A Different Yet Welcome Revisit
ASTLIBRA Revision is a rather standout recent 2D action RPG that made waves for its absolutely wild narrative, addictive gameplay loop, and masterful soundtrack that rivals contemporary and classic legends of the genre. Still, it had a few notable shortcomings, such as the subpar English translation, which has thankfully been addressed in a post-launch patch. Now, the title has seen an unexpected follow-up in the form of a DLC, ASTLIBRA Gaiden: The Cave of Phantom Mist.
Occurring in the same world as the base game, you shift perspectives from the primary protagonist and the guild he aids to the ordinary daughter of the town’s baker. Eventually, this guild group, which has been vital for select villagers for their continued aid in acquiring materials and eradicating monsters, stops showing up for whatever reason, causing unrest for the daughter’s father, lacking the medicine needed for his youngest child. Driven by this plight, the baker’s daughter seeks a solution, and conveniently, such a fix arrives via The Cave of Phantom Mist. Guided by the canine Polin, the baker’s daughter ends up on a roguelike adventure where cyclical failure and success become her new reality.
This somewhat standalone DLC does highly benefit from you knowing the events of ASTLIBRA Revision, even in a loose manner, as there are some tangential elements carried over, like the main game’s cast. In fact, the opening states explicitly that there are spoilers present, so you’re just better off playing this after completing Revision. Still, the narrative is far from the appeal of The Cave of Phantom Mist. While intriguing events occur, particularly near the end, they come across as more supplemental in distribution and application than instrumental to the experience. That’s because the gameplay is the driving force here, centralized by the aforementioned roguelike structure, and it works out to a moderate degree of success.
My favorite facet of the DLC has to be the magic system, with a greater emphasis on it here than in the base game.
Same World, New Turf
If you’ve played a roguelike before, then you’ll be at home because the general systems work as you’d expect. As the baker’s daughter, you traverse various levels of the cave, each comprised of countless enemies, optional rooms full of traps and treasure, and shops with new equipment and the like. The general gameplay has been retained from the base game, with the newness rooted in new elements like the Style system, which are basically akin to Jobs. For instance, one Style increases the rate at which you learn skills instilled within equipment, while another enhances your magical capabilities. Duplicate Styles can be found as well, improving their intended efficacies. This supportive mechanic bolsters what was already present in the base release, providing a new identity of sorts, even if it’s just a transparent veil.
Of course, several other returning mechanics join the fray, like the skill tree, Libra scales, and ability crystals, so there’s no need to delve into them, considering you’ll already be abundantly familiar. Essentially, this DLC can best be described as hyperfocused on combat, even moreso than the original game. The titular Cave of Phantom Mist doesn’t significantly differ in its avenues of exploration, as they primarily comprise enemies, occasional hazards, and a switch to open a path to the next floor. Every now and then, you may encounter a ranged target challenge or the like, but combat is the name of the game here, first and foremost. The town’s arena is present, too, granting even more opportunity for battles upon battles upon battles.
New Mechanics and Format Strengthened by Pre-Existing Systems
You may believe that, consequentially, this would make the gameplay loop tiresome a few hours in, but that is far from the case. This is because, like Revision, the combat variety carries the experience forward, except in a far greater capacity, as the cycle constantly and consistently keeps progression and growth addictive and refreshing. The endless waves of newly acquired skills from equipment the more you use them, and the rewards gained from the cave encourage replays repeatedly.
…gameplay is the driving force here, centralized by the aforementioned roguelike structure, and it works out to a moderate degree of success.
The strengths of ASTLIBRA’s combat are the same here, so if you fell in love with it before, you’ll undoubtedly feel the same here, with the satisfying crunch of each impact and sound design being the crux of it all. My favorite facet of the DLC has to be the magic system, with a greater emphasis on it here than in the base game. The spells you learn all have evident utilities and feel incredibly enjoyable to use once you get into the groove of it all, thanks to their significant damage output and quickness of use. Acquiring even a single new spell can make your toolkit immensely more practical for select foes and contexts.
The roguelike structure comes into play with your level, as it resets each time you leave manually or fall in battle, meaning you’ll start back from level one again when re-entering. Still, this potential quandary is mitigated significantly by just about everything else being kept, such as acquired materials and items. Plus, the skill tree, only able to be altered from outside the dungeon, keeps its boons. So, the only significant drawback to leaving the cave is that you’ll need to grind some levels off of enemies in the most recent set of floors to feel adequately prepared. Alternatively, you can speed your way to the bosses of each floor by using checkpoints, though that’s only advised if you’re especially confident in your default build sans leveling. This practice becomes a continually recurring internal match of skill versus grinding, with you needing to determine how comfortable you are with your play style and set up at the expense of forfeiting grinding a higher numbers game for a greater advantage. And this never grows the least bit old.
If you played and enjoyed ASTLIBRA Revision, you owe it to yourself to experience Gaiden as soon as possible.
As previously stated, the narrative and characterizations of this DLC aren’t particularly standout, yet they are by no means poor. Playing as a seemingly ordinary character who isn’t the base game’s hero provides an entirely separate ambiance that makes formerly undervalued perils significantly more impactful. Additionally, while relatively few in number, the NPCs throughout the town have dialogue tailored explicitly for the baker’s daughter, which occasionally provides brief glimpses into her personality and past.
As a lite accompaniment, ASTLIBRA Gaiden: The Cave of Phantom Mist skillfully meshes with what the base title brought to the table while carving out its own distinct identity that, to be entirely honest, I found myself enjoying more, despite the dungeon levels being practically identical in exploration. As much as I love ASTLIBRA Revision and have no intentions of undermining it, the gameplay loop of Gaiden is more addictive and satisfying to see through to its end, with the slight roguelike foundations bolstering the design philosophy tenfold. If you played and enjoyed ASTLIBRA Revision, you owe it to yourself to experience Gaiden as soon as possible.
