Dusk Diver is the game I'd imagine would be the outcome of combining a slew of different anime/JRPG stylized games. There's some recognizable bits and pieces from various franchises buried within this game, and even though it could have been a massive failure due to mixing a variety of games, it accomplishes it all surprisingly well. Environments are well-stylized, and the combat feels good, even though it has some hitches or hiccups here and there.

For this review and others like it, feel free to check out and follow my personal Steam Curator page if you'd like! https://store.steampowered.com/curator/36761101-Miphnificent


The Good:

- Overall combat fluidity. Combat feels really well done and weighty, overall feeling like an enjoyable time. There are several combos you can do, and with the extra characters you have the capability of utilizing them to further string along your combos into one another. Hit combo counter also tracks properly, even on downed enemies (Some games don't do this), so at times it actually felt better than various other JRPG's I've played. Each supporting character also adds to this by having their own strategy for playing with them, as well as having particular strengths and weaknesses in combat which makes for a much more varied and interesting combat experience than just button mashing, unlike many other beat 'em ups.

- Character design and detail. Each supporting character within the game has their own very defined style, and their overall designs are reminiscent of what their base forms are, such as with Leo looking very much like a Lion. A lot of work was definitely put into each characters design, and it is evident when you observe or analyze their overall designs.

- Character personalities and growth. Whilst the design and detail aspects of each character are great, there are just as many games which handle their character personalities and growth terribly. Dusk Diver gives each supporting character their own personality, with some of them clashing with each other as well. Each one has a personality befitting of how they look, and overall each character tries to grow and progress with you as you play the story (So long as you choose to do side missions), which makes them actually feel as if they're alive within the game world. Each character has their own friendship meter as well, which allows you to progress a series of "side missions" with them so you're able to familiarize yourself with them more, and also make them become more powerful.

- A well-designed hub world. Ximending City was deliberately designed to have each street/long alley way far enough away from each other that you're capable of seeing every single sidequest within the game as you run up and down each street, so there's no potential chance of missing them. There's a plethora of food vendors, and various other events/activities which you can partake of, which overall add to the lively nature of the town.

- A story interesting enough to make me want to see it through. There's a lot of the "High-Schooler gains superpowers and is forced to save the day" tropes going on within the games overall story, but the characters and setting were interesting enough to actually keep me hooked and reading every single line of dialogue.

- Superb translations. This is what I'd like to expect from so many other games, but most don't actually do as well as Dusk Diver. There are a few typos and such here and there, but everything was understandable and didn't at all feel like there was any lack of dedication, even for conversations/text blurbs from background characters who weren't important.


The Bad:

- Overall tedium when trying to 100% the game. There are some issues I found with the game being a collectathon, in that the game wants you to collect everything (or so it seems), only for collectibles within missions to not count towards overall ranking. Whilst this may not seem like a big deal, it's actually quite annoying, as this makes it so that you may have to play the same mission 2-3 times, as S Ranks are governed by beating a par time per level, and as such, scouring levels for items and collecting everything (if you need money) will be detrimental and overall bloat the games playtime.

- Animations for every power SP attack. Whilst I understand the need for animations for the Finishers, I found that having the animations for every single time I pressed right bumper to break up combats fluidity, pausing the area around you for 10-15 seconds at a time. Having these without the monologue each time would solve this issue, and make the combat more fluid.

- A lack of post-game content. Whilst the game is a collectathon tied to a JRPG, there is practically NOTHING to do after you've beaten the game. There are 153 of a certain item you can find within the game, yet the maximum you'll ever need is about 70. I'm not exactly sure what the point of making there be so many of this one item is, especially if it doesn't contribute or add to the games overall storyline whatsoever, and unlocks NOTHING when you collect all of them. Had there been something similar to Berseria's Heavenly Steppes, it would have all felt worth it due to actual post-game content being present.

