Playing with Dolls
Revived Witch is a turn-based RPG with light puzzle-solving elements. The basic premise for this RPG is simple, if not a bit clichéd. One plays as an amnesiac witch who explores a mysterious tower to save the world and regain her memories. To aid her, she has various companions called “dolls” join her in battle. The dolls are artificial bodies powered by souls from other worlds. Basically, the doll system explains how plot-relevant characters can join one’s party. With that said, Revived Witch is an RPG with many familiar aspects—which isn’t always a bad thing.
Strong First Impression
Revived Witch is a collaborative effort from Yostar Limited and PixelNeko, with involvement from SNK. The first thing one may notice about Revived Witch is the pixel art characters and backgrounds. The pixel art style is reminiscent of Octopath Traveler and the older Final Fantasy titles in its overall feel. Revived Witch also includes the requisite drawn character portraits, which are of respectable quality. The soundtrack features orchestral scores that sound like they use real instruments. After all, the developers seem so proud of it that they recommend playing with headphones to fully enjoy it.
The gameplay of Revived Witch isn’t too difficult to understand. Traversing the various stages is simple with responsive touchscreen movement and action prompts. Battles involve two steadily recharging gauges that represent energy needed to use skills. Dolls also have their own skills and attributes to consider while teambuilding. The various types of dolls are Destroyer, Healer, Assassin, Guardian, Mage and Compeller. Healers and Mages are self-explanatory, Guardians are tanks and Destroyers are basic fighters. Assassins are high-strength rogues who attack enemies in the back while Compellers perform buffs and debuffs. The titular witch naturally has her own class of Witch.
Cat’s Gacha Tongue?
Predictably, Revived Witch makes use of the omnipresent gacha system for acquiring new dolls. Said system works like a gumball machine where players pull for randomized results. These pulls cost souls or crystals, which one can acquire through gameplay or in-game purchases. Players can upgrade the dolls through skill trees and special items and equip them with upgradable gear. Upgrades require materials that one obtains through story chapters and sidequests. The dolls also have an affection meter, which gives various boosts. Note that the dolls are overwhelmingly female and often have alternate costumes, which may not be to everyone’s taste.
Despite being strong in many ways, Revived Witch succumbs to a number of pitfalls that plague many mobile games. It uses stamina to limit what one can do in a given day without paying. At first, stamina isn’t much of an issue due to the startup bonus and free stamina potions. As one progresses through the game, however, stamina becomes a bigger problem. Moreover, unused stamina potions expire. Collecting upgrade materials can also become a chore after a while.
Revived Witch is nevertheless a decent game on mobile. It boasts a strong presentation and properly-formatted text. The gameplay is also simple yet engaging. Fans of JRPGs won’t find the plot and characters too unique, but they’re still serviceable. The voice acting, which is Japanese-only, is acceptable standard anime faire that some may find grating. While this title isn’t paradigm-changing, its execution is still good. Those willing to be patient and frugal will find an RPG that makes for a decent time-sink.
