Introduction
Today I will review a game that has been requested by Don Carlos, I managed to play this game on Game pass before it was removed. I am talking about the game Ikenfell, This game is a strategic based game where you use magic to fight your opponents. There is also a rhythmic element in Ikenfell which you will need to master in order to deal more damage or block incoming attacks. You can expect a story in Ikenfell with a lot of plot twists!
What did I think before playing Ikenfell?
I did not know about this game until Don Carlos requested this game. I recently started a game pass subscription due to many requested reviews being available with this service. Ikenfell was almost being removed thus this was the game that I wanted to play first. Without much information I headed to an information page that the Xbox game pass send me to, the Microsoft store.
The Microsoft Page
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/p/ikenfell/9p91s5zl1p4d?activetab=pivot:overviewtab
There is not a lot of information, so I re-checked the Xbox page from game pass.
It becomes clear that you need to battle a lot with different characters, whom all use different magic. There is a huge magic school to explore with a lot of enemies to defeat. There also seem to be a lot of cats.
Rating
I rate Ikenfell with an 7.1 before playing.
It looks like a very fun game to play with a lot of tactical elements!
However, the trailer did show some low graphics, I would expect better graphics in a role playing game.
Story
The story starts with Maritte heading to Ikenfell to find out if her sister Safina was in trouble since she did not come home for summer break. While traveling to Ikenfell, Maritte is attacked by ghosts, and she learns that she also has magic despite not having any magic all her life. With her newfound magic, Maritte heads to Ikenfell to find her sister.
Rating
I rate the story of Ikenfell with an 8.0
The story is developed quite well, and it also has some nice plot twists!
Gameplay
You start Ikenfell with only one character, but eventually, you will have a party of six. However, there can only be three characters in battle. Every character has a different skill set and elements to use. Maritte uses fire, for example, while Gilda uses thunder magic. Every enemy that you defeat will grant you experience, the max level is 30 in Ikenfell.
You can explore the world and interact with many items in the magic school of Ikenfell. During the story, you will open up many new areas. Enemies will walk around and try to attack you when they see you. If you touch the enemy, a battle ensues. Depending on the items that your party has equipped, you will either have a turn before or after the monster.
If you have a lot of speed items equipped, you can attack first but if you made a powerhouse character, you will be slow but extremely powerful. Ikenfell makes sure that you need to use a lot of items during your battles. Since this is a role-playing game, grinding is a very important factor.
When you are going to use a spell, there will be a circle or other effect. It is your goal to time it right and get the great timing. If you fail however, your spell will do either nothing or almost nothing. If this is not your strength, you can even disable it in the options menu.
Rating
I rate the gameplay of Ikenfell with an 8.4.
This is a fun and perfect tactical game, it might seem like a small game, but there is a lot of gameplay stuffed in Ikenfell.
Sound and Graphics
Graphics
The graphics remind of RPG maker games, it is hard to make out faces due to the art style of Ikenfell. The cut scenes are fun though and unexpected at times. When characters are talking you can finally see their faces clearly!
Sound
Ikenfell has a lot of soundtracks and sound effects. There is also singing, but I am unsure if it fits in this game. There is an area that is super creepy, though, with a lot of blood and many ghosts.
Rating
I rate the sound and graphics of Ikenfell with a 7.8.
There are some graphical issues and the singing does not fit well, but Ikenfell has a lot of surprises.
What did I think after playing Ikenfell?
I had a lot of fun when playing Ikenfell and grinded to the max level. There are numerous enemy sprites that you will face and to block incoming attacks you need to get the timing correct. This is vital in surviving as later enemies can hit over 10 damage points even though you have only around 40 health points. Successfully blocking can reduce this damage to 2 or 3 depending on your defense.
There is one thing about the final boss though, it has about five or six forms, which means you are in for a long fight, and you might need to use a lot of items. If you fail a lot of spells and blocks, this is going to be a tough fight for you!
Rating
I rate Ikenfell with a 7.5 after playing.
Even though Ikenfell plays amazing, there are some problems with this game.
What are my personal thoughts about Ikenfell?
At first I thought this game was a short role-playing game, but I was gladly surprised with a great, in depth story that has good gameplay elements!
Rating
My personal rating of Ikenfell is a 7.5.!
I had a lot of fun with this game, especially since it has tactic based elements, however the rhythmic elements annoyed me a little. Rhythmic elements is not one of my strong points in gaming.
Last Words
Pros
- Experience the story of Maritte to find her sister in Ikenfell!
- Great soundtracks and some vocal songs
- There are a lot of areas to explore
- Fight tactical bosses and learn their patterns.
- Level up your characters and learn new spells!
- Find a lot of equipment to customize your characters.
- Solve puzzles in smaller dungeons
Cons
- The graphics makes it hard to see the faces of characters.
- The rhythmic elements might not be for everyone!
If you are looking for a fun tactical based game, Ikenfell can be perfect for you!
Final Rating
7.8
Let me know what you think of Ikenfell in the comments!
I hope you enjoyed reading this review, I hope to see you in the next review!
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not my kind
Everyone has their own taste in games!
Booooring
Like I always say: Everyone has their own taste in games!
I like pixel games
Who doesn’t?
lol me
great review of a great game.
Thanks!
Pretty pixel art
Needs some more detail though!
Aww I was almost sold on the game but the Rhythmic element is a huge NO-NO from me.
Like I mentioned on Steam to you, you can disable this element completely!
Thank you for reviewing my requested game. Keep up with your quality reviews!
You are welcome, I hope to do more requested reviews in the future, but we are totally swamped!
Ikenfell is so much fun.
I had a great time!
Looks like fun, though the graphics could be more detailed while still sticking to the whole retro/pixel art look.
The graphics are indeed need of some polishing!
This game looks cool
fun game
Agreed!
Not my cup of tea.
Not RPG Maker? Good
It doesn’t seems so bad from review, anyway there are other games on list 😉
*on list to play first 😉 (sorry no edit possible)
Cute looking game 🙂
thank you for the review, I was interested in playing it, but after reading it I think I will pass, seems that I will not enjoy playing it
I am glad that you did not waste money!
Pixel games aren’t my kind, but one thing I don’t understand is why they never fit the whole monitor. It annoys me so much
This has to do with resolution when making the game. In battle, the resolution shrinks to focus on the task at hand, defeating the enemies.