We are in a very particular period as regards the gacha-style titles. Some have managed to explode, becoming a benchmark for the public, and continuing to churn out incredible numbers both in earnings and in users (Genshin Impact above all), others have had much less luck. Many of these have made use of the classic open world structure, of third-person action RPGs that make action their cornerstone. It goes without saying that many titles have ended up to resemble each otherAlso a little too muchand despite some differences, the basic formula has always remained too much the same.
The best way to get out of this loop is therefore without a doubt giving players something totally new, perhaps maintaining the same gacha modes that give so much satisfaction, but replacing the game formula. The fruit of this reasoning is Sword of Convallariaa RPG of the mould strategic tacticianwhich provides players with dozens of in-game possibilities, and which counter-fashion is (at least currently) only PvE. A title free to playis currently only available on PC And mobile devices.
Putting things right
The only thing that has remained the same, at least from a narrative point of view, is the gimmick of the memory loss. Our main character, whose name we will choose ourselves, will wake up in a cell. We are in the prison of a not well defined town (at least at the beginning), which like the whole game world is in the style medieval fantasy. Here we will see a team of mercenaries come to the rescue, who will save us, but at the cost of a life. From this moment on we will see the real story begin, which we will not spoil for you.
Just know that the game world is pulsating, that we will experience fantasy adventures in a really well constructed geopolitical and military panoramaand that all the characters we will meet will be an integral part of the story.
The narrative unfolds in different ways, including worlds, timelines and variables: our task is not only to fight and move forward, but also to gather information, knowledge. Having our main base in theElysiumwe will gradually recruit several warriors to put things right, saving a universe on the brink of collapse due to terrible anomalies.
In all this, there certainly cannot be a lack of guide: in our adventure to tell us what we have to do, to explain the various modes, and also to comment on many of the scenes, there will be a talking cata black cat who is not exactly friendly in his ways, but who will be essential (even his name will be chosen by us).
The House in Elysium
Like all self-respecting gacha titles, something is needed that encourage players to connect oftenmissions to carry out that are both useful and fun. Sword of Convallaria is obviously not exempt from this mechanics, which is also supported by not too long fights (at least the most basic ones) and by a myriad of elements to keep an eye on. We are talking about many Necessary materials to level up weapons, tarot cards, characters, skills and so on, all of which are earned in different ways.
Our HUB it will be a house in Elysiumwhich we can decorate as we like as we get items, and where we can host the various characters that we unlock (there is also an “emotional bond” system with them, which improves their stats at each level). When we are in this main menu we will have access to all the relevant menus, such as the one for this, daily And Seasonalto the pass (called Cornucopia), to the banner to pull the various heroes and weapons, to the various modeand so on. Obviously everything will unlock step by step, as we level up, so there will be a way and time to learn everything without having an exaggerated amount of information all at once.
Two small ones considerationsbut fundamentals: the first is that the title is only in English and in oriental language, but the one used is very scholastic and it will be easy to orient yourself even for those who do not understand it at very high levels; the second is that Sword of Convallaria is very enjoyable and very usable without having to pay a single Euro. This last part is very important, because, you will see, there are many ways to earn and exchange resources, and get what you need. The progression of the characters is calculatedand only from traveler level 40 you will start upwards you will start to figure out which characters will be best to concentrate your forces on. That is also the level where the challenges faced will begin to become more hard.
Just think that the gifts from the development teamfor daily access and other reasons, are very significant.
The modalities
As already mentioned, the mode there are several, and all interesting in their own way. The first one that is presented to us is The Fool’s Journeyor a journey in stages where we will slowly learn about the story – and help – different characters in the game world, belonging to different factions and alignments. This mode is a bit of a general guideline, which will also mark important milestones during the game.
We will also unlock it shortly after Crossing Worldsa mode with different types of challenges that we will use daily – and at our choice – to obtain materials, prizes, and resources (even crystals to make the characters obtain star levels, as if we had pulled duplicates!).
Finally there is also Spiral of Destinya separate story mode where we will manage the city of Convallaria together with our crew, with a separate narration, and with the possibility of discovering different twists of the story, as if it were a butterfly effect. In this one we will have a roster of characters partly different from those that we will pull in the basic mode, and it is a further incentive to play something different (but with battles that will always be tactical). Unlocking different twists and endings will make us acquire knowledgeessential to the ultimate goal for our protagonist.
Clearly the Seasonal events They are a separate thing, with other activities, missions and extremely tempting special prizes, which we combine with the Clash modewhere you will challenge the defenses of other players, trying to gain honor (and here too prizes). We will also raise our defenses, between characters and tools, so try to study your tactics as best as possible.
Personages
The roster of Sword of convallaria is fascinating and full of interesting characters, which are divided by fighting style (general roles) and by powers. The great thing is that being a tactical title, as you level up and accumulate skills, we can decide to equip ourselves with the ones we want, customizing the fighting style. The ability They are of various kinds, and can take advantage of many buffs, de-buffs, terrain, and much more. The depth of all of this, once you moved on from the tutorial, left us pleasantly surprised.
The Gameplay by Sword of Convallaria It therefore translates into a very simple tactical title in the basebut extremely colored with shadeswithout weighing down or complicating everything: a mission that many developers, even from larger and more important studios, have tried to do without much success.
We would like to point out that there are also the little things that make the genre happy for those who want a faster and more dynamic title, such as increased speed, dialogue skipping, move backtracking (obviously limited) and so on.
And the pull? Let’s say that data in hand, Sword of Convallaria is a title quite generous compared to competitorswith a very high average of Epic and Legendary characters that can be obtained with the various pulls. Something that increases the gratification of the players quite a bit.
Technical and artistic sector
Let’s consider that the game It doesn’t lose its appeal when played on mobile devices (main reason why XD created its title), but let’s note that performance obviously also depends on the device you have. On average, you will have a very smooth gameplay, with slightly longer loading times than the PC counterpart. Theadaptationin any case, it is excellent for both versions.
It cannot be said that Sword of Convallaria’s aesthetics you go unnoticed: the game alternates images drawn in a style similar to watercolor, with in-game parts in an exquisite pixel art. All this without affecting the animations in any way, and with your gaming experience that is unlikely to remain heavy.
Less inspired, however, are the scenarios, which, apart from the splendid images, do not present a very original counterpart on the game map: all scenarios will look similar to each otherand once you find those 6 or 7 different locations, you will notice a great recycling of assets and maps. Let’s also consider that it is a game that grinds out endless fights, and that creating a different scenario for all the fights (which are hundreds and hundreds) would have been pure madness.
Finally let’s consider the audio compartment. This presents music pleasant, but which remain totally basic and unpretentious: you could also choose to deactivate them to have a quieter background, or listen to the music you want. original dubbing on the other hand it is really well made, despite there being a great repetitiveness of the dialogue lines in combat, which will make you enter a somewhat annoying loop.
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