What do you get when you mix stunning, adorable graphics, feverish action and screen filling loot explosions?? Lapis x Labyrinth by NIS America, that’s what!
Dungeon x Crawler
Good day backloggers!! Have you ever wanted to add more frantic and manic action to your life? How about the opportunity to explore labyrinthine dungeons all the while being showered by oceans of coins, gems and treasures? Or, even better, playing as a brutish dark knight, with a hulking sword and giving him a uncharacteristically girly, anime voice??? And to top it all off, lets stack a few disembodied heads on top of him. Honestly, I’m all on board for each of these things.
Well lucky for me, and for all of you (because it’s available soon), the fine folks over at the always pleasant NIS America sent me over a review code for the latest and greatest cutesy action RPG/Dungeon Crawler, Lapis x Labyrinth! And let me tell ya, it’s everything I mentioned above and more. But I won’t spoil it for you just yet… that’s what the next section is for.
Straight to the Point
In Lapis x Labyrinth, you play as a group of adventurers trying to help a small village replenish their wealth by exploring the depths of the “Golden Forest” and bringing back troves of treasures. And that’s pretty much all there is to the story. Short and sweet, and to the point. And truthfully in these dungeon crawling and exploration based games, once you’re neck deep into the feverish loot-fest, you tend to forget about the story anyways. So good on NIS for focusing on the important things. Fun and stylish action, mind melting special effects and mountains and mountains of treasure. That and your typical NIS charm and humor! Oh and some fantastic hand drawn graphics!! Man, it looks so good!
The whole dungeon crawling aspect of Lapis x Labyrinth is only the tip of the iceberg as well. NIS tends to crank their absurdity up to 11 with everything they do, and this game is no exception. Sure, it has the typical exploring, fighting monsters, and leveling up, but instead of going in solo or having your teammates hidden in a menu somewhere - only to appear during battle. Each of your party members (up to 4 total) will be stacked on top of your head. Well, not their entire bodies, just their heads. Weird, I know, and it seems a bit awkward! But this allows you to switch between them at a moments notice! That and you can mix and match their various abilities to really set your screen and the enemies on fire! What with the retina burning and screen filling special effect. Which also includes a fire hose spray of the hottest ingame currency. It’s not actually hot, like burn you when you touch it, it’s just trending right now.
Now, these gems and coins have more of a purpose than just trying to occupy every usable pixel available on your TV screen though. No, they have a higher purpose than that. Because you’ll be collecting all of these things in order to increase your treasure ranking. Which in turn will increase your chances of finding rarer and more powerful loot! But to be perfectly honest, it’s rewarding enough just to see that explosion of particles, anime voices and money when you defeat a horde of enemies in a flurry of attacks. There’s just something wholly satisfying about it. And if you’re able to trigger Fever mode (which really isn’t that hard), this craziness will increase two fold and you’ll be invincible! That’s right, invincible! Which means you can go all out with your attacks without having to worry about being damaged or losing a teammate!
Action in its Purest Form
It’s this erratic and overwhelming action that really makes Lapis x Labyrinth unique and fun in the it’s purest sense. Lapis is truly a great game for those times you want to just let off some steam or if you’re in the mood for something that scratches that collect-a-thon itch. But this both helps it, and at times, hurts it. Because Lapis x Labyrinth is so straightforward and unpretentious with what it wants to do, there isn’t quite as much depth as I would have wanted. And it could just be that I need to get a little further. But, quests are usually no more than just trying to get to the end of a stretch of stages, fighting enemies, collecting tons of loot and finally defeating a boss.
Each stage is timed too, so although I usually don’t have difficulty reaching the exit, it would be nice to be able to take my time and really explore every inch of the dungeon. As I get further in the game, the stages are getting tougher though and there has been a few times that the clock has ran out and I encountered the dreaded purple ghost guy that ends your mission without a second thought. Which sucks pretty dang hard because you lose all of your treasures and have to start the quest over again. But honestly it hasn’t been much of a problem other than not allowing me to practice my completionist-isms.
I will admit, as I get further as well, more of the game is opening up and is starting to expand its horizons. First, I unlocked a shop where I could buy upgrades and a cafeteria where I can buy food to use in between stages. Which has been a huge help. I’m also guessing I’ll eventually unlock something that’ll allow me to craft items (based on the loot I’ve been getting) and once that hits, I can see Lapis x Labyrinth really sinking into addiction claws into me. Not that it hasn’t already!
The New Nostalgia
All in all, Lapis x Labyrinth does not disappoint! Although it may seem a bit simple, it isn’t necessarily a detriment to the game as a whole. Especially if it opens up even further as I get deeper into the game. It’s nonsensical in all the right ways and it’s high octane action is top notch! It very much reminds me of the PS2 days when a game like this would become an instant collector’s item. One, because it was published by NIS and two, because it’s so charming, unconventional and simply gratifying!!
I wouldn’t hesitate for a second to recommend Lapis x Labyrinth, especially if your a fan of dungeon crawlers, adorable and chaotic action games or if you’re just nostalgic for the good ole days of NIS. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Unless of course you're a curmudgeonly old fart. In which case even this may bring a smile to your face.
If you’re interested in checking out Lapis x Labyrinth, it’ll be available on the Nintendo eShop as well as the PlayStation Network for $29.99 on May 28th!! Links below:
And if you’re into mouth wateringly amazing limited physical editions, this has one of those too. And it’s quite mouth wateringly amazing!
Lapis x Labyrinth x Limited Edition
One Hundred and Two
Well my friends, I think that’ll do it for today! I say it all the time, but discovering games like Lapis x Labyrinth and being able to share it with all of you is why I love doing The Daily Backlog! And boy is this game a doozy! There’s just something about manic action and screen filling special effects that make my heart go pitter patter. And I’m sure it’s no secret that I’m a big NIS America fan, so I feel honored to be able to review one of their games!!
Until tomorrow backloggers, have a great rest of your Tuesday!!
Currently Playing
Our World is Ended (Switch)
Celeste (Xbox One)
Lapis x Labyrinth (PlayStation 4)
Total Backlogged Games: 721 ...I think I hit the jackpot with this backlog!
Total Completed Games: 27 …27 completion combo!!
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