If Earthbound was reading a love-letter to childhood while realizing the darker details, then LISA the Painful curbstomps your childhood amidst laughter and a world with little remorse.The Painful will put you into a juxtaposition of emotions: Depression, laughter, guilt, fear and emptiness. It manages all its mature themes with a dark, quirky sense of humor.

As well as telling a good story, the game also learns from its inspiration, Earthbound, on how to not be a boring JRPG.


If you think this game will be a grindfest with plenty of Phoenix Downs and a non-interactive battle-system, you are mistaken. The Painful goes against many old RPGs.

For starters, your experience is shaped by misfortunes you can and cannot control. Party members can be taken away (sometimes permanently) as well as your items (dirty mags, the currency, and equipment items and other loot) and your abilities. Second, there is also a heavy incentive against grinding. There are a limited amount of bosses/enemies on the overworld. The areas that have random encounters, either in the dark or in the tall grass, yield almost no items or experience.

The only way you're going to beat this game is toughen up, smarten' up with your team, and, with a little luck and foresight, you will make do however you can.

In battle, some characters have a combo attack system to keep you engaged like the protagonist, Brad Armstrong. The way it works is you can chain together attacks (freestyle mode) to do a special attack. Or you can do the special attack. The benefit is that by working your way up you'll do more damage, and the special attack is a finisher. All combos can be viewed in battle, so you don't need to memorize them.

Only a handful of the 30 party members use this system to not wear its novelty far too soon. Each character's also posseses their own strengths and weaknesses. For example, making a party that are all addicted to Joy (a sparse drug; not too infrequent) can be a hassle when all your characters suffer withdrawal. If you give them Joy, they do critical damage for several turns before they have another withdrawl.

One last and very important distinction for an RPG: The choices are just as brutal as the story and gameplay. There is no "right answer." Sacrifices will be made and those decisions will fall on you.

In short, this game does not screw around, and neither should you. Yet you can still have fun!


As mentioned before, the combo system keeps you engaged in the gameplay. Another reason for enduring LISA's psychological masochism is the world Olathe. It uses both exploration and the dark humor to keep your spirts up.

Unlike most RPG Maker games, the game is a 2D world that feels as complex as a 3D world. Each Area, which there are four total (3 you can revisit anytime; one point of no return), is a laybrinthlike puzzle. It works because secrets, items and even hidden party members can be found by exploration.

Also, because there is little to no random-encounters, you have more time to explore the overworld, which can yield to some secret stashes or minibosses for XP. You will have more fun for less grinding.

Not only is exploring the world a joy, the world is the most interesting character. The creator came up with the world through asking himself, "What would a world of burly dudes be like with no women?" The answer to that question touches on the biological necessity for men to be needed and their alternatives (cross-dressing and gay sex, suicide, violence, drugs, nostalgia.)

The humor, in my interpretation, adds commentary on men's issues by how often they are belittled or laughed at. I won't say it's the game's intentions, but the game can make you think about the topic. Scenes like the prostitution one, which is played for laughs, might have a different emotional effect on you.

The personalities you find and dialogue are very failthful to the deadpan humor of Earthbound. However, it's only when you combine every character, their plights and quirks, with Olathe do you really find the real starring character, the world itself.

I won't say the cast of characters (Brad, the NPCs and your party) are underdeveloped. They're more comedic tropes given one personality to play. Everyone is given a cliche name for achievements: The American Guy, The Rooster Guy, The Drunk Guy.

Brad's story also doesn't set anything new for a redemption story. However, the emphasis on your choices through the gameplay does make the story something special. For example, if you can go through the game with no Joy for Brad, you'll unlock a secret ending.


Despite my glowing praise, I do have some nitpicks.

As with many RPG Maker games, there are technical problems. There is a Q&A forum for some useful fixes that try to solve everything. I can't really fault the devs as they have been adamant on resolving these issues; t's more of a fault with RPG Maker itself. Rebindable keys/joystick are also available, which I would recommend playing with a directional-pad or keyboard. You will fall off ledges less with more precise controls.

However, my biggest grievance is that enemies do not have a visible life-bar. Unless you have played the game, some enemies will have larger health-bars than you would think. Not having that vital information doesn't add challenge. It adds to needless deaths, then replaying cutscenes with no skip option.

And as far as being able to cheat at the game, I think it's fixed by the one-use save points for Pain Mode. It's time-consuming to save-scum for perfection, but you can lessen the challenge as an optional alternative. Permadeath, as much as it may instill fear into players, is so scarce and unimportant towards the ending that if it ever happens you shouldn't feel disheartened. Only a handlful of enemies that can kill your party members, most of the time they're optional bosses. If you lose all your HP in normal battles you just faint like usual.

In the end, you'll probably find that having 30 characters, admittedly with a lot of similarities to each other in their combat styles, is far too much to manage. I would say that a huge cast offers some replay value but you can mitigate a lot of bad decisions with your party by replaying the game knowing what to expect.

Lastly, I don't think the reward for going out of your way to beat the game with zero Joy on the hardest setting is worth the effort. The cutscene/voice-overs become addressed in the sequel/expansion, the Joyful.


None of these issues ruin this masterpiece. The Painful RPG sets out to leave you smiling while walking a bloody trail of tears, asking yourself, "Why?" The only question you should ask your friends who haven't played is, "Why haven't you played this already?"

