Stella Glow is a Strategy RPG for the Nintendo 3DS. Created by Imageepoch, it is most likely their last game as they are seemingly shutting down for good. For those unaware, Imageepoch is known for the Luminous Arc series, another set of Strategy RPGs. Can Stella Glow reach the hype surrounding it?
Story:
Stella Glow has you guiding a fair few of characters throughout what seems to be your typical story. A team of characters need to save the world from certain destruction. What really immerses the player into this world is how incredibly well constructed the world and characters are. There aren't many cutscenes. In fact, I'd wager there are less than 5. Instead, you get static images of the characters and a text box. But what brings the charm to these characters is the frequent use of good voice acting. You can really hear their emotions, their problems, etc. Everything about the voice acting brings these characters alive. And while the voice acting isn't constant, the story is well written throughout. At the end of the game, there will be characters you love to hate, and characters you can't live without (Popo is the best girl).
As the player of the game you take the role of commanding a rag tag group of characters in their quest to recruit the 4 Witches to reverse a curse that Hilda the Time Witch has placed upon the world. It's quite the journey, and I'm sure you'll enjoy it. You're taken to various locals, each with their own unique atmosphere. I don't really want to explain more as to ruin the story. Not even a slight hint as to who you'll find and their characteristics. No, that's something you need to find on your own. Just know, the story is pretty deep and they really expand on each character extensively.
The story is deep and inviting. It may not be the most memorable, but it is certainly captivating.
Gameplay:
Stella Glow plays similarly to games such as Fire Emblem. You command a certain amount of units and move them around a grid. You have the option to change around gear that have different benefits as well. What's really unique about Stella Glow is just how strategic the battle system is. First of all, you don't move your team as a whole. Instead, each individual unit, both enemy and friendly, moves individually based on a speed stat. This creates a situation where you're not always moving your teammates right after each other and really have to plan out where your units are going and if they intersect with an enemy. You can't just move one unit and expect to be able to move the next unit to block a specific enemy. You do, however, get a graphic on screen that shows turn order, so you can use that to plan ahead. Secondly, the witches you gather not only have a bar that is used for special attacks, which every character gets, but they also have a shared bar that maxes out at 5. What this bar is used for is "Song Magic". This is unique to the witches and involved 4 different songs per witch, which is unlocked via talking with teammates (which I'll discuss later). The first two songs are area of effect and either damage or do some sort of Buff/DeBuff. The latter two are map-wide songs which are incredibly strong and use up 4-5 of your bars. The latter song always does damage to every enemy and then has a constant buff to your team. The first one does one of the other. This really demonstrates how heavily this game focuses on positioning. When using the map-wide songs, the user can't move until the song is over! You can't just waltz them to the front lines and expect to survive the duration.
All in all, the gameplay is amazing, but has a few shortcomings. For starters, you can't rotate the map. Doesn't sound awful, but there is unfortunately some maps where tiles are obscured by buildings or trees, etc, and you can't rotate to view them better. It does get frustrating. In addition, battles take a really long time. Enemy turns can take a few seconds and there are usually at least 5+ enemies. It gets more noticeable with Bosses. Bosses tend to have very frequent turns, but the problem is is that they are no where near you at the start. This leads to a boss simply not moving and waiting. This in turn makes the battles last even longer. It gets annoying when you have to cycle through 8 enemies only for each of them to take a second or two to simply not do anything.
Other than that, I have no other qualms about the battle system. The battle system is great and probably one of the best in terms of Strategy RPGS.
More:
I keep mentioning the story and the battle system. But I've yet to mention how both of them come together. Stella Glow is 100% a strategy RPG. What do I mean by this? Well, the game is divided into two sections; "Mission Time" and "Free Time". Mission time is all about fighting enemies and progressing the story. Free Time is all about learning more about the characters and strengthening them outside of the normal level gains. But what makes Free Time a part of the "strategy" is that each time you enter Free Time, you're given an option of; talking to your teammates, doing jobs, exploring a random area, and tuning the witches. I won't get too deep into the tuning since it reveals plot points, but it's basically the only way to get more songs onto the witches. Doing jobs will net you money and exploring an area will give you an item. Talking to your teammates, however, will give them new abilities. And this is where the strategy comes into play. Each Free Time only grants you the ability to do three things. You can choose any combination of the 4 activities, but each one once completed will take away one of your remaining "free time". You really need to plan. Are you behind on cash and need an item? Do jobs. Do you want to power up your favorite character? Talk to them. It's just so in-depth and amazing.
Conclusion:
Stella Glow is a phenomenal game. It really pushes itself to be a true strategy game. Everything you do has to be cautious and planned. If you mess up your Free Time and don't plan accordingly, you can be set back. But it's forgiving. There is no need to grind and if you mess up a few times, it's not the end of the world. The story and the gameplay really bring the game alive.
Pros:
-Immersive story with great voice acting and character development
-Battle system is great
-The whole game is strategic, even down to who you talk to on your Free Time
-A relatively deep amount of customization in the various battle strategies
Cons:
-You can't rotate the maps to gain a better angle
-Battles take forever
Conclusion: I love this game. I highly, highly recommend it. At the time of this review, it's probably my favorite game of 2015!
