well.
Ultimately 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is one of the titles that we have most passionate about this year. Unfortunately, the most ambitious Vanillaware project suffers the weight of this ambition and must find a compromise by saving on the aesthetic presentation of the strategic section, which however remains fun and we would not remove it at all as it is very important for the general experience. The narrative is very original, certainly taking inspiration from classics such as Evangelion but with ideas and focuses so different that they give 13 Sentinels a unique and distinct feeling. The characters are all unique and human, never particularly over the top and always fun to follow and the twists are certainly not lacking as in any self-respecting mystery box. At the end of the 23 hours that are needed to conclude the adventure, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim closes everything it has to and also gives an epilogue that acts as a "staple" for a story that has fully convinced us.
► 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is an Adventure type game developed by Vanillaware and published by ATLUS for PlayStation 4, the video game was released on 22/09/2020
