Machina of the Planet Tree -Planet Ruler- is the first in a series of several games by the group Denneko Yuugi. The game is a combo-based RPG that focuses on action and flashy attacks.
This is my 2nd review for today, both for very deserving games (the other was for Fairy Fencer F). Now I have honestly of all my time playing JRPGS have never played an RPG Maker game, mainly because they all really looked the same to me. But I have to say Machina of the Planet Tree really stood out for me, so I felt now that I own the game and I have...
First impressions (1hr and half in):
RPGmaker title, no doubt about it. But with that being said, attention to detail with the map tilesets is noticable - they took time and showed care for the creation of the areas I've seen so far.
Character designs and pixel art are of good quality (within the confines of the engine), and the characters themselves...
Pros:
-Fairly balanced and creative battle system
-Harem party?
-Humorous skits
Cons: (Luckily, most of these should be fairly easy to add in without significantly rewriting the story)
-Lack of NPC interaction, especially for some of the antagonists
-Not much backstory for some of the major characters
-Not much customization via accessories. There's...
(Disclaimer: I was the QA lead for Sekai Project's localization of Machina of the Planet Tree -Planet Ruler- so feel free to take this with the entire salt shaker.)
Planet Ruler is an amazingly fun and adorable indie JRPG. I'm a fan of JRPGs in general, so I was expecting to enjoy working on this when I got the opportunity, but between the battle system...
The battle system really ruins the fun.
So, it's turn based and encourages you to plan out your attacks by having a move repetition penalty and a bonus for varied attacks.
So you DON'T want to button mash right?
No, you also have a 5 second timer for your combo, think fast!
But also, you need to account for what your opponent is weak against.
Tough...
