Monochrome Mobius - Review

RPGFan reviewed Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten:

Review: Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten

Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten is a Japanese RPG by the creators of Utawarerumono, a multimedia project that began as a series of visual novels. Its tale technically occurs between Utawarerumono: Prelude to the Fallen and Utawarerumono: Mask of Deception. I say technically because Monochrome Mobius is more tied to the latter. I suspect many of the big questions someone may have when looking at Monochrome Mobius are in the vein of “Do I need to play Utawarerumono or watch the anime first?” or “Does Monochrome Mobius function as a standalone game?” The answers lean more towards “probably” and “not really.”

Monochrome Mobius explores the rise to prominence and power of protagonist Oshtor, a key character from the Utawarerumono games. He meets a mysterious young woman named Shunya, who claims to be the daughter of his father, a father she has only recently separated from. Confusingly, Oshtor believes his father has been dead for years. These events propel Oshtor into a quest to discover the truth of his father and Shunya. Along the way, he becomes a faithful servant of the god-ruler of their land, the Mikado, as did his father before him — the Mikado also features heavily in Utawarerumono. Even your third and fourth party members, Munechika and Mikazuchi, are big names from the Utawarerumono games.

So Monochrome Mobius closely ties with the other games in the series on numerous levels. Locations, characters, and concepts are not always explained enough for series newbies, and almost all of them are introduced more thoroughly in the Utawarerumono games. It is hard not to see Monochrome Mobius as a companion piece made for fans.

[...]

Pros
Exciting and tactical turn-based combat, well-realized characters, lots of references for fans.

Cons
Messy pacing, juvenile humour, a slippery camera, unimpressive graphics, too much focus on fans and not enough on new players.

Bottom Line
Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten lays a solid foundation, but its many flaws make it a game that is likely to only be welcomed by die-hard Utawarerumono fans.

Score: 69/100