- RNG Based Collection Items. Whilst almost everything in the game has a finite number of items that it can give you, there is one thing within the game that does not. Lottery Poetry is a terrible thing to get as there are 60+ different poems you can obtain by having your fortune drawn, and you can get duplicates of this as well. I feel that the game has a high chance of giving you ones you've not gotten before, but if you're very unlucky you could be at this for hours.

- Exclusive Support Charqacters for each Platform. This is one of the most obnoxious parts of the game, as each platform seems to have its own supporting character that you unlock after beating the game. Whilst I can understand that it doesn't necessarily affect the game, it's still somewhat disappointing when I can't have one of the stories most integral characters within my party.

- Side quests do not pop up on the main map. This feels like something which could have been completely circumvented, but was left in so as to keep new players playing for a bit longer. You're forced to run up and down every single street after each story mission to search for every single side quest in the game, which can take 10+ minutes between each mission/chapter, and overall it just feels tedious.

- Difficulty. Dusk Diver does not handle difficulty particularly well late-game or for any of the bosses. Whilst the difficulty up until around Chapter 7 feels actually tight and just right, after chapter 8 it becomes a bit of a mess. What I mean in saying this is that the enemies aren't actually difficult, but the mechanics for the new ones are made so that they spam repeatedly along a set pathway until they've reached the end. There's also the issue of the bosses all being too easy, and essentially devolving to "Stay to the left or right of the boss" the video game. Bosses also have scaled down attack selections, and are just overall feel a bit lackluster, even though they're very well designed.


Final Score: 8/10.

Worth $34.99? It's hard to really say due to the overall playtime, which is about 15-18 hours if you're doing a full 100% run, and about 6-7 hours only if not. If you're not concerned about a game having x amount of hours for a certain price point, then I'd say go for it.

Closing thoughts: I wasn't sure what to expect when I originally went to play this game, as it felt like at any moment it could trip over itself for trying to be too much of one game, but it handles the balancing act almost perfectly. There are some moments where I did however find myself wondering why the game was too easy, and I also couldn't bring myself to 100% the game just due to overall tedium, but even so it was an enjoyable ride.