If Earthbound was reading a love-letter to childhood while realizing the darker details, then LISA the Painful curbstomps your childhood amidst laughter and a world with little remorse.The Painful will put you into a juxtaposition of emotions: Depression, laughter, guilt, fear and emptiness. It manages all its mature themes with a dark, quirky sense of humor. As well as telling a good story, the game also learns from its inspiration, Earthbound, on how to not be a boring JRPG. [h1]UGH... Another JRPG from RPGMaker?[/h1] If you think this game will be a grindfest with plenty of Phoenix Downs and a non-interactive battle-system, you are mistaken. The Painful goes against many old RPGs. For starters, your experience is shaped by misfortunes you can and cannot control. Party members can be taken away (sometimes permanently) as well as your items (dirty mags, the currency, and equipment items and other loot) and your abilities. Second, there is also a heavy incentive against grinding. There are a limited amount of bosses/enemies on the overworld. The areas that have random encounters, either in the dark or in the tall grass, yield almost no items or experience. The only way you're going to beat this game is toughen up, smarten' up with your team, and, with a little luck and foresight, you will make do however you can. In battle, some characters have a combo attack system to keep you engaged like the protagonist, Brad Armstrong. The way it works is you can chain together attacks (freestyle mode) to do a special attack. Or you can do the special attack. The benefit is that by working your way up you'll do more damage, and the special attack is a finisher. All combos can be viewed in battle, so you don't need to memorize them. Only a handful of the 30 party members use this system to not wear its novelty far too soon. Each character's also posseses their own strengths and weaknesses. For example, making a party that are all addicted to Joy (a sparse drug; not too infrequent) can be a hassle when all your characters suffer withdrawal. If you give them Joy, they do critical damage for several turns before they have another withdrawl. One last and very important distinction for an RPG: The choices are just as brutal as the story and gameplay. There is no "right answer." Sacrifices will be made and those decisions will fall on you. In short, this game does not screw around, and neither should you. Yet you can still have fun! [h1]Joy to the World[/h1] As mentioned before, the combo system keeps you engaged in the gameplay. Another reason for enduring LISA's psychological masochism is the world Olathe. It uses both exploration and the dark humor to keep your spirts up. Unlike most RPG Maker games, the game is a 2D world that feels as complex as a 3D world. Each Area, which there are four total (3 you can revisit anytime; one point of no return), is a laybrinthlike puzzle. It works because secrets, items and even hidden party members can be found by exploration. Also, because there is little to no random-encounters, you have more time to explore the overworld, which can yield to some secret stashes or minibosses for XP. You will have more fun for less grinding. Not only is exploring the world a joy, the world is the most interesting character. The creator came up with the world through asking himself, "What would a world of burly dudes be like with no women?" The answer to that question touches on the biological necessity for men to be needed and their alternatives (cross-dressing and gay sex, suicide, violence, drugs, nostalgia.) The humor, in my interpretation, adds commentary on men's issues by how often they are belittled or laughed at. I won't say it's the game's intentions, but the game can make you think about the topic. Scenes like the prostitution one, which is played for laughs, might have a different emotional effect on you. The personalities you find and dialogue are very failthful to the deadpan humor of Earthbound. However, it's only when you combine every character, their plights and quirks, with Olathe do you really find the real starring character, the world itself. I won't say the cast of characters (Brad, the NPCs and your party) are underdeveloped. They're more comedic tropes given one personality to play. Everyone is given a cliche name for achievements: The American Guy, The Rooster Guy, The Drunk Guy. Brad's story also doesn't set anything new for a redemption story. However, the emphasis on your choices through the gameplay does make the story something special. For example, if you can go through the game with no Joy for Brad, you'll unlock a secret ending. [h1]Pains Without Gains[/h1] Despite my glowing praise, I do have some nitpicks. As with many RPG Maker games, there are technical problems. There is a Q&A forum for some useful fixes that try to solve everything. I can't really fault the devs as they have been adamant on resolving these issues; t's more of a fault with RPG Maker itself. Rebindable keys/joystick are also available, which I would recommend playing with a directional-pad or keyboard. You will fall off ledges less with more precise controls. However, my biggest grievance is that enemies do not have a visible life-bar. Unless you have played the game, some enemies will have larger health-bars than you would think. Not having that vital information doesn't add challenge. It adds to needless deaths, then replaying cutscenes with no skip option. And as far as being able to cheat at the game, I think it's fixed by the one-use save points for Pain Mode. It's time-consuming to save-scum for perfection, but you can lessen the challenge as an optional alternative. Permadeath, as much as it may instill fear into players, is so scarce and unimportant towards the ending that if it ever happens you shouldn't feel disheartened. Only a handlful of enemies that can kill your party members, most of the time they're optional bosses. If you lose all your HP in normal battles you just faint like usual. In the end, you'll probably find that having 30 characters, admittedly with a lot of similarities to each other in their combat styles, is far too much to manage. I would say that a huge cast offers some replay value but you can mitigate a lot of bad decisions with your party by replaying the game knowing what to expect. Lastly, I don't think the reward for going out of your way to beat the game with zero Joy on the hardest setting is worth the effort. The cutscene/voice-overs become addressed in the sequel/expansion, the Joyful. [h1]Make Your Choice: Play Now or Leave[/h1] None of these issues ruin this masterpiece. The Painful RPG sets out to leave you smiling while walking a bloody trail of tears, asking yourself, "Why?" The only question you should ask your friends who haven't played is, "Why haven't you played this already?"