The hybrid console of Nintendo over time it is proving to be the ideal landing place for those niche games that on home consoles have not been able to enjoy fair treatment between Japanese and Western releases, often and willingly leading to ”castrated” game versions with content classified as unacceptable by our market. This is the case with Mugen Soulsan RPG that fans of the series will perhaps remember Disgaea in terms of character design.
Having made inroads into the hearts of the most ardent otaku already at the time PS3this title that promotes Japanese-style fanservice more than anything else (and there really is something for all tastes), tries to conquer another slice of the Western public who feeds on bread and ”moe” at the order to show itself in a guise more faithful to its Japanese version: in fact, thanks to the negotiations between Nintendo and the publisher eastasisaoftwe will not see any “creative” in-game censorship on the girls’ bodies and indeed, if we are in the mood for particular minigames, we will be able to rub the back and other parts of our protagonist Chou-Chou. Obviously, needless to say, this minigame was completely absent in the Western PS3 version. And certainly not because the protagonist didn’t like our services.
- Title: Mugen Souls
- Platform: Nintendo Switch
- Analyzed version: Nintendo Switch (EU)
- Type: RPGs
- Players: 1
- Publisher: eastasiasoft
- Developer: Idea Factory, Compile Heart
- Tongue: English (text), English or Japanese (voiceover)
- Exit date: April 27, 2023
- Availability: retail, digital delivery
- DLCs: it includes all the DLC of the original version
- Note: port of the title originally released on PlayStation 3
We reviewed Mugen Souls with a Nintendo Switch code provided to us for free by eastasiasoft.
Ready to become slaves?
When ruling an entire world isn’t enough, why not explore the galaxy in search of new lands to subjugate aboard a vessel that looks like it came out of one piece? Let’s ask Chou-Chouan enterprising girl – perhaps a little too much – who out of boredom decides to embark on a mad enterprise like conquering seven planets together with her crew of only two characters (at least for the beginning of the game): Ryuto And Altisthe former a mere victim of Chou-Chou’s charm, the latter a demon who ended up being an angel even though he doesn’t admit that he is.
Just from such a fleeting introduction of these characters, it should be clear that Compile Heart wants to propose a work that is anything but serious, constantly trying to break through the fourth wall by inserting NPCs in the course of history – who will then end up willingly or unwillingly to lend a hand to Chou-Chou’s conquest plans – able to define themselves as protagonists of a role-playing game: and so, in a very cheeky way, they will communicate to the player phrases such as: “I am a hero, so my teammate must follow my orders. Now, you teammate, undress so your stats skyrocket and help me fight these mobs”. Like other exponents of the genre who prefer the wildest fanservice to a plot full of twists, Mugen Souls it’s not really a title that tries to keep the player’s attention high through an Oscar-winning screenplay, but an experiment designed to entertain and sometimes make the player laugh heartily because of the gimmicks of the developers.
The lightness of Mugen Souls does not rhyme with gameplay
With an intense tutorial session (not here) which covers a large portion of the first hours of the game, designed to illustrate the combat system in every facet, we look at the actual gameplay of Mugen Souls. Our characters will move under our command in a delimited area of the field, giving them the actions we deem most appropriate, including normal attack, group skills and magic skills; not only that, with a special option we can spitch one enemy against another, first experimenting with a trajectory within which to launch it. And if we wanted to end the battle in the simplest and most painless way, we can refer to a huge crystal stationed in the center of the field, in order to convert our enemies into tame little animals: thanks to the mechanics “Moe Kill’‘, in fact, recruiting opponents isn’t that difficult, just interact with them by providing the answers that best align with their mood, and that’s it.
A very simplified trading system that winks at the series a bit Shin Megami Tensei and Persona, with the only big difference that the recruited monsters will go directly to be part of the crew on our “airship”. These will constitute the firepower at our disposal during the naval battlesan inevitable game section for a title that shows as a business card – other than boobs – typical of the gigantic ships wandering in the infinite cosmos. The more monsters we recruit in the field, the more our vessel will be powerful in space battle sessions to the sound of a “rock, paper, scissors” system in which we will have to predict the enemy’s moves.
A game with many personalities
We had mentioned the possibility of recruiting enemies on the battlefield, without however dwelling on what probably makes it unique Mugen Souls: Chou-Chou will literally be able to take on the appearance that our opponents like most, between the innocent girl who breaks in two with just one of our breaths, ending up crying bitterly, and the overbearing and seductive girl who does not let herself be subdued. In total we will have access to seven different personalities, each characterized by a different aesthetic aspect from the other. If we don’t like blondes, then, we can always go for brunettes.
If this game element gives a little panache and color to the combat system, the reverse of the medal lies in the fact that in order to be able to move forward with the story we will literally be grappling with riddles that will lead us to adopt the mechanics several times Of Moe Kill and the different personalities of the protagonist, going around the planet on duty to conquer until we manage to find the solution to the environmental puzzles. The reward for this feat is, of course, gaining access to a new party member. And when we’ve had enough of exploration and sudden personality changes, we can always access our own personal refugewhere you can buy useful items for fights and outfits, as well as access the minigame we mentioned at the beginning of the review, which basically brings nothing useful to the game except for a few moments of distraction (and insults from the character we’re going to massage) .
At our discretion then the use of the DLC already included in the title, which will drastically reduce the grind required from mid-game onwards, greatly simplifying the battles. Graphically, Mugen Souls it doesn’t scream miracles and remains on the same levels as we found it on PS3, with fairly detailed polygonal models as opposed to the somewhat sparse backdrops. However, the performance in portable mode is quite good, the only flaw is the sense of heaviness that is found by accessing the main game hub, where it seems that Chou-Chou is wearing a hundred kilos too much that hinder its movements.
Who do we recommend Mugen Souls to?
Mugen Souls is an RPG suitable for those who love titles full of fanservice and situations bordering on the absurd, certainly not for those looking for an exciting and well-structured plot. Those who have already played the PS3 version of the title will find all the content cut due to censorship, but once again they will have to deal with the texts in English, the only ones present within the title.
- The personality mechanic adds a touch of dynamism to the gameplay
- No censorship
- Chou-Chou’s crazy ideas and the characters who accompany her in the adventure can give pleasant moments of total lightness…
- …But with the risk of getting bored due to the lack of twists and an easily predictable plot
- The combat system is perhaps a little too redundant with options
- Technically dated
Mugen Souls
Chou-Chou returns, uncensored
Mugen Souls it is certainly not that game that you would buy at launch if not with a possible discount on the list price, but it can give you moments of light-heartedness if you are looking for a title that is not too demanding and you don’t have a backlog of games that constantly calls you back . The version for Nintendo Switch, then, offers the contents cut from the counterpart Playstation 3 and can be useful for drastically cutting a few hours of grind.
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