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Real-time battle, inventory management and map viewing (enemies are not shown on mini map but some have audio cues when close by)
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Simple puzzles, no incessant pixel finding, area of interest indicated in mini map & conveniently-highlighted on cursor hover
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Hp, stamina, bladder, weight, stress & clione management; juggling the hexa-elements mechanic instead of the usual tri/quad-elements. Need to suspend realism on why they have to use designated washrooms to relieve
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Can rest anywhere, with risk of enemy attacks if in open areas
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Can run, by double tapping
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2 attacks & 1 support skill: Equipped weapon attack based on the its attack power, attack type (slash, thrust or bash) and associated cooldown period, 1 Clione (augmented) attack & 1 Clione support skill
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Weapon attack also has charged attacks (by holding down attack button). Upside is for 'part break' and chaining combos for higher scores, downside is increased stamina depletion rate
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Some enemies have parts that can be destroyed (part break). Doing so will result in more exp, higher score, specific item drop. Enemy attack pattern may change as well.
Part Targeting & Breaking
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Max 4-party square formation. Some enemy attacks only hit 1 side of the party, thereby a 50% miss chance with single/dual character (if they are on the same side) formation; each non-active living member is your 7-item high-stack mule
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Random drop from fixed enemy loot table
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Same exp gained for living non-active members; level up only grants skill points
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Same basic skill tree, differentiated by each character's strengths and unique skills
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Stats and resistance growth are mainly from dying explicitly in various manners and then revived (extended) using the required score amount (Shigabane System). However, skills (mainly new abilities and passives) learned may enhance stats in specific situations
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Various inflicted conditions for more character/item juggling
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No economy or trading; everything is based on loot
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Base building upgrades and base item crafting by scavenging items and from enemies' drop. 1 of the few games where crafting is crucial and works well with appropriate incentives.
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Base functions can be easily accessed either through 'system menu' or at their designated locations
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Saving can only be done at save points and map transitions (toggleable single-slot auto-save function); 'emergency base return' can be activated at the expense of current score.
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Randomness factors like daily luck outcome at shrine, characters' age when starting a new stage
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3D anime-resque animated character models. Understandable as 4 different animations are required for the 4 ages on each character's animated pose.
Child Portrait
Matured Portrait
Character talking to a person on our left
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Attention to details like the various death/Shigabane graphics, character models facing angle and slightly different versions of text/voiced lines for the 4 ages ('album' function will be unlock at later stages for customized age setting scene replays)
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5 difficulty modes, switchable anytime at base from Stage 2 onwards
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All 8 characters will be available on game start; main character will be swapped for each stages
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Less gloom n doom. Rather than dungeon crawling, exploration areas are modern, urban-based settings like office building.
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Limited enemy variety
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Cutscenes galore, unskippable can only be fast-forwarded. Annoying if kept failing at Boss fights.
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No pause for tips during loading screens
I'm on an autistic 1st run:
- in minimizing the in-game days (don't think it has any effect/consequences on gameplay except forgoing 'bunking effects' in sharing a room overnight)
- no deaths by enemy attacks (hence stunted stats & resistances) on 'recommended' difficulty (III)
- & 100% explored maps
Attained by restarting each stage with the meta-knowledge gained after each stage completion; starting Stage 6 on Day 28.