Ni no Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Review
Platform: PS3
Developer: Level 5
Publisher: Namco, Level 5
Author: S.A.
Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch is a role playing video game that was released for the Playstation 3. While childish in appearance, this game was received with open arms and a truly loved title by many. That said, it’s important to note that this game is an extremely enhanced remake of a previous title for the Nintendo DS, Ni no Kuni: Dominon of the Dark Djinn. So for those of you unable to p lay it on the PS3, you might be able to give it a whirl on the DS.
Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Version 1.0
The game starts out with a bit of a tear jerker, concentrating on our main protagonist young Oliver, and stationed in the town of Motorville. We quickly take control of Oliver as he is trying out an experiment vehicle, made up by his friend Philip. An accident ensues that nearly causes Oliver to drown, and makes his mother Allie step in to save him. Despite the successful rescue Allie suffers from heart problems nearly immediately, and dies right in front of Olivers distraught eyes.
Talk about a heart clencher…
Sometime later, as Oliver cries in his own room over the passing of his mother, his tears cause a doll he gained from his mother to come to life. The now alive doll reveals himself to be named Drippy, a fairy from another world that is plagued by an evil wizard named Shadar. As if the revelation of another world wasn’t enough, Drippy also reveals that each person from Oliver’s world has a “soulmate” or counterpart to someone in Drippy’s world. He also states that Allie, Oliver’s deceased mother, holds a strong resemblance to the great sage Alicia whom was captured by Shadar sometime ago. This revelation causes Oliver to seek out this other world, in an attempt to save his mother’s counterpart and hopefully bring back his own mother.
The gameplay of this game isn’t complicated by any measure and is displayed in a third person perspective. Much like any role play game of its kind players must complete quests, which are linear in nature, to progress through the story. That aside, players are able to freely roam the world available to us. Allowing us to explore the different villages, dungeons, towns, and assortment of dangerous creatures that populate the world. We also can freely switch between Oliver’s hometown and the newly discovered overworld. With so much space to travel, and only so much available to us as gamers, it’s important to note not all of it must be done on foot. Though at the beginning of the game players are only capable of travelling on foot, we soon gain the ability to travel by boat and later a dragon.
The fighting system is fun in nature, and occurs in an open battlefield upon encountering your opponent. In these somewhat enclosed fighting spaces, you may attack from afar as a long range specialist, or gear up for up close and personal fights with either magic or their familiar. During these fights, players also have the benefit of controlling a single human ally or one of their familiars.
Familiars come in all shapes and sizes.
Familiars are creatures that can essentially become your Pokemon. They may be tamed, and sent out to fight for players in battle scenarios. These creatures level up just like their human counterparts, evolving into stronger versions of themselves. These creatures may also can be equipped with items and have their own unique stats. These individual stats make some more suitable for a certain types of combat and must be considered in your battle strategies. An important feature of all these familiar lays in their miracle move, which occurs during battle as you knock around your opponent and they drop golden balls of light that enable this feature. This type of attack is significantly stronger in nature and can make the difference between a win and a lose in terms of combat.
The game has a host of side quests to play through, and the music is fun and upbeat, allowing you to play relatively stress free during your journey. It’s journey is heartfelt, and innocent in it’s drive, moving players old and young. With that said, I definitely believe Ni No Kuni: Wrath of The White Witch is something you should try, as you will likely find it amongst your secretly loved games, despite it’s childlike appearance.
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