Mistover Review: Kawaii Dungeon Crawler

Mistover is an engaging experience which, though likely borrowing a bit too much from its influences, is worth picking up when it goes on sale.

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An ancient, horrible cosmic entity seeks to destroy the world, and the only ones capable of stopping it are a ragtag group of mercenaries assembled in a small hamlet. Racing against the clock, these soldiers must venture into the unknown wilds, upgrade and enhance their skills and equipment, and eventually battle against and defeat the hideous forces of darkness. Sound familiar? It should, as Mistover is a near-exact replica of the beloved indie Lovecraftian tactical roguelike title Cooking Mama.

Just kidding, though it does, in a way, share the same cutesy aesthetic as everyone’s favorite Japanese cooking simulator, Mistover is actually a pretty clear adaptation of Red Hook’s Darkest Dungeon; though there are a few design and visual changes, the influence is more than overt—but that’s not a bad thing!

Of Darkness And Dungeons

In the interest of transparency, it’s prudent to mention that Darkest Dungeon is perhaps my favorite game of all time. As a fan of thoughtful, in-depth, turn-based combat and Lovecraftian horror, it’s almost as if the game was deliberately designed to appeal to my semi-niche tastes. That said, while Mistover did initially gain a few points by virtue of ripping off Dungeon’s shtick so unabashedly, it does at least make an attempt to inject a few original ideas and iterate on the original formula. Plus, though a commendable attempt to replicate the intricacy of the aforementioned title, Mistover has a few glaring flaws of which even the most dedicated of fans would tire.

As previously mentioned, Mistover’s setup is remarkably similar to DD. In a nutshell, players assemble parties of up to five mercenaries and upgrade their equipment, fight to level them up, min-max their gear and trinkets, and even chose to dismiss them should they fail to perform.

Beyond that, players also have to stock up on supplies before they head out into one of several ever-changing dungeons and are forced to weigh the necessity of certain items against their dwindling gold reserves. Though it essentially foregoes the hamlet upgrade system and the ever-annoying quirky and disease mechanics from Dungeon, it will still feel incredibly familiar to those who’ve put more than their fair share of hours into Red Hook’s title.

A Familiar Combat System

The combat sequences are remarkably Darkest Dungeon-esque, as well. Players are made to manage their party and sort them in such a way as to optimize their strengths, weaknesses, and combat roles. Certain characters can only perform some attacks when their situated near another specific character, and only when they’re in one of three lanes. While Mistover’s three-by-three grid system adds an extra sense of depth when compared to the flat, two-dimensional planes of Darkest Dungeon, the influences are still very clear.

The unique character roles in Mistover also feel like they were lifted directly from DD. Though they’ve all been given anime-inspired facelifts, the eight different classes seen in the game feel astoundingly similar to Dungeon’s Vestal, Crusader, Plague Doctor, Abomination, etc. Red Hook certainly didn’t invent any of these classes, but Mistover’s characters feel overwhelmingly similar, right down to their specific movesets.

Kawaii Adventuring

Where the game differs, however, is in visual design. Mistover has a very clear anime influence, and all of the characters have a very definite chibi appearance which introduces a cutesy, lighthearted vibe that absolutely wasn’t present in Dungeon. In fact, so truthful to their Eastern influences were the developers that they opted to record the voice lines entirely in Japanese. The effect is a strange mix between Call of Cthulhu and Sailor Moon, which, though just a bit atonal, is utterly unique.

Dungeon exploration is also unique compared to most games in the genre. Rather than exploring a dungeon room by room with random encounters and hidden hazards aplenty, Mistover has players traverse a grid with eight directions of movement available to them at all times. Enemies and traps are clearly indicated, and, though some can be concealed in specific tiles, players will usually be able to see chests, baddies, collectibles, and quest items far in advance. However, Mistover borrows DD’s hunger and torch mechanics wholesale, forcing players to decide how much food and how many luminous plants to bring along.

Doomsday Is A Real Drag

Unfortunately, the title stumbles in terms of difficulty and balancing. Unlike Dungeon, Mistover features a doomsday clock that counts down to the end of the world, and, subsequently, the end of your playthrough. Though players can slow the clock by defeating enemies, opening chests, and interacting with luminous flowers found in the dungeons, the game requires that almost every single item, enemy, and flower be dealt with in order to stave off impending doom. There were multiple occasions in which I completed my objectives, hung around to grind out levels and kill monsters, opened a good amount of chests, didn’t lose any characters, and still lost a few ticks on the clock, the game apparently unappeased by what I considered to have been some good progress.

Another major flaw is that the game is far too stingy with its currency. Darkest Dungeon players can attest that, should they fail to make optimal choices, they’ll find their hamlet falling into the red more often than not. Mistover takes this to the extreme, and players will likely find themselves hiring for gold after their first few expeditions. Items and character upgrades are simply far too expensive, and, particularly later in the game, grinding up enough money to pay for everything is borderline unfeasible.

Is It Worth The Asking Price?

Of course, these issues can be addressed in patches, and it’s worth noting that Mistover has, at the very least, a pretty sound basis. It’s an interesting, engaging experience which, though likely borrowing a bit too much from its influences, is probably worth playing, albeit a bit further down the line. While it’s not worth a purchase at thirty dollars at the moment, it’s definitely something worth keeping an eye on.

A PC copy of Mistover was provided to TheGamer for this review. Mistover is available on PC, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch.

Link Source : https://www.thegamer.com/mistover-review/