Story:
Stella Glow has you guiding a fair few of characters throughout what seems to be your typical story. A team of characters need to save the world from certain destruction. What really immerses the player into this world is how incredibly well constructed the world and characters are. There aren't many cutscenes. In fact, I'd wager there are less than 5. Instead, you get static images of the characters and a text box. But what brings the charm to these characters is the frequent use of good voice acting. You can really hear their emotions, their problems, etc. Everything about the voice acting brings these characters alive. And while the voice acting isn't constant, the story is well written throughout. At the end of the game, there will be characters you love to hate, and characters you can't live without (Popo is the best girl).
As the player of the game you take the role of commanding a rag tag group of characters in their quest to recruit the 4 Witches to reverse a curse that Hilda the Time Witch has placed upon the world. It's quite the journey, and I'm sure you'll enjoy it. You're taken to various locals, each with their own unique atmosphere. I don't really want to explain more as to ruin the story. Not even a slight hint as to who you'll find and their characteristics. No, that's something you need to find on your own. Just know, the story is pretty deep and they really expand on each character extensively.
The story is deep and inviting. It may not be the most memorable, but it is certainly captivating.
Gameplay:
Stella Glow plays similarly to games such as Fire Emblem. You command a certain amount of units and move them around a grid. You have the option to change around gear that have different benefits as well. What's really unique about Stella Glow is just how strategic the battle system is. First of all, you don't move your team as a whole. Instead, each individual unit, both enemy and friendly, moves individually based on a speed stat. This creates a situation where you're not always moving your teammates right after each other and really have to plan out where your units are going and if they intersect with an enemy. You can't just move one unit and expect to be able to move the next unit to block a specific enemy. You do, however, get a graphic on screen that shows turn order, so you can use that to plan ahead. Secondly, the witches you gather not only have a bar that is used for special attacks, which every character gets, but they also have a shared bar that maxes out at 5. What this bar is used for is "Song Magic". This is unique to the witches and involved 4 different songs per witch, which is unlocked via talking with teammates (which I'll discuss later). The first two songs are area of effect and either damage or do some sort of Buff/DeBuff. The latter two are map-wide songs which are incredibly strong and use up 4-5 of your bars. The latter song always does damage to every enemy and then has a constant buff to your team. The first one does one of the other. This really demonstrates how heavily this game focuses on positioning. When using the map-wide songs, the user can't move until the song is over! You can't just waltz them to the front lines and expect to survive the duration.
All in all, the gameplay is amazing, but has a few shortcomings. For starters, you can't rotate the map. Doesn't sound awful, but there is unfortunately some maps where tiles are obscured by buildings or trees, etc, and you can't rotate to view them better. It does get frustrating. In addition, battles take a really long time. Enemy turns can take a few seconds and there are usually at least 5+ enemies. It gets more noticeable with Bosses. Bosses tend to have very frequent turns, but the problem is is that they are no where near you at the start. This leads to a boss simply not moving and waiting. This in turn makes the battles last even longer. It gets annoying when you have to cycle through 8 enemies only for each of them to take a second or two to simply not do anything.
Other than that, I have no other qualms about the battle system. The battle system is great and probably one of the best in terms of Strategy RPGS.
More:
I keep mentioning the story and the battle system. But I've yet to mention how both of them come together. Stella Glow is 100% a strategy RPG. What do I mean by this? Well, the game is divided into two sections; "Mission Time" and "Free Time". Mission time is all about fighting enemies and progressing the story. Free Time is all about learning more about the characters and strengthening them outside of the normal level gains. But what makes Free Time a part of the "strategy" is that each time you enter Free Time, you're given an option of; talking to your teammates, doing jobs, exploring a random area, and tuning the witches. I won't get too deep into the tuning since it reveals plot points, but it's basically the only way to get more songs onto the witches. Doing jobs will net you money and exploring an area will give you an item. Talking to your teammates, however, will give them new abilities. And this is where the strategy comes into play. Each Free Time only grants you the ability to do three things. You can choose any combination of the 4 activities, but each one once completed will take away one of your remaining "free time". You really need to plan. Are you behind on cash and need an item? Do jobs. Do you want to power up your favorite character? Talk to them. It's just so in-depth and amazing.
Conclusion:
Stella Glow is a phenomenal game. It really pushes itself to be a true strategy game. Everything you do has to be cautious and planned. If you mess up your Free Time and don't plan accordingly, you can be set back. But it's forgiving. There is no need to grind and if you mess up a few times, it's not the end of the world. The story and the gameplay really bring the game alive.
Pros:
-Immersive story with great voice acting and character development
-Battle system is great
-The whole game is strategic, even down to who you talk to on your Free Time
-A relatively deep amount of customization in the various battle strategies
Cons:
-You can't rotate the maps to gain a better angle
-Battles take forever
Conclusion: I love this game. I highly, highly recommend it. At the time of this review, it's probably my favorite game of 2015!