Dusk Diver is the game I'd imagine would be the outcome of combining a slew of different anime/JRPG stylized games. There's some recognizable bits and pieces from various franchises buried within this game, and even though it could have been a massive failure due to mixing a variety of games, it accomplishes it all surprisingly well. Environments are well-stylized, and the combat feels good, even though it has some hitches or hiccups here and there. For this review and others like it, feel free to check out and follow my personal Steam Curator page if you'd like! https://store.steampowered.com/curator/36761101-Miphnificent The Good: - Overall combat fluidity. Combat feels really well done and weighty, overall feeling like an enjoyable time. There are several combos you can do, and with the extra characters you have the capability of utilizing them to further string along your combos into one another. Hit combo counter also tracks properly, even on downed enemies (Some games don't do this), so at times it actually felt better than various other JRPG's I've played. Each supporting character also adds to this by having their own strategy for playing with them, as well as having particular strengths and weaknesses in combat which makes for a much more varied and interesting combat experience than just button mashing, unlike many other beat 'em ups. - Character design and detail. Each supporting character within the game has their own very defined style, and their overall designs are reminiscent of what their base forms are, such as with Leo looking very much like a Lion. A lot of work was definitely put into each characters design, and it is evident when you observe or analyze their overall designs. - Character personalities and growth. Whilst the design and detail aspects of each character are great, there are just as many games which handle their character personalities and growth terribly. Dusk Diver gives each supporting character their own personality, with some of them clashing with each other as well. Each one has a personality befitting of how they look, and overall each character tries to grow and progress with you as you play the story (So long as you choose to do side missions), which makes them actually feel as if they're alive within the game world. Each character has their own friendship meter as well, which allows you to progress a series of "side missions" with them so you're able to familiarize yourself with them more, and also make them become more powerful. - A well-designed hub world. Ximending City was deliberately designed to have each street/long alley way far enough away from each other that you're capable of seeing every single sidequest within the game as you run up and down each street, so there's no potential chance of missing them. There's a plethora of food vendors, and various other events/activities which you can partake of, which overall add to the lively nature of the town. - A story interesting enough to make me want to see it through. There's a lot of the "High-Schooler gains superpowers and is forced to save the day" tropes going on within the games overall story, but the characters and setting were interesting enough to actually keep me hooked and reading every single line of dialogue. - Superb translations. This is what I'd like to expect from so many other games, but most don't actually do as well as Dusk Diver. There are a few typos and such here and there, but everything was understandable and didn't at all feel like there was any lack of dedication, even for conversations/text blurbs from background characters who weren't important. The Bad: - Overall tedium when trying to 100% the game. There are some issues I found with the game being a collectathon, in that the game wants you to collect everything (or so it seems), only for collectibles within missions to not count towards overall ranking. Whilst this may not seem like a big deal, it's actually quite annoying, as this makes it so that you may have to play the same mission 2-3 times, as S Ranks are governed by beating a par time per level, and as such, scouring levels for items and collecting everything (if you need money) will be detrimental and overall bloat the games playtime. - Animations for every power SP attack. Whilst I understand the need for animations for the Finishers, I found that having the animations for every single time I pressed right bumper to break up combats fluidity, pausing the area around you for 10-15 seconds at a time. Having these without the monologue each time would solve this issue, and make the combat more fluid. - A lack of post-game content. Whilst the game is a collectathon tied to a JRPG, there is practically NOTHING to do after you've beaten the game. There are 153 of a certain item you can find within the game, yet the maximum you'll ever need is about 70. I'm not exactly sure what the point of making there be so many of this one item is, especially if it doesn't contribute or add to the games overall storyline whatsoever, and unlocks NOTHING when you collect all of them. Had there been something similar to Berseria's Heavenly Steppes, it would have all felt worth it due to actual post-game content being present. - RNG Based Collection Items. Whilst almost everything in the game has a finite number of items that it can give you, there is one thing within the game that does not. Lottery Poetry is a terrible thing to get as there are 60+ different poems you can obtain by having your fortune drawn, and you can get duplicates of this as well. I feel that the game has a high chance of giving you ones you've not gotten before, but if you're very unlucky you could be at this for hours. - Exclusive Support Charqacters for each Platform. This is one of the most obnoxious parts of the game, as each platform seems to have its own supporting character that you unlock after beating the game. Whilst I can understand that it doesn't necessarily affect the game, it's still somewhat disappointing when I can't have one of the stories most integral characters within my party. - Side quests do not pop up on the main map. This feels like something which could have been completely circumvented, but was left in so as to keep new players playing for a bit longer. You're forced to run up and down every single street after each story mission to search for every single side quest in the game, which can take 10+ minutes between each mission/chapter, and overall it just feels tedious. - Difficulty. Dusk Diver does not handle difficulty particularly well late-game or for any of the bosses. Whilst the difficulty up until around Chapter 7 feels actually tight and just right, after chapter 8 it becomes a bit of a mess. What I mean in saying this is that the enemies aren't actually difficult, but the mechanics for the new ones are made so that they spam repeatedly along a set pathway until they've reached the end. There's also the issue of the bosses all being too easy, and essentially devolving to "Stay to the left or right of the boss" the video game. Bosses also have scaled down attack selections, and are just overall feel a bit lackluster, even though they're very well designed. Final Score: 8/10. Worth $34.99? It's hard to really say due to the overall playtime, which is about 15-18 hours if you're doing a full 100% run, and about 6-7 hours only if not. If you're not concerned about a game having x amount of hours for a certain price point, then I'd say go for it. Closing thoughts: I wasn't sure what to expect when I originally went to play this game, as it felt like at any moment it could trip over itself for trying to be too much of one game, but it handles the balancing act almost perfectly. There are some moments where I did however find myself wondering why the game was too easy, and I also couldn't bring myself to 100% the game just due to overall tedium, but even so it was an enjoyable ride.